Black Ice is One of the Best Climbing Films of 2020
It follows a group of climbers from Memphis to Montana for their first ice climbing adventures
Photo by: Austin Schmitz of Manoah Ainuu
Black Ice is a 35-minute film about climbers from the Memphis Rox gym who travel to Hyalite Canyon, Montana to go ice climbing. They are met by Manoah Ainuu, Conrad Anker and Fred Campbell who share their love of winter climbing in the mountains.
The film is part of Reel Rock’s 2020 line-up, which you can watch online until Dec. 14 here.
The old story of packing up and heading to intimidating mountain ranges far from home is one that many experienced ice climbers can tell. A majority of Canadian Rockies ice climbers moved to the mountains from far-away, much flatter areas, like Ontario and Quebec.
Many climbers who train at Memphix Rox have never visited a mountain range, including Black Ice filmmaker Jonathan “Malik” Martin. He said the trip was, “It was his first time out of Memphis… It was his first time on a plane, and it was to ice climb.” The new ice climbers have to learn about the sport, approaches and how to stay warm.
Black Ice brings together a group of amazing characters who set out on a journey to experience life much different than that in Memphis. It takes us on a familiar adventure from gym to mountains, which is full of purpose and powerful storytelling. As cultural boundaries all but disappear, Black Ice helps to restore the belief in a better world.
The sport of climbing has a lot of amazing qualities, but one of the most important is its ability to be inclusive and to bring people together. Don’t miss your chance to catch Black Ice this weekend, visit here for tickets.
Black Ice Trailer
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