Each year, the Banff Mountain Film Festival Tour connects world-class adventurers and spectacular remote locations. Quebec festival-goers have a nice surprise this year with two short films starring two local women, Émilie Pellerin and Lysanne Richard, in local venues, Val-David and Thetford Mines.
Posted yesterday at 8:00 a.m.
The two films, retained in the official selection of the Festival, are directed by another young Quebecer, Alexa Fay, in partnership with producer Sophie Claivaz-Loranger and cinematographer Simon Dufour.
“It’s a bit cliché to say that, but it’s always been a dream to present a film in Banff”, says Alexa Fay.
It’s a tour that I was going to see every year, I thought it would be amazing to have a film presented on the big screen in front of everyone.
Alexa Fay
The trio submitted their first two projects, EM and Always higher, which were retained. “We could never have imagined such a great reception for our first two films,” says Alexa Fay.
EM recounts the quest of a high-level Quebec climber, Émilie Pellerin, who wants to climb one of the most difficult traditional climbing routes in North America, La Zébrée, in the Val-David–Val regional park. – Morin.
Alexa Fay meets the climber for the first time in Val-David, for what was to be a simple reconnaissance of the route. It had rained the previous days and the route was just too wet to climb. However, that did not stop Émilie Pellerin.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY ALEXA FAY
Climber Émilie Pellerin checks her trad climbing gear. This type of climbing requires the installation of removable protective parts during the ascent.
“I had brought a single camera when our initial plan was to have several,” says Alexa Fay. Émilie begins to climb, she continues, I realize that she is in the process of achieving La Zébrée. I was alone with a camera that had almost no battery left. I was so stressed: imagine if I don’t catch the end! In the end, everything went well. Émilie is the only one who climbed the route in these conditions. »
A single dive
Alexa Fay had a certain sensitivity to this feat, being herself a climber. But she had no experience with high diving, the subject of Always higher, starring Lysanne Richard.
It is a crazy project of the diver that caught the attention of the young director: to take a high-flying dive in winter, in a frozen lake in which we will have made a hole.
It was a technical challenge for us. We had to make sure we had enough cameras in the field because we would only get one shot.
Alexa Fay
Because of the cold, Lysanne Richard could only make one dive, just like her teammate, Yves Milord.
PHOTO MATHIEU TRANCHIDA, PROVIDED BY THE PRODUCTION
Lysanne Richard has undertaken the crazy project of taking a high-flying dive in winter, in a frozen lake in which we will have made a hole.
“They can reach up to 80 km per hour during the descent, it only lasts 3 seconds, notes Alexa Fay. For a cameraman, being able to follow the athlete is certainly a challenge. »
It is also necessary to trust the divers, to be certain that they will not feel undue pressure and that they will feel free to step back if necessary.
“Being there with a team of cameramen definitely influences them, but what’s important is everyone’s safety. Yes, we want to make a film, but above all we have to make the right decisions. »
The dive takes place in an old quarry in the Thetford Mines region, a particularly spectacular place.
Visibility
The Quebec tour of the Banff Mountain Film Festival selected the two films by Alexa Fay. Programmers from other countries could also include them in their own tour, which would give visibility to Quebec sites, including Val-David.
“I hope it will encourage people to come to Quebec to climb, even though our season is short,” says the director.
Alexa Fay was destined for law when chance led her to take up a small job on a film set. She discovered a passion. The success ofEM and of Always higher confirmed his career choice.
The Quebec tour of the Banff Mountain Film Festival is online until February 19.