5Point Film Festival Wrap Up, Cheez Doodles & All

I had a sneaking suspicion before, and this year’s event confirmed it: the 5Point Film Festival really is my favorite happening of the year here in Carbondale. This year each night had a distinct feel to it, keeping it fresh and exciting for us festival-goers. Thursday offered up a huge variety, from shorter, action-oriented films like The Burn and Light Line, to more thoughtful pieces like Vaya a la Cumbre and Searching for West, to the artful and introspective Death of the Bar T. Overall it was a great intro to the weekend and had us hungry for more.

Personally, I thought Friday was the strongest night of films, as almost everything that was shown made you want to stand up and cheer when it was over. The night started off fun and lighthearted with the kayak action flick Cascada, but quickly moved into more serious territory with the poignant Boy, before the humorous interlude of Shiver Bivy. From here the night really took off, with highlights being Wade Newsom and Jeremy Collins’ live animated poem of Participate, the beautiful Groundswell and the incredibly comedic and inspiring Crossing the Ice. This last film is a must see, chronicling the incredibly arduous journey of two hilarious Australians that attempt to be the first to travel from the coast of Antarctica to the South Pole and back solely under human power. Definitely check this one out if you get a chance.

Saturday centered on a presentation by special guest Kyle Dempster, and paired with the film Road to Karakol of his solo biking and climbing adventures through China, made for a lasting impression. Also of note on this night was North of the Sun, about two guys who decide to live on a secluded, secret beach in Norway, in order to surf as much as they could. They build a house from scraps and debris they find on the beach, and have an amazing adventure that truly captures the joy of living a simple life.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to catch Sunday’s program, as I was leaving on a trip with a group of high school students climbing in Moab for the week. I did, however, catch the live Enormocast on Saturday, which was incredibly entertaining, and even if you weren’t there, you can check it out here.

If there was an overriding theme throughout this year’s festival, I would say it was exuberant optimism in the face of any and all adversity. After Saturday night’s show, I remarked to one friend that even though I consider myself a pretty positive person, I had a long way to go before reaching the levels shown in Crossing the Ice, The Bus and North of the Sun. No matter what obstacles arose, these folks took it all on with good humor as a challenge to overcome, not an inconvenience getting in the way of what they were really there to do. And any victory, no matter how small, was celebrated like it was the greatest accomplishment in the world. I’ll never forget seeing Aleksander Gamme in Crossing the Ice finding his food stash and realizing he had cheez doodles. You would think he had just won the lottery by the way he celebrated, but he really was just that psyched to eat some cheez doodles!

In true adventure, there is little room for the jaded and entitled attitudes so common in our society. The festival was a powerful reminder that life is all about the process, and we have full control over how we respond to the challenges that come along the way, using these opportunities to learn more about what we are capable of, and what truly lies within us.

A huge thanks to the 5Point crew for all they do to put this event on, including Julie, Sarah, Jake, Crosby and Tracy, and of course to all the volunteers as well. See you next year everyone!

2013 5Point Film Festival Trailer from 5Point Film Festival on Vimeo.