Meru

Wherever they are and whatever happens, they keep filming. In an avalanche, during a serious skiing accident, in the ambulance, during a storm at 6,000 meters (20,000 feet) while hanging onto a precipice in their tent, when their climbing buddy suffers a stroke and when they have to return, frustrated because they didn’t manage to reach the top. Together with director Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin and Renan Ozturk go into the archives to capture their climbing history. They put those close to them in front of the camera so they can talk about their loved ones’ passion, and they tell us about their education, experiences and why they continue even after accidents. It’s precisely this honesty and vulnerability that makes go beyond the usual collection of images of exhaustion, snow and arguing at high altitude. This is a story about friendship, trust and risk assessment, and it shows why the trio – Chin, Ozturk and climber Conrad Anker – is at the top of their league, as climbers and as cameramen. With their spectacularly crisp images from the mountains, supplemented by crane shots, time lapses and 3D animation, they show us how overwhelming and not necessarily cool it is to climb to the top of the Himalayas.