As It Happens

Renan Ozturk | 2010 | 16 min.

2011 Official Selection

Telling the story of an adventure is never an easy task. Due to harshness of the environments encountered on expeditions, films about exploration are most often produced in an atmosphere far removed from the reality and soul of the experience…sometimes completely void of the athletes input. In the warmth of an editing suit, with all the creature comforts of the modern world at hand, it’s easy for the story told to become a third party interpretation. As such, the intensity and spirit of the journey is often diluted and lost…. In January of 2010, Renan Ozturk & Cory Richards boarded planes bound for the Everest region of Nepal. Their goal was not only to establish a technical new alpine climb on Tawoche (21,320 ft.), but also to tell the story as it unfolded…from the field. With only digital SLR cameras, solar energy, a satellite modem, and two laptops, they shot, edited, and transmitted their journey from the high Himalaya. Using online social media, their story was followed by over 100k people in real time…these are their dispatches.