SOAR FILM FESTIVAL
Sudbury Outdoor Adventure Reels Film Festival
SOAR Film Festival is the first of its kind in Northern Ontario, Canada. A unique partnership between Laurentian University’s Outdoor Adventure Leadership Program (ADVL) and Sudbury Indie Cinema has allowed adventure film to SOAR. The festival boasts a curated programme of outdoor adventure and environmental/wilderness themed features and mid-length films from around the world, as well as adventures shorts- both local and international. Special consideration in the selection of films is given to diverse voices, as well as those which feature outdoor activities and adventures enjoyed in Northeastern Ontario, namely: wilderness canoeing, back-country winter travel, Nordic skiing, kayaking, mountain biking, and climbing.
TICKETS and FESTIVAL PASSES
Earlybird Passes are available until October 21st for just $50.
EARLY SELECTIONS
All screenings will take place at Sudbury Indie Cinema, 162 Mackenzie Street, Sudbury. Free parking.
Opening Feature
Karuara: People of The River
by Miguel Araoz Cartagena, Stephanie Boyd
Friday November 8 6:30pm
2024 / Peru/Canada / Documentary / 72 min. / Spanish, Kukama-Kukamiria. English subtitles
Screening is followed by a Filmmaker and Doc Subject Q & A
Mariluz Canaquiri es una mujer kukama, tierna, sabia y fuerte, para ella y su pueblo el río es la “ɨa” (ee-ah). Es el centro, la fuerza y madre de su universo. De él comen y beben, lo transitan; en él vierten sus lágrimas y sonrisas. Pero la conexión es aún más profunda. Debajo de la superficie del río viven los karuaras, o gente del río. Cuando una persona se ahoga en el río, no muere, se convierte en un karuara o gente del río, y pasa a vivir en los pueblos y ciudades que hay debajo del río. Se comunica con sus seres queridos en sueños. Los karuaras descansan en boas hamacas, visten con zapatos de carachamas (peces), tienen por relojes cangrejos; y por sombreros rayas. Utilizan sardinas como cigarros. Son seres poderosos. Cuando sus familiares humanos están enfermos son llamados para sanarlos. La sobrevivencia de los karuaras está estrechamente entrelazada al pueblo kukama. Uno no puede vivir sin el otro, ambos son guardianes del río y el bosque. Derrames de petróleo, grandes barcos comerciales y megaproyectos fluviales amenazan los ríos, y todos sus habitantes, incluido el mundo de abajo, el de los karuaras. El olvido con aroma de mundo moderno acecha las comunidades, Mari Luz dice que su pueblo enfrenta un genocidio cultural. Mientras que las empresas extranjeras y el estado depredan los recursos de la Amazonía, las comunidades indígenas carecen de un desarrollo básico como escuelas, colegios, centros de salud y agua potable.
Deep in Peru’s Amazon region, the Marañón River is home to a vast network of spirit villages ruled by the Karuara, or “People of the River.” Through enchanting hand-painted animation that fills the frame with vibrant compositions, we are transported inside the river world, where spirits lounge in hammocks made of boa constrictors and smoke sardines wearing stingray hats and catfish shoes. Laughing children ride to school on giant turtles and play football with inflated blowfish. Behind their playfulness, however, the Karuara are also metaphysical ecologists maintaining the delicate balance of life in the waterways. For centuries, the Kukama people have depended on their rivers for survival. But, in a world that continuously puts a price tag on nature and humanizes the corporations responsible for the cultural genocide that is taking place, a federation of women, led by Mariluz Canaquiri, decide to fight back and file a groundbreaking lawsuit demanding the river, too, be recognized as a legal person with rights.
Courir sur le toit du monde : le marathon de l’Everest / Running on Earth’s Roof: Everest Marathon
by Gabriel du Chalard de Taveau
2023 / France / Documentary / 37 min. / English, French. English Subtitles
Chaque année, 200 coureurs bravent le froid, les glaciers et les sentiers du massif du Khumbu au Népal pour se retrouver au camp de base de l'Everest (5300m) et participer au marathon le plus haut du monde.
Gabriel, Mathieu et Elyar, 3 amis d'enfance et employés de bureau de Paris et Londres, relèvent le défi de courir et de terminer cette course en haute altitude malgré leur relative inexpérience du trail running.
Le film les suit dans leur préparation, leur trek de 11 jours jusqu'au camp de base et leur course le jour J, ainsi que des témoignages d'athlètes du monde entier et des interviews des organisateurs de cet événement légendaire.
***
Each year, 200 runners brave the cold, glaciers and trails of Nepal's Khumbu massif to meet at Everest Base Camp (5300m) and take part in the world's highest marathon.
Gabriel, Mathieu and Elyar, 3 childhood friends and office workers from Paris and London, take on the challenge of running and finishing this high-altitude race despite their relative inexperience in trail running.
The film follows them as they prepare, trek 11 days to base camp and race on D-Day, alongside testimonials from athletes from around the world and interviews with the organisers of this legendary event.
Nuptse: l’inaccessible absolu / Nuptse: touching the intangible
by Nate Stephens
2023 / Nepal / Documentary / 66 min. / French, English Subtitles
Hélias Millerioux, Frédéric Degoulet and Benjamin Guigonnet are dreaming of opening a new extreme route on the legendary south face of Nuptse. A wall approaching 8000m in the heart of the Himalayas. "Nuptse - touching the intangible" or the obsessive quest of three French mountaineers trapped in their desire for a summit.
From the Smallest Streams
by Nathan Plamondon
2024 / Canada / Documentary / 29 min. / English
From the Smallest Streams is a short film exploring the deep connection between water, land, and the passion for fishing. Set in the stunning Muskwa-Kechika Management Area of northern British Columbia, the film highlights the profound respect for nature intrinsic to fly fishing in this pristine environment.
Through beautiful cinematography and intimate storytelling, it showcases the dedication of anglers and conservationists working to preserve this wild landscape for future generations. Viewers are invited to witness the magic of this rugged, biodiverse territory and understand the importance of protecting it for tomorrow's outdoor enthusiasts.
Columbia River Canoe Project
by Robert Lester, Neil Larson
2024 / USA / Documentary / 62 min. / English
The Columbia River Canoe Project follows cousins Robert Lester and Braxton Mitchell as they attempt a 1,300-mile canoe expedition from the Continental Divide near Butte, Montana, all the way to the Pacific Ocean. Braxton, only 18, has never been in a canoe before volunteering for this adventure of a lifetime. Though just a few years older, Robert leads the expedition, trying to overcome the unforeseen challenges of such an ambitious journey. As the pair navigate the river, enduring the hardships of battling dams, rapids, and wind, Braxton grows up, learning about life and discovering his true capabilities.
While following their downstream journey, the film highlights the ecological issues facing the Columbia River Watershed and promotes the importance of environmental stewardship. The Columbia River Canoe Project takes viewers on an adventure filled with breathtaking landscapes, unpredictable challenges, and a wealth of inspiration.
Call Me Moab
by Ryan C Pierce
Saturday November 9 4:00pm
2024 / USA / Documentary, Short / 39 min. / English
This premiere will be followed with a Panel of Local Outdoors Entrepreneurs
Call Me Moab chronicles the story of the town’s newest mountain bike outfitter- from ideation in 2019 all the way to modern day success. Some said his business plan wouldn’t work. Tenacity and creativity has proven otherwise.
Viewers will be inspired and challenged as they witness an against-the-grain business model take shape, while at the same time learning the major stages of Moab's history and how it evolved into the tourism giant it is today. But more than that, Call Me Moab shows the journey of every explorer, every dreamer looking for a way to build a better life.
The Giants
by Rachael Antony and Laurence Billiet
Saturday November 9 7:00pm
2024 / Australia / Documentary / 90 min. / English
13 wins/nominations including Best Documentary, Australian Film Critic’s Association Awards
The Giants explores the intertwined fates of trees and humans in a poetic portrait of environmentalist Bob Brown and the Forest. From a seedling to forest elder: the film is a masterclass that draws on Bob’s 50 years of inspiring activism, from the Franklin campaign for Tasmania’s last wild river, to today’s battle for the Tarkine rainforest. Told in Bob’s own words, his story is interwoven with the extraordinary life cycle of Australia’s giant trees, brought to the screen with stunning award-winning cinematography and immersive animated forest landscapes. One of Australia's most successful documentaries of 2023, the film inspired national rallies, put deforestation on the political agenda, and mobilized countless individuals and community groups to stand up for forests
Ice Waterfalls
by David Arnaud
2024 / Spain / Documentary / 47 min. / English, Spanish
For years, professional kayaker Aniol Serrasolses has dreamed of running the rivers and waterfalls formed by melting ice caps and gigantic glaciers. Accompanied by a team of expert kayakers and Arctic guides, he ventures into one of the most remote and rugged regions of the planet: Svalbard. Amidst the Arctic's otherworldly landscapes, reality is about to surpass his wildest dreams.
Polar Route
by Beto Pandiani, Sylvio Rocha
2024 / Brazil / Documentary / 90 min. / English, Portuguese, Spanish
The legendary Northwest Passage, which connects the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans through the Arctic, is not usually crossed by many ships and boats, let alone sailboats. On a catamaran, without a cabin and a motor it can be easily count on the fingers of one hand. And this is precisely the challenge faced by Brazilian sailor Beto Pandiani and French navigator Igor Bely. They left Seattle, in Washington State towing their sailboat, drove almost 2.000 miles all the way to the Artic Ocean where they waited for the ice to open in an Inuit village. Once the expedition started, they sailed for nearly 1,500 nautical miles exposed to the elements, facing extreme cold, heat and even large swats of mosquitoes in an epic adventure, while investigating the climate changes that are radically altering the landscape, the fauna, the life of the native peoples and of all other inhabitants of the region.
Meta, female pioneers in mountaineering
by Annette Wahl
2023 / Germany / Documentary / 19 min. / English
On June 28, 1870, Meta Brevoort embarked on a daring quest to become the first to summit La Meije in the Dauphiné Alps. Opting for the prominent peak Doigt de Dieu, her party realised too late that the true summit, Grand Pic de la Meije, stood just a few meters higher. An impassable knife-edged ridge thwarted their final ascent. Despite this, reaching Doigt de Dieu was a remarkable achievement, one many deemed impossible. Meta Brevoort emerged as a trailblazing pioneer in alpinism, conquering numerous peaks and shattering societal and gender norms.
In a thrilling homage to Brevoort, modern-day climber Maria Granberg retraces her steps, scaling La Meije and delving into the rich legacy of a woman unjustly overlooked in mountaineering history. This film captures the spirit of adventure, the challenge of the climb, and the relentless pursuit of dreams against all odds. Join Maria as she explores the life and legacy of one of alpinism’s greatest pioneers.
Almost Over the Hill
by Julia Creet
2024 / Canada / Documentary, Short / 6 min. / English
You are never too old to climb a hill. Three older women cyclists and their coach talk hill-climbing strategies while happily riding up.
Le Monde Est À Elles /
The World Is Ours
by Nadia Louis-Desmarchais
2023 / Canada / Documentary, Short / 21 min. / English, French
À l’heure actuelle où un jeune sur deux présente des symptômes d’anxiété et de dépression, Le monde est à elles est un film qui donne l’opportunité à six jeunes adolescentes montréalaises de sortir de leur milieu urbain pour une première fois, afin de participer à une expédition de canot-camping en nature. En présentant leurs difficultés et leurs petites victoires, le film embrasse leur vulnérabilité de façon poétique et lumineuse en soulignant à grand trait la puissance d’une sororité féminine et de l’intervention thérapeutique par la nature.
***
Currently, post pandemic, one in two young people show symptoms of anxiety and depression. The World is Ours is a film that gives the opportunity to six Montreal teenage girls to leave their urban environment for the first time to take part in a nature canoe-camping expedition. By presenting their struggles and small victories, the film poetically and luminously embraces their vulnerability, emphasizing in broad strokes the power of female sisterhood and therapeutic intervention by nature.
In an intervention cinema approach and seeking to democratize access to the outdoors for marginalized communities, the production of the film took on the responsibility of defraying the costs of the expedition for these six young women.
Wildflowers
by Trixie Pacis
2024 / Canada / Documentary / 37 min. / English
Mary Schäffer Warren (1861-1939) was 43 years old and recently widowed when she bucked Victorian-era conventions and reinvented herself as a mountain explorer, writer, and photographer. Over a century later, Meghan J. Ward — an outdoor writer, historian and Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society (RCGS) — encounters Mary’s remarkable story. Captivated by the mystery of this woman she can’t meet in person, Meghan embarks on a journey of archival research and backcountry adventures to better understand Mary’s legacy and motivations. She invites photographer/RCGS Fellow Natalie Gillis and travel writer Jane Marshall on a six-day hiking and paddling expedition to retrace the final leg of Mary’s famous 1908 expedition to Maligne Lake in Jasper National Park, Alberta. Delving into a landscape that connects adventurers across time, the modern-day team compares past to present, reflects on Mary’s legacy, and discovers that sometimes we must look back to blaze a better trail forward.
Closing Feature
The Eagle With the Sunlit Eye
by Ted Simpson
Sunday November 10 4:30pm
2023 / UK / Documentary / 92 min. / English
Winner Best Environmental Film Banff Mountain Film Festival
We drove it to extinction. We brought it back. Can we learn to look it in the eye? The White Tailed Eagle is one of the largest birds of prey on the planet. For generations, humans have struck an uneasy relationship with this apex predator. The return of this apex predator in Britain sparked controversy, as accusations of livestock killings quickly surfaced from Scotland’s rural community. Despite no record of predation in Norway, and with an Irish reintroduction scheme ongoing, in Scotland a war of words rages on over the future of this raptor.
FESTIVAL SCHEDULE AT A GLANCE
All screenings take place at Sudbury Indie Cinema- 162 Mackenzie St. Laneway/side entrance.
Friday November 8
6:30 pm
Opening Feature
Karuara: People of The River
8:45 pm
FRANCE HIMALAYAN
Courir sur le toit du monde : le marathon de l’Everest 37 min.
Nuptse: l’inaccessible absolu 66 min.
Saturday November 9
12:00 pm
ADVL Student SHORTS
75 min shorts + discussion
2:00 pm
Eco-Adventures in the Pacific North West
From The Smallest Streams 30 min.
Columbia River Project 60 min.
4:00 pm
Call Me Moab
Panel (40 min.+ 25 min = 65 min.)
7:00 pm
The Giants 90 min.
9:00 pm
EXTREME ADVENTURES IN CANadian ARCTIC
Ice Waterfalls 47 min.
Polar Route 60 min.
Sunday November 10
10:00 am
Brunch
With Kevin Callan at Books and Beans
12:00 pm
SHORTS PROGRAMME TBA
75 min + 15 Q & A
2:00 pm
WOMEN IN THE OUTDOORS
With panel 80 min. + 25 min. panel = 105 min.
Meta, female pioneers in mountaineering 19 min.
Almost Over The Hill 6 min.
The World Is Ours 21 min.
Wildflowers 37 min.
4:15pm
Jury Awards
4:30 pm
Closing Feature
The Eagle With the Sunlit Eye 92 min.
Festival Presenting Sponsors
Event and Awards Sponsor
Premiere Sponsors
Film Sponsors
