Lake Effect(2023)

Sierra Quitiquit: How Did I Get Here(en)

From humble beginnings, complex family dynamics and tragic, life-changing events, to her unlikely rise to success in two very different worlds: fashion modeling and professional skiing. “How Did I Get Here” is a coming-of-age story, full of adventure, exploration, heartbreak, growth and inspiration.

Canada Vertical(fr)

After years of preparation, a team of highly motivated Quebeckers set out on one of the longest wilderness expeditions ever documented. Stage one involves skiing in relentless polar conditions from Ellesmere Island to the Northwest Passage where the challenge was reaching the mainland. Cue canoes for a 2000km journey across Nunavut and NWT until they reach the first dirt road available where bikes are waiting to be pedalled 4000km to Point Pelee in Ontario.

Magic Hour(en)

For 27 years, Teton Gravity Research has been searching for the right place with the right crew at the perfect time to experience life at its fullest. Between the thrill of the hunt and the peace of floating down a mountain, the sum of our experiences becoming greater than its parts is what we seek. If you ask us, our annual snow film Magic Hour is just that.

Finnish American Lives(en)

A moving portrait of traditional Finnish American culture in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, highlighting that fragile community of memory connecting ourselves with parents and grandparents. It uses the “biographical model” of folklore filmmaking to tell the story of Erikki Vourenmaa, a 92-year-old Finnish immigrant, and his family living near Ironwood, Michigan. This three-generation farm family works, celebrates, reflects, and grieves together. The film explores the meaning of family, ethnic history, aging and intergenerational bonds. It contrasts between the immigrant elder, his American-born son and the partially assimilated grandchildren to illustrate change and continuity in the "sauna belt" of the Lake Superior Region. As Dr. Sharon Sherman concluded, “Loukinen’s focus on the bonds between generations will strike emotional chords about family relationships and ethnic identity for numerous cultural groups.”

Bumps: A Mogul Skiing Documentary(en)

Bumps: A Mogul Skiing Documentary - The criminally under-told story of the athletes who dedicate their lives to perfection in a sport where perfection is impossible. "Bumps" reaches deep into the heart of the mogul skiing world. Mogul skiing has become a very popular event at the Olympics, but beyond the fact that competitors ski down some bumps and do a couple jumps, spectators don’t really understand. Bumps, directed by Canadian National Team member and filmmaker Zac Hoffman, fills this gap. The sport has yet to be shown to the public in a way that does it justice. A mogul run is exciting to watch, but once someone knows what goes into being able to make it down that course, it becomes so much more. It’s a display of strength, intensity, finesse, strategy, individuality, and mental fortitude.

Esperanto(en)

Esperanto is TGR’s latest action-packed mountain bike film with an added twist. Mixing the rock stars of the sport with a cast of unknown and up-and-coming heroes, the film explores how we share our dreams through a universal two-wheeled language no matter what our native tongue may be. The sacred ritual of the ride might sound different all across the world – whether it’s a full-face getting pulled down to drop into a big jump line or wheeling a beat-up bike out of a mud hut to pedal to school – but it’s a universal process no matter what language we speak. There are more than 7000 languages spoken on Earth. In 1887 a Polish-Jewish doctor named L.L. Zamenhof created a new one, a universal second language based on a combination of existing widely-spoken European languages. Its goal, to help bring people together from different ideologies, beliefs, and nations and ultimately to help end war. The language was called Esperanto. Translated into English it means ‘one who hopes.’

Petit Suisse(en)

Bad River(en)

Wisconsin's tribe's ongoing fight to protect Lake Superior for future generations. "Bad River" shows the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa's long history of activism and resistance in the context of continuing legal battles with Enbridge Energy over its Line 5 oil pipeline. The Line 5 pipeline has been operating on 12 miles of the Bad River Band's land with expired easements for more than a decade. The Band and the Canadian company have been locked in a legal battle over the pipeline since 2019.

Happening in Weiß(de)

Film about skiing and other winter sports.

Snows of Grenoble(fr)

Film about the 10th Olympic Games in Grenoble in 1968. Using a subjective camera, Ertaud and Languepin take the pulse of the Games, cutting out the eyes and slowing down the movement when necessary. The dominant figure at the Grenoble Winter Games is Frenchman Jean-Claude Killy, whose three gold medals matched Toni Sailer's 1956 feat. The filmmakers bet on his winning streak, and include commentary from him as he prepares for each race. Another athlete, Marielle Goitschel, is treated insightfully on screen and wins the women's slalom. Ice dancing fans will appreciate the coverage of winner Oleg Protopopov and his partner Ludmila Belousova. President Charles De Gaulle was present for the spectacular Opening Ceremony.

Yooper Creoles: Finnish Music in Michigan's Copper Country(en)

When the immigrants came to America, their cultures entered the "great melting pot." In Michigan's Upper Peninsula Finnish immigrants mixed their musical traditions with many other cultures, creating a sound that was unique to the "Copper Country."

Warren Miller: Ticket to Ride(en)

A ticket can get you anywhere in the world, from the chairlift at your local ski area to the top of Talgar Peak in Kazakhstan. It can put your heart in your throat as you fly over a knoll faster than you have all year, and it can put your mind at ease when you find yourself alone in a snow-covered Aspen grove with clear blue sky above and crisp cold air all around. A ticket is the end of reality and the beginning of a journey. And we've got one for you.

Snow Motion(en)

Snow dancing and spectacular skiing stunts are showcased in this lively video program hosted by star skiers Suzy Chaffee and John Eaves. The antics are backed by the music of Alan Parsons, Harold Faltermaier, Gary Wright and John Denver. Much of the footage comes from the ski film Fire and Ice.

Snow Birds(en)

This Pete Smith Sports Champion short visits Southern California where it quickly moves from orange orchards to the mountain snow playground at Big Pines L.A. County Camp for some winter sports including sledding, skating, and ski jumping.

Michigan vs. Ohio State: The Rivalry(en)

Steeped in a rich tradition dating back to their inaugural meeting in 1897, this rivalry extends beyond the pursuit of a Big Ten title, and is renewed each year through the pageantry and colliding cultures that distinguish the two schools.

Yooper Tours: On the North Country Trail(en)

A man hikes 550 miles across the North Country Trail in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula from July through February, experiencing it in all of its seasons.

Route des Cimes(fr)

With the tank truck of the company British Petroleum (BP), the Bozzetto fuel delivery man crosses mountain roads in winter. Headed to Val d'Isère in Savoie, it faces, night and day, the vagaries of traffic in snowy weather, and penetrates the life of the winter sports resort living to the rhythm of development activities. , sports and tourism: tunnel construction, snow milling machine, cable car, hotel and catering as well as skiing from the peaks to the village (off-piste descent demonstration by Lionel Terray).

Sasquatch on Lake Superior II(en)

Further Sasquatch encounters.

Through the Banks of the Red Cedar(en)

In 1963 at Michigan State University, Head Coach Duffy Daugherty chose 23 black men to play on the college team. From this move came legends Gene Washington, Bubba Smith, George Webster and Clinton Jones. Director Maya Washington, Gene Washington’s daughter, charts the legacy of her father’s career and influence, along with the impact the events of 1963 have shown in the present day.

Plymouth International Ice Sculpture Spectacular(en)

The annual ice carving event and competition features over 100 statues carved from a blocks of ice. Visitors can watch artisans create their works from start to finish with tools of the trade including chainsaws.