On Sunday, the finest selections from the finest mountain film fest arrive in Missoula, for a 6 p.m. showing at the University Theatre. Then they head north, to the Flathead, for an annual doubleheader on Tuesday and Wednesday, when more than a dozen mountain movies will reel in a sell-out crowd.
“Everyone looks forward to this,” said Kalispell organizer Steve Berglund. “It's kind of grown into a sort of cult gathering, almost.”
Many of the selections are still grass-roots efforts, he said, but gone is the amateur edge that cut through many of the productions from years past. New technologies - and more experienced filmmakers - mean better sound, better shots, better editing.
“It's really remarkable, what these guys can do,” he said.
And it's equally remarkable what the guys on the other side of the lens are doing, as well. Skiing, biking, climbing, base jumping, kayaking. The films, he said, are a blend of adventure and culture, spanning the globe and unwinding what makes mountain people tick.
He expects to show six or seven films each night in Kalispell, beginning at 7 p.m. each night at Flathead High School.
The two-day event, Berglund said, is the primary fundraiser for the Flathead Nordic Ski Patrol, a volunteer outfit that provides avalanche safety training as well as search and rescue services. Initially organized as the Essex Nordic Patrol in 1975, the FNSP has since expanded to respond throughout northwest Montana.
“This film festival has been our major moneymaker forever,” Berglund said, adding that the films are the cream of the crop from the broader Banff showing. Once that Canadian film fest concludes, the award winners take to the road each year on an ambitious world tour.
This year, the world tour hits more than 285 communities in 30 countries, from Austria to Argentina and Iceland to India. More than 195,000 people are expected to attend approximately 480 screenings.
The first showing in the United States was Friday in Great Falls, followed by Missoula and Kalispell. Later in the winter, and into the spring, the tour stops in Bozeman, Billings and Helena.
“We always sell out,” Berglund said, “so people might want to start looking for tickets before the show.”
In Kalispell, the $12 tickets are on sale at Sportsman Ski Haus, Montana Radio Cafe and Silver Moon Kayak Co. In Whitefish, vendors are Runner Up Sports and Sportsman Ski.
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