In its capacity as the international federation for climbing and mountaineering, the UIAA has awarded the Best Climbing Film Award at the historic Trento Film Festival since 2015.

International film festivals interested in working with the UIAA are invited to contact office@theuiaa.org

2018 WINNER

TRENTO FILM FESTIVAL
In January 2015, Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson captured the attention with their attempt to scale the Dawn Wall, an apparently impossible 3,000 foot rock face in Yosemite National Park, California. The two lived on the rock face for weeks, provoking media frenzy at global level. However, for Tommy Caldwell, the Dawn Wall was more than just an ascent. At the age of 22, the climbing prodigy was taken hostage by rebels in Kyrgyzstan. When his marriage broke down, he escaped the pain by concentrating on his extraordinary objective to free climb the Dawn Wall. With the frontier between dedication and obsession blurring, Caldwell and his companion Jorgeson spent six years meticulously planning their route. During the final attempt, Caldwell found himself faced with a decisive choice. Should he abandon his partner to achieve his dream, or risk his own success for the sake of their friendship

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THE DAWN WALL

2017 WINNER

TRENTO FILM FESTIVAL
This 13-minute production from Nepal/Austria is directed by Jochen Schmoll and documents an expedition to the Annapurna III led by David Lama, together with the Austrian skiers Hansjörg Auer and Alex Blümel. Over a period of five weeks they attempt to resolve one of the great dilemmas of climbing: the route up the south-eastern crest of the Annapurna III (at 7,555m, the 42nd highest mountain in the world).

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ANNAPURNA III UNCLIMBED

2016 WINNER

TRENTO FILM FESTIVAL
Citadel, dubbed ‘The Mountain God’ is an imposing 3,000m peak in one of the remaining untouched corners of the Great Alaskan Range: the Neacola Mountains. Due to their typically poor conditions and remote location they are largely unexplored. Helliker and Bracey, one the UK’s most formidable partnerships in alpine climbing, set an objective to make the first ascent of the extraordinary 1,200m long north-west ridge.
Director Alastair Lee embarked upon this project with the objective to push boundaries and capture hard alpine climbing like never before. Employing the latest cineflex technology combined with an innovative vision the final results are outstanding; the next dimension in mountain film. Citadel is a stunning visual experience. To match its visual prowess ‘Citadel’ is laced with a strong sense of narrative, human endeavour and a profound sense of respect for the mountain environment. The film is supported by the British Mountaineering Council (BMC), a UIAA member federation.

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THE MOUNTAIN GOD

2015 WINNER

TRENTO FILM FESTIVAL
Valley Uprising has been described by one critic as “the breakout adventure film of the decade.” It tells the story of a climbing counterculture which evolved in the world-famous Yosemite Valley as climbers were drawn by the mystique and the challenges of its granite rock faces and the film shows and tells how they climbed with single-minded dedication, often at the expense of everything else.
The film features interviews with 50 legends include Dean Potter, Alex Honnold, Lynn Hill, “Chongo” Chuck, John Bachar, Jim Bridwell, Warren Harding, Yvon Chouinard and Royal Robbins.

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VALLEY UPRISING

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