Trails In Motion Film Festival

Trails in Motion Film Festival is a compilation of short films related to trail running. The film tour started off in South Africa and is now in its third edition. We were fortunate to be there for its first US showing of 2015. There are nine films that range from three minutes to 56 minutes in duration. With the featured film “Finding Traction” being the longest. This particular film features the great ultrarunner Nikki Kimball as she goes for an FKT (Fastest Known Time) on the 273 mile Long Trail in Vermont. Nikki Kimball is a long time endurance athlete and very successful ultrarunner, having won Western States Endurance Run three times and most recently winning the 150 mile Marathon de Sables in 2014. The film follows Nikki as she prepares for this endeavor and through her ups and downs while out on the trail. Aside from going for an FKT on American’s oldest trail, she also had the goal of raising awareness of trail running and other outdoor activities with this venture. With this goal in mind she partnered with Girls on the Run in Vermont and She Can! in Montana to raise money for the work these groups do with children and young adults in exploring nature and participating in endurance sports. The film captured our attention right from the beginning and kept us enthralled the entire time.
The films are international, coming from countries such as Japan, Mexico and New Zealand.  They take viewers to places we may have heard of but have not been able to experience in person such as southern Patagonia in the film “Around Patagonia” featuring Jason Schlarb and Jeremy Wolfe. One of the goals of the film festival is to bring people together from around the globe to enjoy the sport of trail running and I think they are doing a good job at accomplishing that goal. “Triple Corona” gives us a peek into the toughest mountain trail running circuit in Mexico that is ‘only for savages’. It’s a challenging trilogy of races over difficult terrain and accompanied by some amazing views.
One of the films “Why We Run” really makes you think. It makes you think about running, about trail running, about life. It features biologist and ultrarunner Bernd Heinrich who has written a book by the same title, although originally it was titled “Racing the Antelope”. The book deals with our primal drive to win and how that relates to humans being a running species. The 15 minute film includes insights from Bernd about what running has meant to him and the role it continues to play in his life.
After watching the first couple of films I was ready to go out on the trails and run and I’m sure others felt the same. However I don’t recommend leaving early as you will miss out on some great films. With the film tour being international there are opportunites for many people to catch a viewing. I recommend checking their website for a showing near you.

Trails in Motion