"THE TOUGH" AND "THE LAST MOUNTAIN" WIN IN DENMARK
The documentary films by Dariusz Załuski and Marcin Polar won in their respective categories at this year's edition of the Nordic Adventure Film Festival.
The first edition of Nordic Adventure Film Festival was held in 1996 thanks to a group of mountain climbing enthusiasts and courageous, avid film-makers. The festival is the oldest event in the entire Scandinavia, and the most dedicated to the extreme cinema. The organisers of the Nordick Adeventure were guided by two thoughts. First, they wanted to show this type of cinema to the viewers passionate about film, and second, they wanted to inspire and motivate people to document their own achievements more often.
At the core of the programme, there are the competitions devoted to Danish, Nordic and international films, and that is why two Polish films were invited to the competition: "The Tough" by Marcin Polar and "The Last Mountain" by Dariusz Załuski. Both productions received the highest distinctions.
"The Last Mountain" was chosen as the best film of the year. The award-winning film is set during the winter expedition to K2. A dozen climbers attempt to make a historic ascent to the summit. In the difficult conditions, they prepare the route and reach the subsequent camps. This routine is interrupted by the tragedy at the nearby Nanga Parbat. As a result of a daring rescue action, the rescuers manage to save Elisabeth Revol. Tomek Mackiewicz remains under the summit of Nanga Parbat forever. The rescuers return to K2 and resume the mountain operation. In spite of the bad weather, the climbers make the last attempt.
In turn, the film by Marcin Polar emerged as the best short film of the last 12 months. The eponymous "Tough" carries a lot of meanings: defiant, vicious, resistive, relentless, strong, resilient, cold, hard. There was a reason why the film's protagonist called his discovery just like this - it is a place which he has to face and whose every feature he can feel quite tangibly and literally on his own skin. It rouses his imagination and pushes him forward in an uncouth and obsessive way. Step by step, the camera participates, together with him, in the exploration of the places hitherto unknown to humankind, which offer increasingly stronger resistance against the delicate human substance.
This year's edition of the festival was held from the 19th to the 24th of November.
The list of all award-winners can be found here.