Denali Film Festival
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2020 Films

Documentary Feature


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Sockeye Salmon. Red Fish
Directed by: Dmitriy Shpilenok, Vladislav Grishin

Sockeye, a species of wild salmon, are born in Kamchatkan waters and spend their entire life in the Pacific Ocean. Only once do they return to fresh waters - to give offspring, start the circle of life, and die. It is an inexhaustible resource that feeds billions of people on the planet, restored every year! But soon, we may find ourselves facing the unimaginable.


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A Conversation With America
Directed by: Jim Kroft
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A documentary exploring the rise of Populism during the US Election in 2016. 
Combining the the contrasting genres of road movie and political documentary, "A Conversation With America" is a young artists attempt to understand modern America. An epic love letter to the US - from an outsider, passing through.



Into the Rift
Directed by: Brady Lawrence

To simply finish the Atlas Mountain Race means navigating 1,200 kilometres of the most rugged and remote roads in Morocco. To win requires riding almost non-stop, night and day, for days on end. Alone, unsupported and loaded down with supplies, each competitor must constantly battle mechanicals, heat exhaustion and saddle sores to get to the finish. Capturing the human drama set against an otherworldly landscape, Into the Rift is an in-depth look at a true cycling adventure.

Heartbeat of the River
Directed by: Eiko Jones

An intimate portrayal of the journey the Pacific Salmon take from the time they are hatched to their return to the spawning grounds.  Join these amazing fish in their underwater realm as they fight to survive, evading all kinds of predators, with a single purpose. They have just one chance to spawn and complete the cycle of life. 

1000 Miles to Nome
​Directed by: David Mable, Steve Cannon

The story of the 1000 Mile Iditarod Trail Invitational and the four competitors who took it on. Considered the World’s Toughest Endurance race.  You will travel the Iditarod Trail with revealing POV filming in the harshest as well as most spectacular conditions on their month-long journey through the most remote and inhospitable terrain on earth.


Documentary Short


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Connection
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​Directed by: Jan Zurek

A highline project organized by passionate women all around the globe. An incredible story of friendship and adventure. 


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Paradice (A journey into frozen waterfalls)
Directed by: Daniel Bleuer, Jonas Schild, Nicolas Hojac

In winter, the Alps turn into a paradise for top alpine sport. Huge waterfalls freeze to ice and leave unique formations. Paradice shows three of the most beautiful Swiss ice climbing tours from an unusual perspective. A film about risk, responsibility and the beauty of nature.


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Dragon Blood
Directed by: Awi Rabelista

Professional nature photographer Marsel van Oosten wants to travel to Socotra: an isolated island located southeast of Yemen. The island is so isolated that many of the plant species there are nowhere else to be found on Earth. And one of those unique species is the endangered dragon blood tree: a prehistoric umbrella-shaped tree which is endemic to Socotra. Against all travel advice, Marsel van Oosten travels to Yemen in seek for the picture-perfect dragon blood tree.



Myrtle Simpson - A Life On Ice
Directed by: Leigh Anne Sides

Myrtle Simpson narrates the story of three of her most dramatic and significant expeditions, starting with the Edinburgh Andean Expedition to Peru in 1958, her record-breaking success on the Scottish Trans-Greenland Expedition to cross Greenland in 1965 and her team’s attempt to be the first unsupported expedition to reach the North Pole in 1969.

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Wild, Raw, and Free: Van and Skate Life
Directed by: Silas Tolles

A young man that decided to leave his home, career, and relationship in pursuit of being present, seeing the world, and living one day at a time. Andy has traveled the country in his 87 Toyota mini cruiser, and now resides in Venice, CA. Andy uses skateboarding as a tool to keep himself in the present moment and relieve the stresses of life.


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Gáax’w Ka Haaw: Herring Eggs & Branches
Directed by: Tessa Ellie Schmidt, Lee House

Since time immemorial, the people of Southeast Alaska have harvested herring eggs by placing hemlock branches in herring spawn. This vital, traditional food is endangered by commercial fishing pressure. This film serves as both a vignette of the 2019 spring harvest efforts and a portrayal of the tension the Indigenous people of Sitka, Alaska and beyond are feeling as their traditional food faces an uncertain future.

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Good Earth: Awakening the Silent City
Directed by: Kelly Rundle

Good Earth: Awakening the Silent City presents the fascinating story of the Good Earth at Blood Run historical and cultural site as told by a Native American grandfather to his grandchildren. The documentary combines vivid present-day views of Good Earth at Blood Run State Park's scenic vistas and wildlife combined with dramatic historical reenactments portraying daily life in the year 1650 of one of America's largest cities which straddles Lyon County, Iowa and Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Good Earth was the ancestral home of the Ioway, Omaha, Ponca and Otoe tribes for more than two hundred years. The film is family-friendly and for all ages.


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Alaska Grown
Directed by: Amanda Byrd
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Food security is more important now than ever in Alaska. Alaska agriculture provides only 5% of the food we consume; the rest is flown, barged or driven in.
This documentary created by Alaska Center for Energy and Power’s chief storyteller, Amanda Byrd, explores some of the challenges Alaska farmers must overcome to produce food for their communities. Growing more food in the state could ensure food is always on the shelves, especially during a natural disaster like an earthquake or a global pandemic like COVID-19.

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The River that Flows Both Ways
Directed by: Kirk Muir Horton, Brendan P. Davis

In August 2019, Brendan Davis and Kirk Muir Horton paddled 315 miles from source to sea down the Hudson River in record time. Starting in the Adirondacks and ending at the Statue of Liberty, their trip was about as unpredictable and complex as the river itself.

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Confessions of a Runner
Directed by: Bachar Khattar

Ultra-running evokes notions of insanity, dedication, and the pursuit of mind over body. A blend of eye-popping scenery, extreme human achievement, and revealing personal stories, Confessions of a Runner features Patrick Vaughan – an accomplished trail runner, small business owner, parent, and survivor of serious physical impairments – as he shares his story of healing and redemption while pursuing the record for completing the 470km Lebanon Mountain Trail.


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And We Get to Surf
Directed by: Claire Graff

Claire and Spencer keep fanning the adventure flame even after their second little boy is born. Determined to prioritize both their family and their passion for surfing rivers, they pack the RV with boards and diapers and go chase river waves. With a three year old and two month old in-tow, it's anything but easy, but what it brings to their lives is worth every ounce of extra work. 

Short Films


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Yarne
Directed by: Andrew Krakower

​The money earned by 11-year-olds Sonam and Tashi for doing prayers is only enough to share one small Coke. Sonam is lucky to even get a sip before Tashi, the monastery bully, drinks the entire bottle. Yarne is an annual six-week period when Buddhist monks remain within the monastery grounds for focused study and practice, yet for child monks, it’s more like house arrest. Tired of wasting his money, Sonam decides to save up every rupee he earns during Yarne to buy a soccer ball, but first he will have to stand up to Tashi.

This artist will participate in a virtual Artist Talkback on July 15 at 4 PM AKT. Join the conversation here! 

The Tell-Tale Heart - a musicabre
Directed by: Danny Ashkenasi

​A musical adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe's gothic horror story. A man is so disturbed by an old man's "vulture eye" he resolves to murder and dismember him. But the murderer is driven to madness and confession by the incessant beating of the victim's heart under the floor boards.

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ANNA
Directed by: Dekel Berenson

Living in war-torn Eastern Ukraine, Anna is an aging single mother who is desperate for a change. Lured by a radio advertisement, she goes to party with a group of American men who are touring the country, searching for love.


Animation


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Tobi and the Turbobus
Directed by: Verena Fels

You fly with no seat! That's the rule in the Turbobus. To get one is a hard day job for a young wolf on his turbo-journey to find real friendship.

Student Films


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Enviroman
Directed by: Caitlin Clonan

Learning about recent natural disasters, a young boy imagines himself as a superhero saving the Earth. He then realizes that ordinary kids can do their own to help save the Earth.


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Kiligivak (Mammoth)
Directed by: Laura Tejero, Jake Chamberlain

Mammoth ivory sustains livelihoods in an Arctic community but also embodies the threat of a changing climate.


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Anchorage | Alaska, Relaxing Travel Video
Directed by: Simon Marolt

Shot in Anchorage, the biggest city in Alaska.

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