Mogens Elbæk travels across the Alps - from France to Slovenia. A cooperation between Danmarks Radio and Morgenavisen Jyllands-Posten.
Social & External
Self - Narrator
Les Etoiles de Midi is an engaging docudrama about some of the more spectacular exploits of French mountain climbers over the last several decades. In one re-enacted story, there is a wartime escape through the mountains, and in another, a daring rescue of a pair of climbers who had been missing. The actors themselves are adept at the sport of climbing, and they give the scenes an immediacy and real daring that brings the stories alive. A combination of their acrobatics and skill and the outstanding episodes in the history of French climbing creates a winning 78 minutes.
An adventure of extreme skiing in the Mont Blanc area
It is 1 p.m. on June 30, 1982, when Christophe Profit, 24, shows up at the foot of Les Drus with his pof bag, his climbing shoes and nothing else. He will try the west face of Les Drus in "solo", in the Mont Blanc massif by "Directe Américaine", 1100 meters of vertical and smooth rock. Christophe will achieve the feat of climbing the wall in free solo, without using a rope or any belaying technique. At 4:10 p.m., barely more than three hours after the start of his ascent, the new climbing star can embrace the Virgin of the Drus at the same time as the career of a high-level mountaineer. Three years later, on July 25, 1985, he climbed the north faces of the Matterhorn, the Eiger and the Jorasses in the same day. Awarded at many mountain film festivals, this great documentary is a magnificent testimony to one man's passion for climbing, the mountains and adventure.
July 1956: like every summer, the actor and cellist Maurice Baquet temporarily deserts the stage and the cinema studios to go to Chamonix where the mountaineer Gaston Rebuffat is waiting for him. A few days later, the two men achieved a historic first, that of the south face of the Aiguille du Midi (3,842 m), a magnificent wall rising like a rampart above the Vallée Blanche. July 1988: to pay tribute to the memory of his friend Gaston, now deceased, Maurice Baquet once again climbed this wall suspended between heaven and earth with the man who, 50 years his junior, is considered one of his best contemporary mountaineers: Christophe Profit.
Kick off the season with Warren Miller’s Timeless, presented by Volkswagen, as we celebrate 70 years of ski cinematography and travel with top athletes across the globe to renowned mountain locations. Featuring ski legends like Glen Plake, alongside newcomers Caite Zeliff, Jaelin Kauf, and Baker Boyd. Road-trip with rippers from Arlberg to the Matterhorn, be immersed in the hometown hill of Eldora and discover a different side of Jackson Hole, plus much more.
Portrait of Jean-Claude Droyer, a famous French climber and mountain guide. He is known for having participated in the rise of free climbing in France in the late 1970s. Trained at the climbing schools of Fontainebleau and Saussois, he distinguished himself in 1965 by solo climbing the Pentecôte route at Glandasse. He also made first ascents in the Verdon Gorges, winter ascents in the Prealps and the Mont Blanc massif, notably in 1971 the first solo ascent of the Directe Américaine on the west face of the Drus. The film was selected for the "Les Écrans Documentaires" festival in 2004.
Paragot and Bérardini: two climbers who fill all climbing enthusiasts with admiration. In Fontainebleau, Saussois, the Alps, the Andes, the Himalayas, and all over the world, they have left their names attached to the most difficult routes and the most prestigious peaks. Here, they recount only the climbs they completed together: famous expeditions to Aconcagua and Huascarán, firsts in the Alps and the Dolomites. An unwavering friendship, comical and tragic adventures—this is what they share with us in the warm atmosphere of their memories. "La Cordée des Voyous" will be included in Jean Afanassieff's film "La Grande Cordée," which deals with post-war proletarian mountaineering.
Directed by Jean-Marc Boivin in 1977, Glace Extrême is a documentary about mountaineering and extreme skiing at the Aiguille Verte and the Grand Pilier D'angle in the Mont-Blanc massif chain in France, with the legends of mountaineering Jean-Marc Boivin, Patrick Gabarrou and ski champion Patrick Vallencant. It was broadcast in the Carnet de L'Aventure on France 2 in 1980.
In the Briançonnais mountains, in France, men and women on the roads of exile find the courage to cross the passes on foot, risking their lives. Arrived at the end of a long journey, exhausted, they do not know if they could settle down somewhere to start their life over. It is this transitional time that "The Adventure" tells. Ossoul, the Sudanese poet, Mamadou, survivor of an icy night at the Col de l'Échelle, Charlotte, Mother Courage and others are gradually getting back on their feet and settling to embark on a new life. Filmed over three years, "L'Aventure" is a story of resilience, friendships and revealed emotions. The portraits are drawn and deepened until everyone can recognize themselves in the other, put themselves in their place and understand them.
No Comment portrays the top climbers and young talents of the scene in both bouldering and route climbing with spectacular cinematography. It doesn't just show the hardest problems, it's also about climbing as a lifestyle and those who have shaped the scene from the beginning, such as Ben Moon, Jerry Moffat and Gerhard Hörhager. It also showcases the young talents like David Lama, Luca Zardini, Markus Bock and Michael Mayr introducing a new generation of super athletes, their philosophy and the way they live their lives. The film features an original soundtrack by10 Tyrolean musicians.
Lucien Berardini and Edmond Denis are two mountaineers who took part in the French expedition to Aconcagua (Andes Mountains) in 1954. Both suffered severe frostbite to their fingers and toes, and three years later, they set out to climb the Aiguille du Géant, a legendary route in the Mont Blanc massif. The camera closely follows the efforts of the roped party, an example of strength and self-sacrifice, until their victorious arrival at the summit.
The Mer de Glace in Chamonix, November 86: every summer the meltwater that runs on the surface of the glacier flows into a huge crevasse called "a mill". In 1897, Joseph VALLOT had explored it to a depth of 60m, a lake had prevented him from going any further. Since then no one had descended into this well. In the fall, a multidisciplinary team made up of mountaineers including Jean Marc BOIVIN, speleologists and scientists descending into the crevasse... Superb images and live comments in a temperature of 0° and a humidity of 100%. The team reached 110m deep under the ice, a world first in glacier exploration. Jean marc BOIVIN seems delighted with his first speleological exploration. With the participation of Serge AVIOTTE, Jean Michel ASSELIN, Jean Marc BOIVIN, Janot LAMBERTON, Pierrot PILLET, Louis REYNAUD, Jean Luc RIGAUD and Denis TERMIER.
Joseph Vallot and his team of guides and porters climb Mont Blanc in 1906. Their ascent will take three days. They spent their nights at the Grands Mulets refuge and the Grand Plateau refuge. This is the very first successfully filmed ascent. Joseph Vallot (1854-1925), rich heir of Lodève in Occitania. He devotes part of his fortune to the observation of the Alps, sometimes opposing the scientific community. He built an observatory, still standing today.
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