The Mountaineers
Join The Mountaineers to view some of the world's best outdoor films largely created by women and featuring female athletes! Films this year include the story of a refugee that finds a home in the climbing community, a marine biologist dedicated to protecting our planet, a pair of singletrack shredders that use pizza to bridge differences, and much more.
The Mountaineers historically hosts fundraisers like film festivals and events to support our efforts in education, recreation, and conservation. While we can't gather as an outdoor community right now, we can still get inspired by the athletes, stories, and journeys in the No Man's Land Film Festival. With COVID-19 significantly impacting The Mountaineers revenue sources, the proceeds from this virtual film festival will help fund our mission as a non-profit.
How it works
The film festival is available for one night only, and accessible through ticket purchase. Once tickets are purchased you will receive instructions and a link to a locked Vimeo page via email, sent out no later than 4:30pm on Thursday, July 16. This link will give you access to the film fest for a special five-hour window (Thursday, July 16 from 5-10pm). The entire film fest has a run time of one hour and 36 minutes. You may start, stop, and pause the films as many times as you want during that five-hour period!
We have a suggested ticket donation of $10 per individual or $20 per household.
We would also like to recognize that this is a challenging time for all of us, and we want to include as many outdoor enthusiasts in this adventure film festival as possible. If you have been financially impacted by COVID-19 and don't have the resources to purchase the full ticket prices, please select a dollar amount that you are comfortable with.
Festival Playlist
Films with * indicate female involvement in the production
Footsteps*
In a small boxing gym in Louisiana, two generations of female boxers reveal how the sport changed their lives.
Refuge*
What does a refugee look like? Growing up as an immigrant in the United States left Piseth Sam feeling nationless yet, at the same time, she wondered what exactly made her different. Piseth uses climbing and fitness to create her own characterizations of self, and shapes her own definition of American.
Golden
Peering out her tall bedroom windows to the highway below, Caitlin Davis dreamed of life as an ecologist. When she saw mountains for the first time on a backpacking trip after college, her fate was sealed. Today, in Idaho’s demanding sagebrush country, the raptor biologist spends her days rappelling into golden eagle nests studying how human impact affects their reproduction and productivity.
Mi Mama*
Skydiver, runner, climber and cardiac nurse Nadia Mercado credits her mother, an immigrant from Quisqueya (now the Dominican Republic and Haiti), with her love of the outdoors. Thirty-seven years ago, her mother traveled to Arches National Park and dreamed of returning with her children. Together, the two return to explore their own connection, and the familial bond through nature.
Dead Last*
Having been born without the lower part of her left arm, 26-year-old Kaitlin Heatherly had never considered her potential as a world champion rock climber, let alone much outside of her comfort. But after attending a SheLift retreat for women with physical differences in Moab, Kaitlin discovered her latent talent and passion for the sport. Within 5 months of training, Kaitlin entered herself into the national paraclimbing competition, placing her into the world championships. This is a story that follows an unassuming athlete's journey to worlds and the impact that community and recreation can have on one’s self-esteem.
The Litas*
This is a film about Gevin Fax, the oldest member of the women motorcycle collective, The Litas. Growing up in Los Angeles as an African American lesbian in the 1960s, Gevin found that the world wasn’t always forgiving. She started riding dirt bikes at the age of twelve which distanced her even further from the other kids. Though it was because of her love for riding that gifted her peace of mind; it was her meditation, her medicine, her way to escape all of the other noise. Now, because of The Litas, she shares her love for the road with thousands of women all over the world.
Speak to Me Softly*
Experience fear and emotion alongside climber Jenny Abegg as she ascends a route while fighting the self-criticism and doubt from that little voice we all have in the back of our heads.
The Adventure Itinerary*
Katherine is dedicating her life to harnessing adventure as a means of protecting and conserving the marine environment, to inspiring everyone to step beyond their doorstep through adventure to fall in love with the beauty and wonder of nature and through this love, to be inspired to take action to protect our wonderful planet.
The Ripple Effect*
2020 marks the centennial of the passage of the 19th Amendment. To celebrate the women who fought tirelessly to get it added to the constitution, Colorado artist Jane DeDecker created a monument that would be placed in the nation’s capital to serve enduring reminders of the sacrifices made for this most basic freedom. The first monument in our nation’s capital dedicated to the women who made it possible for women to vote is pending Senate approval. To help raise awareness, we sent three of the most powerful women we know, Trail Sisters’ Gina Lucrezi, Mirna Valerio, and Anna Frost, to Jane’s studio in Loveland, Colorado to learn more about the artist and the movement.
Dream Job*
A comedy documentary about a girl working in the ski industry who decides to become one of the stars, DREAM JOB begs the question - they go up, they go down, how hard can it be? The film follows comedian Katie Burrell through "days in the life" with three of the industry's biggest names: Leah Evans, founder of Girls Do Ski, Christina Lustenberger, ex-Olympian and big mountain skier, and Diny Harrison, the first fully certified female guide in North America. Needless to say, Katie finds out how hard it really can be.
Life of Pie
It wasn’t long ago that the small Colorado town of Fruita was solely a hub of agriculture and oil and gas development. But singletrack shredders and pizza chefs Jen Zeuner and her partner Anne Keller have helped to transform th highdesert town into a mountain biking hotspot with their Hot Tomato Café. It wasn’t always easy — some residents of conservative Fruita weren’t quite ready for their “lifestyle” at first. But the women’s delicious East Coast-style pizza — and the love they put into making it — have made them indispensable members of the community and turned the Hot Tomato into the living room of the Grand Valley’s outdoor recreation industry.
Where the Wild Things Keep Playing*
An ode to the athlete who relishes in getting dirty, who chuckles after a long day in the mountains, effortlessly glides through the crystal clear waves and most importantly, is unapologetic in pursuing their love of getting rowdy in adventures. Director Krystle Wright brings this next installment since the wild things never stopped playing.
Total Runtime = 93min
