2nd International Festival of Mountain Cinema

Finalizó la II edición del Festival USHUAIA SHH…
Entre el 19 y 24 de agosto Ushuaia vivió la montaña en el cine

La última nevada de agosto propició el escenario ideal para el exitoso desarrollo de la Segunda Edición del Festival Internacional de Cine de Montaña USHUAIA SHH…, en la ciudad que da nombre al mismo. Un evento que tiene cientos de razones de ser, entre ellas promover las artes audiovisuales, estrechar el vínculo entre las obras y los espectadores para transformarlas en un vehículo cultural. La temática puntual de este festival lo convierte en una propuesta diferente, debido a que no hay una tradición de festivales de montaña en nuestro país, algo extraño teniendo en cuenta la riqueza y diversidad que aporta la cordillera que nos delimita.

El pasado domingo 24, luego de seis días de programación y numerosas propuestas alternativas que invitaron al público a disfrutar de la montaña, los miembros de Vértigo Producciones, organizadores del USHUAIA SHH… realizaron un balance altamente positivo de su segunda edición y comentaron “además de intentar unir a los habitantes de nuestra ciudad con el entorno natural, el Festival intenta destacar el nivel de dedicación, amor y obsesión que cientos de personas sienten por todo lo relacionado con las montañas, algo que se vio en cada una de las películas de esta edición”.

Más de 1400 personas amantes del cine, la aventura, profesionales y aficionados a los deportes outdoor y público en general se acercaron a ver a la montaña en la pantalla grande. Una competencia de freestyle en el Glaciar Martial; esculturas en hielo, saltos y motos de nieve en el centro invernal Tierra Mayor, y un encuentro de boulder fueron algunas de las actividades al aire libre que propiciaron el encuentro del público para disfrutar el frío y la nieve de diversas maneras.

La muestra de Arte interdisciplinaria Sur Polar, Arte en Antártida de la curadora Andrea Juan, brindó, en el marco del festival, el escenario ideal para transportarse a paisajes antárticos, permitiendo experimentar la montaña a través de todos los sentidos.

El Festival USHUAIA SHH… redobló este año su propuesta al incorporar dos instancias competitivas y una gran inyección de adrenalina audiovisual con las cualidades sanadoras de una buena dosis de vino caliente montañes. Durante una semana se proyectaron veinticuatro películas entre documentales, ficciones y animaciones referidas a la naturaleza, medio ambiente, deporte, aventura, y expediciones, conjugados con dibujos animados y material fílmico en 16 mm.

Con la participación de Fernando Martín Peña, especialista en preservación y divulgación de material fílmico; Mauricio Petit, Presidente del Cineclub Ushuaia; Juan Pablo Terrado, Free rider y guía de cordillera; Pablo Conde columnista de la revista Inrockuptibles y editor de la página web Encerrados Afuera y Mariano de Antueno realizador audiovisual, el jurado elevó su voz al dar a conocer las películas ganadoras:

Se destacó como mejor personaje a Didier Berthod, del film FIRST ASCENT de Sender Films, U.S.A.; la película argentina EL CAMINO DEL CÓNDOR, dirigida por Christian Holler recibió el premio a mejor fotografía; y al largometraje 7 PAREDES 7 CONTINENTES: ZETUA PEAK, del director Javier Baraizarra Barrutia, de España le fue otorgado el premio a la hazaña.

Finalmente el jurado declaró que los premiados con un viaje a Península
Antártica a bordo de una embarcación de Quark Expeditions son LA CAJA, del argentino Manual Lo Bianco, como mejor corto, y el film AMAZONIAN VERTIGO del francés Evrard Wendenbaum, como largometraje ganador.

El 4 y 5 de septiembre de 18 a 21 hs., el público de Buenos Aires podrá disfrutar de la esencia del Festival de Cine de Montaña USHUAIA SHH… que presentará en la Sala INCAA Km 1, Salta y Moreno de Buenos Aires, las películas ganadoras y una selección del material que integró la programación.

Los organizadores, Vértigo Producciones, Club Andino Ushuaia y Cine Club Ushuaia, agradecen al público de la ciudad que los acompañó en esta Segunda Edición y convocan a participar de la programación del año próximo.

Para mayor información ingresa a www.shhfestival.com / info@shhfestival.com

Trip to the South of Chile

We just got back from a snowboard trip all over Chile's Ski resorts to check out the conditions hitting up El Colorado, Valle Nevado, Portillo, Pucon, Corralco, Los Arenales, and Nevados de Chillan. Here's a quick rundown of the resorts as of mid to late August:

Portillo Ski Resort: August 12, 2008 Snow Conditions: Good Snowpack, lots of powder. It was a kind of far day trip from Santiago, taking around 2 hours to get there but the lift lines were practically empty and it was powder for the taking. They even added another 5 person rastre. which provides access into the trademark steep lines and chutes of Portillos resort. We hit up all the runs and ended the day with a couple backcountry hikes for pure dry pow slashes.

El Colorado Backcountry: August 13, 2008 It can be a bit hard to see on a greybird day at El Colorado ski resort because there is a lack of trees for depth perception. So you end up getting dizzy and unable to tell which direction you are heading. Luckily we found a run through the rocks into Farellones that we could see alright. So we dropped the chute into the slushy pow and pointed it for a fast double rock drop. After that we called it a day.

Pucon: August 16 & 17, 2008 There was some fresh powder coming in for us in Pucon and we arrived to the resort with great conditions, bluebird and pow. Unfortunately the lifts weren't open so we hiked some runs through the trees and slid some logs. On the second day it had warmed up in most places and the resort was filled with ice. That didn't stop us from finding pow in the trees, but it resulted in some fresh board chips from negotiating the woods and a bit of hiking around.

Corralco: August 18, 2008: The resort is only open from Friday to Sunday and since we showed up on a Monday we had to find our own means to ride once again. After the amazingly scenic drive to the resort, with some very rare sun for the area we were stoked to have driven this far. You have to drive through a one car road which is carved out of snow taller than the roof and arrive at the volcano. From the parking lot we shredded along the side of the road above the drivers as they followed us down. Then we built a road gap and hit it up a few times.

Los Arenales: August 19, 2008 As we arrived it started snowing and the road to the lodge was covered with snow from the parking lot. We realized that we were spending another day hiking around. The only other people in the parking lot were some military skiers out on a mission into the snowy abyss. We hiked around in some trees and snapped some photos.

City of Chillan: August 19, 2008 Nightime: Sidenote for first time travelers to Chile: Our friend fell asleep while he was watching a truck full of snowboard gear in the Chillan jumbo parking lot. he forgot to lock any of the doors and he was parked in a dark corner of the supermarket. Apparently this parking lot is crawling with thieves who proceeded to steal 3 backpacks out of the inside of the truck while he was sleeping! Amazingly they couldn't get the snowboards in time.

Nevados de Chillan: August 20, 2008 It snowed a little overnight and the drive up to the mountain was beautiful. Some of the key chairlifts weren't working, so you were forced to take t-bars most of the way up. We had some girl beginners to circle-bar lifts and they had a tough time making it up on the things. The chair operators were of little help to these innocent girls and he would yank the handle and send them flying whether the were ready or not. Definately bad customer service by the lifties at Nevados de Chillan. There is a ski and snowboard contest going doing there the 21st and 22nd of August and they were building the park up with a boardercross, jumps, rails, and boxes. The park was in a cool spot in the steeps and I enjoyed this addition to Chillan's snowpark features. We headed all the way to the top of the mountain and checked out the volcanoes Old Chillan and New Chillan which were sending off volcanic steam. There was a cool mound of snow and we popped some ollies in front of the volcanoes for the camera. Then we shredded some fun pow mixed with icy patches. There were definately some goods out there, but it was hard to avoid bumping around on ice. It was really surprising to see the lack of base Nevados de Chillan has this year. We attempted to do some familiar tree runs, but there wasn't enough space in between the trees like usual and it was harder to negotiate the deep valleys on your shredstick without having to hike or one-foot a bit. It was fun to shred but not as good as years past.

Pink Sessions 1st All Girl Ski & Snowboard Contest at Valle Nevado, Chile

1st Place / Lugar Carola Davila slides the Graffitti Box with some smooth style.

The Pink Sessions 1st All-Girls ski & snowboard contest was held at Valle Nevado Saturday August 9th. Around 30 ladies showed up to slide the boxes, jump the booters, and flaunt their styliest snow gear. Some good riding went down and it was impressive to see how many women are starting to get into the sport here in Chile. Everyone showed up with a smile and positive vibes. It was a nice progression session for the chicas who charged hard and rode better than some of their guy friends do. Props out to Felipe Erlandsen who organized the event. Sponsors included Mallsport, Burton, Rusty, DC, Carefree, Cosmopolitan, Funner Films, and more.

Pink Sessions es el primer concurso de snowboard solo para mujeres en Valle Nevado que tuvo lugar el dia sabado 9 de agosto. Alrededor de 30 chicas demostraron su habilidad en las cajas, barandas y saltos, todo con su mejores tenidas de ski. Buen riding y fue impresionante ver lo buenas que se estan volviendo las mujeres snowboardistas aca en Chile. Todas se presentaron con una gran sonrisa y muy buenas vibras. Fue una buena sesion progresiva para las chicas que anduvieron duro y mejor que algunos de mis amigos hombres. Felicitaciones a Felipe Erlandsen que organizo el evento. Evento auspiciado por Mallsport, Burton, Rusty, DC, Carefree, Cosmopolitan, Funner Films, y mas.


Pro Women
1st Place $600 - Carola Davila (Chile)
2nd Place $250 - Sabrina Kusar, (France)
3rd Place $100 - Roberta Irarrazaval, (Chile)

Am Women
1st Place - Belen Berrios, (Chile)
2nd Place - Jeime Liebonitz, (Chile)
3rd Place - Maria Canterini, (Brazil)


Roberta gets some big air on her way to third place.


Sabrina Kusar throws down a diirtty method over the big tabletop jump.


The awards at the first ever Pink Sessions.


Pink Sessions Ladies.