An (unofficial) history of our nation’s National Parks.
140+ Films for 2018
Adventure. Conservation. Inspiration.
(unofficial) History of the National Parks
2.5 Million
Aaron Rice was a couple years out of college, ski bumming through winters and scraping together work over summers, but getting sick of resort crowds and feeling a little aimless, …
A Fence and an Owner
At the Ranney Ranch in arid Corona, New Mexico, Adaptive Multi-Paddock (AMP) grazing is restoring soils and benefiting the environment – and was implemented during a 15 year …
A New View of the Moon
Wylie Overstreet was hanging out in his L.A. apartment one night and, out of boredom, decided to take his high-powered telescope out to the street to peer at the moon. Pretty soon …
A Steelhead Quest: Portrait of a Rivered Life
Terry Myers is in search of a wild steelhead on a different river each month of the year, painting her fishing prowess in a self-effacing and amusing light. With her husband Jerry …
A Way Forward
A Way Forward tells the story of how the bicycle empowered two young women to not only pursue their own dreams, but inspire others to do the same.
Adventure Not War
Adventure Not War is the story of three U.S. veterans traveling back into the mountains of Iraq on a mission to heal wounds and experience the country and its culture without the …
Alice's Garden
Meet Venice Williams, executive director of Alice’s Garden, a community garden in Milwaukee. Venice shares her connections with rivers and water, and shows how the garden is using …
Altai Frontier
Four western ski and snowboard athletes, invited into the restricted Xinjiang Autonomous Region of China to explore the untapped Altai Mountains, interact with a 2000 year old …
Alternativa
In Summer of 2018, The Inertia traveled to El Salvador with Kassia Meador, Leah Dawson, and Lola Mignot, three outstanding women who are inspiring the next generation of ocean …
Baja Divide Ackerventures
A floofty lil video from Matt and Jenny Acker’s bike packing trip on the Baja Divide during November/December of 2017. A glimpse into some of the terrain, animals and snacks …
Black Mamba Anti Poaching Unit
Black Mamba is a documentary about young, fearless women working in the anti-poaching unit who go out in the bush everyday — weaponless — to patrol and protect wildlife. These …
Bloom Lagoon
In the film, the world’s freshwater supply has become too toxic to support mass human life. A lone survivor is mystically transported back in time to the present day, where he and …
Boy-zshan Bi-den (Buffalo Return)
Bison were nearly exterminated across North America. Thanks to the Shoshone tribe, the National Wildlife Federation and the coordinated efforts of a host of other individuals and …
Brighter Night
A dash of spelunking. A pinch of ice climbing. A sprinkle of semi-psychedelic light show. This brief recipe is just right for a short feast.
Building a Sense of Place
In the second teaser for the proposed Dead River Community Forest, we talk with Jeremiah Johnston from the Noquemenon Trail Network. NTN is one of Upper Peninsula Land …
CH Reel
A collection of my best time-lapse work in 2017. Featuring shots from all around North America. From Michigan and the Upper Midwest, to Casper Wyoming, the Wasatch Mountains in …
Canoe Camping With Babies & Toddlers
Target Audience: Parents & young children
Planning a canoe trip but thinking the kiddos need to stay home? Don’t call the babysitter just yet. Canoe camping with babies and …
Challenge Us, We Dare You
Name your favorite outdoor female role model. Don’t worry, we’ll wait. Before, women in the outdoors sounded like a gimmick – but they are far from that - they are a force to be …
Changing Course
Clare Gallagher was headed toward medical school, until she realized the path everyone else wanted her to take wouldn’t make her happy. So she took one step back, 100 miles …
Chasing the Polar Dream
If an international clothing company from Sweden offered an opportunity to manage your own dog sled team across the Scandinavian Arctic, would you spend a month collecting the …
Clark Park
Detroit is known as Hockeytown. When the city had to close many of its recreation centers in the early 1990’s the once abundant outdoor ice rinks disappeared with them. Except for …
Climbing out of Disaster
Bryant Huffman spent his days deep water soloing, sport climbing and bouldering as founder of Climbing Puerto Rico. Then Hurricane Maria dropped a nuclear bomb of water and wind, …
Crossing Lake Huron
Three men from the group “Stand Up For Great Lakes” put their bodies to the test and paddle board more than 90 miles across Lake Huron for something they believe in.
Crosstown
“Crosstown” is set against the backdrop of Chicago in 2016 as the Cubs return to the World Series for the first time since World War II. The city celebrates…some …
DREAMER
These are the stories of three DREAMers and the fight for their right to live in the only country they know as home.
Dale on the Trail - Start to Finish
At the age of 82, Dale Sanders completed the entire Appalachian Trail in 2017. It took over 7 months took walk the 2100+ miles.
Dead River Community Forest
The Upper Peninsula Land Conservancy is in the process of raising money to acquisition the a 181 acre property along the Dead River to serve as a accessible community resource for …
Dedicate: Freediving with Orcas
Award-winning underwater photographer Jacques de Vos journeys to the Lofoten Islands in Norway to realize his dream of photographing orca while freediving. His experience in the …
Don's Canoe
For Banff locals, Don Gardner is a name associated with legendary climbs and epic ski traverses. Don’s Canoe is a simple short film that shows his lifelong passion for old ways. A …
Dragging 235 lbs Uphill Both Ways
The next generation is becoming increasingly plugged in to electronics and out of touch with the outdoors. This will have enormous effects on future conservationism. A mother of …
Dream Big
Big dreams start small, as World Champion skier, Aaron Blunck, reminds us.
DreamRide 2
Take an adventure into a world where the trails never end. Through jungles, across volcanos, into caves, and down frozen rivers… there’s no place your imagination …
DreamRide 3
Step into a world built on imagination and trails that can only exist in one’s dreams. Combining a Dr. Suess-inspired narrative, some of the world’s wildest natural …
Elijah
A glimpse into a young life in rural northern Michigan. Elijah looses sight of what’s important and doesn’t finish high school. While working on the family farm and old pick up …
Engaging the Curve
As a couple, Ultimate frisbee world champion Shannon McDowell and professionalclimber Graham Zimmerman decided they needed a new sport that they could learn together, on an even …
Escape
There is something gloriously incongruous — and almost incomprehensible — about a risk-averse, non-athletic, native Rwandan DJ finding the real meaning in his life by pedaling …
Firewood Angel
A senseless family tragedy effects a northern Michigan man in a profound way. Part lumberjack, part philosopher, Rob’s story of giving back to the community through a local …
Flat Water
Even in Michigan, the search for unspoiled waves lures in brave surfers who know how and when to find them. Up here, it’s never about riding the biggest waves in the world, but …
Flip Float and Follow (A Drowning Survival Strategy)
Understanding rip currents in the Great Lakes
Flying Over the Upper Michigan
Flying Over The Upper Peninsula is a collection of drone video I captured while visiting the Upper Peninsula in July. After putting my favorite shots together, I created the …
Follow Through
After stumbling upon a copy of the cult classic guidebook, The Chuting Gallery, which lays out a set of 88 ski mountaineering lines across Utah’s Wasatch Mountains, …
Follow the Wind
Jerrie van de Kop follows the wind cycle to kiteboard between the warm waters of the Indian Ocean and the snowy peaks of Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, to raise awareness of …
Four the Water Teaser
During summer 2018, four friends from Marquette, Michigan will embark on a kayaking voyage around Lake Superior to help raise education about the Great Lakes. During their journey, …
Freddy Carrillo's Day Off
Inspired by a magazine called Blast, Freddy takes a rare day off as a service rep at a wheelchair company to fulfill a dream that’s been brewing in his head for 23 years. Freddy’s …
Frontier of Firsts
True wilderness is hard found in an era of social media and geotagging. These kayakers won’t settle for second descents, and with enough effort and determination, they’re able to …
Granddad
Every morning in the summer, Grandded rises at dawn to row twice around the lake. Join himon his morning meditation.
HAFE: The Story of Behind
Dr. Paul Auerbach, a professor of emergency medicine at Stanford University, and Dr. York Miller, a professor of medicine at the University of Colorado, were recent medical school …
Hands On Touch n' Learn
Children of all ages will have the opportunity to explore outdoor gear (set up inside the cafeteria). Let your young children climb in and out of a canoe, try dry land paddling, …
Hat Auction
Every year in the small town of Irons, MI snowmobile enthusiasts gather at the Oak Grove Tavern for a unique and quirky “hat auction”; an event that is held to fund the grooming of …
History
Fred Dakota reflects on his childhood growing up in a Native American orphanage in Assinins, Michigan
How to Run 100 Miles
The odds were stacked against Jayson Sime early in life: poverty, homelessness, dyslexia, bullying. But he learned to fight, literally and metaphorically, and battled his way to a …
Illegal Activists: The Battle for Norway's Fjords
The film follows young activists as they break the law to stop a mining company from dumping 250 million tons of waste into a Norwegian fjord. On the top of a freezing, icy …
Imagination
Have you ever been that little kid sitting in the backseat of your parents car, wishing you were somewhere else? So you imagine a skier on the side of the road, your fingers …
In Perpetual Motion
Surfers and free divers know well those dark, lung-searing seconds waiting to surface after a wave has pinned you to the ocean floor. It can feel like an eternity. In those …
Intersection: Micayla Gatto
Professional mountain biker and artist Micayla Gatto recreates in her paintings the sweeping vistas of ridgelines she rides on her bike. Both cornering berms and putting paintbrush …
Iran: A Skier's Journey
Cautioned not to travel to Iran, skiers Chad Sayers and Forrest Coots go anyway. They find comfort in Tehran’s bustling bazaars, Isfahan’s dazzling mosques, and the powder-filled …
Ironhead
Ironhead documents the creative work of ironmonger Kelly Ludeking and the happenings at his Down on the Farm Iron Pour, a yearly communal gathering of local and national artists …
J.J. Kelley: Light Riders
While most of us take electricity for granted, there are more than a billion people in developing countries who live without power. Just plugging in can be the difference between …
J.J. Kelley: Paddle to Seattle
Two best friends build their own kayaks and paddle alone for 97 days in the wilderness over 1,300 miles from Alaska to Seattle and survive to talk about most things.
J.J. Kelley: Ready for War
Americans are now taking the commander of the Hermit Kingdom seriously on his threats of nuclear war. Kim Jong-un’s proclamations of leveling the “cesspool of evil” are now backed …
J.J. Kelley: Underground Law
National Geographic embeds in the world of the “Godfather of Gaza” to investigate the business of surviving an occupation. Through exclusive access to a Gaza tunnel boss, we go …
Keep Ultra Running Weird
There’s something oddly romantic about ultrarunning. Sure, to the uninitated that may sound like an intimidating oxymorning, but to the men and women who willingly push …
Kuebiko - In Time
Music video featuring local Surfer Dan.
La Cumbre
La Cumbre unveils the reality of what it means to live as an amputee in the developing world. In partnership with the Range of Motion Project we join world class mountaineer and …
La Torche
La Torche shows two crazy French surfers, surfing by night the famous spot of La Torche, one of the best in France.
Lilliana Libecki
Target audience: 12 years and older
The Joyineering Fund Founder and and Young Explorer Lilliana Libecki, at the age of 15, has already been to 28 countries, all 7 continents, and …
Lilliana Libecki: The Joyineer
Join the father and daughter team Joyineers and Goal Zero ambassadors, Mike and Lilliana Libecki, along with Human Outreach Project and Dell computers on a journey of giving back …
Los Lecheros (The Dairy Farmers)
Undocumented immigrant workers in Wisconsin and the farmers who employ them struggle with a new political climate, which increasingly threatens their ability to perform business as …
Made in Marquette: Mike Horton
Mike Horton is Marquette’s original surfer, and co-founder of the Presque Isle Depot art studio. This is his story.
Mammoth
In the remote Russian Arctic, an aging scientist and his son are trying to recreate the Ice Age. They call their experiment Pleistocene Park –a perfect home for woolly mammoths, …
Marieke
Marieke Penterman is an acclaimed Dutch cheesemaker from Throp, Wisconsin, who passionately explains her award-winning Gougda making, which has earned her more than 30 awards. …
Mike & Lilliana Libecki
National Geographic Explorer and National Geographic Adventurer of the Year Mike Libecki can define his life in two ways: An obsession with exploring and climbing the worlds most …
Mike & Lilliana Libecki: An Education: A Father/Daughter Trip of Discovery
Mountain Hardwear athlete Mike Libecki and his daughter Lilliana venture across Antarctica. There are many lessons learned along the way.
Mike Libecki: The Time is Now
Mikwendaagoziwag / They Are Remembered
Brief history of Sandy Lake tragedy and story of memorial ceremony from this past summer. The Sandy Lake tragedy is the story of how 450 Ojibwe people died in 1850 waiting for the …
Minding the Gap
Welcome to Rockford, Illinois, in the heart of Rust-Belt America, home to debut filmmaker, Bing Liu. With over 12 years of footage, Bing discovers connections between two of his …
Moving Mountains
Moving Mountains in Iron Mountain, MI is a coordinated effort between many highly energized, dedicated volunteers and Pine Mountain Resort. Instructors involved with this program …
Muni
Twelve-year old Noah Isaac explores his passion for mountain unicycling, known as “Muni”, on the black diamond mountain biking trails in Canmore, Alberta as his mountain guide …
Music for Free
To commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route, musician, poet and athlete Ben Weaver set out to ride his bicycle unsupported down the country’s most …
My Big White Thighs & Me
A youngish woman has fallen out of love with her own body. Frustrated, she wishes they didn’t have to hang out quite so much. Committed to making a change she sets herself the …
My Mom Vala
Life has a way of putting us where we need to be. For Vala, that’s in both Greenland – where she works at her family’s fishing lodge – and Reykjavík, where she teaches her daughter …
Natural Playground
Benjamin Leclair makes the most of a bad situation wakeboarding through the streets of a flooded Paris. Gorgeous aerial footage makes it look much better than it probably smelled.
Nature/Nurture
Andrea has found that nature can provide tools to cope with her anxiety, depression, and overall mental health, but what if she had learned these skills during her teen years? As …
Never Quite the Same
Five or six years ago, Marti O’Brien was feeling burned out. She was overwhelmed and pushing her friends and family away. Late one sleepless night, she took her dog Obie on a trail …
Nita
A video portrait depicting the life’s work of Upper Michigan’s premiere artist Nita Engle. Her watercolor landscapes keep record of the few and fleeting wild spaces …
Northern Exposure: Fishing with the Women Ice Angler Project
Every winter the Women Ice Angler Project gathers for a long weekend of fishing on frozen lakes in numbing temperatures. Though the conditions are far from glamorous, each member …
On Days Like This We Must Surf
Surfing on a lake? Impossible, right? Wrong. Loveable wild-man Larry Cavero lives for surfing the ice-cold waters of The Great Lakes in this short documentary about the burgeoning …
On the Fly: The Northern Angler
Fly Fishing in Northern Michigan is a great way to get outside and enjoy nature. This film follows professional angler Brain Pitser and reveals why fly fishing in Northern Michigan …
Paddle to the Sea
Target Audience: Parents & children ages 5 to 12
This 27 minute 1966 film by Bill Mason was nominated for an Academy Award for best live action short film. The film follows the …
Persian Powder
Mona Seraji is a professional snowboarder. Which is a distinction, of course, but what really sets her apart is that her home mountain is in Iran. One of the unique delights of …
Poco a Poco
A look at the World Surfing Reserve of Bahia de Todos Santos in Baja Norte, Mexico, and how the local community is working together against environmental threats.
Pursuit
When it comes to storm chasing, you can’t give up. But that also applies to life. Keep chasing, keep pursuing. Whatever it is. That’s the only way to get what you want. …
RJ Ripper
Rajesh Magar has been obsessed with bikes since he was a small child growing up in Kathmandu, Nepal. When the other kids were studying, he’d be dreaming about, designing and …
Radical Rust Belt
This was a fun little collaborative project. In October of 2017 surfers and filmmakers Pat Noyes and Rusty Malkemes circumnavigated Lake Michigan in the Grey Potato (Rustys’ …
Ride of the Dead
Ride of the Dead takes us into the world of the Mexican mountain bike culture during the famous annual celebration known as Dia De Los Muertos. This film follows Oaxacan, born and …
Rising Up
Ice climbing was previously a male dominated sport. Now women are rising up to the challenge and making their own headway in the sport. Anissa and Nicky have just begun partaking …
Rodents of Unusual Size
The residents of Louisiana never know what will attack them next: floods, hurricanes, even monstrous swamp rats. Gigantic orange-toothed nutria are eating up the coastal wetlands, …
Saint John's Maple Syrup
Spring is a time when life returns to the woods. Saint John’s has been crafting Maple syrup since the sugar shortages of World War 2 and their story has largely remained …
Scamp Life
A glimpse into the life of Salsa riders Eszter Horanyi and Scott Morris as they travel the country by way of their home, the Scamp.
Searching for Sustainability
Explore how farmers are working toward better land and water stewardship through managed grazing and other practices.
Serendipitous: the Story of Sleeping Bear Surf & Kayak
The Story of Sleeping Bear Surf and Kayak highlights one of the first surf shops in Northern Michigan and their story of the growing surf community on the Great Lakes.
Shaggy's Skis
The Thompson family of Shaggy’s Copper Country Skis craft custom skis from quality hardwoods in Northern Michigan.
Sky Migrations
Each fall our skies fill with the wings of migrating raptors, a migration that relies on two hemispheres worth of wild and healthy ecosystems. Join ecologist and filmmaker, Charles …
Sleeze Lake - "Life at its Lowest and Best" - Work in Progress
The year is 1977 and the custom van movement was at full-tilt-boogie. Midwest Vans Ltd. was a club at the center of everything. Over 500 members strong and with multiple chapters, …
Start the Cycle Mountain Biking Program
Start the Cycle is a cycling team program that introduces at risk youth to a life full of success through winter fat tire and summer mountain biking. The volunteers and mentors …
Straight U.P.
“Straight U.P.” is a look into the everyday life of tree climbing professionals here in Marquette, MI.
Superior Steel
Every spring in the Upper Peninsula migratory rainbow trout, we have come to know as “steelhead” run up the glacier carved tributaries of Northern Michigan to spawn. A …
Surf Anywhere
You can surf anywhere – even 1500m above sea level and 1000km away from the nearest ocean. This is the story of a group of river surfing pioneers who are building not only a …
Surfer Dan by Merrell
Dan Schetter is a native of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and is a local legend with a love for the outdoors and Lake Superior’s wicked, winter waters. He’s not your typical …
Tailwhip
The 14-year-old BMX rider Erik Aguilar is on track to reaching professional status in just a couple years, but in the meatime, he uses biking to keep himself out of trouble and off …
Tamba
A random act of kindness from a stranger changes a young man’s life. Tamba is a two-minute gem faceted perfectly by sharp editing and softly shined by a lyrical camera.
The Arrowhead Traverse
Maura and Bobby Marko are impassioned outdoor explorers. After becoming parents they knew that passing on a love and respect for the wilderness would be a major priority for their …
The Big Five Dive
The Big Five Dive is a short adventure documentary that follows a group of women as they attempt to SCUBA dive one historic site in all five Great Lakes within the span of 24 …
The Birth of a Dugout Canoe
This documentary features the difficult and time-consuming process of making a traditional expanded dugout canoe using mostly traditional hand tools and techniques. The woodworker …
The Boardman Review: Bike Leelanau
Bike Leelanau is advocating for building and sustaining accessible trails for all abilities while helping to build a local community focused around a love of biking
The Boardman Review: The Rabbit Island Foundation
On an island in Lake Superior, creativity, environmental philosophy, and remote wilderness come together to create an artist residency like no other. The Compass Points Here …
The Bothy Project
The Bothy Project is about exploring the wilds on your own terms, in your own style. Artists Tessa Lyons, Natasha Brooks and writer Claire Carter take themselves into the vast …
The Center of Superior
A Superior Island is a personal travel documentary with stunning nature cinematography sequences that tells the story of when two diabetics set off to the Upper Peninsula into the …
The Climb
This film is an interview with a local rock climber in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
The Coffin Club
Death is inevitable. And expensive. But it doesn’t have to be boring. In New Zealand, a group of rebellious retirees are shunning black garb, dull funerals and mahogany caskets by …
The Fight for Flight
A film about the spring songbird migration through the Great Lakes region and the people who interact with them. From research to rehab, it takes a lot to understand and conserve …
The Frenchy
Jacques “The Frenchy” Houot is a Colorado icon. He is an 82-year-old badass athlete who gets after it non-stop on skis, mountain bike, and the cyclocross race circuit. …
The Seed Vault: Preserving Crop Diversity Forever
Amid a snow-covered Nordic landscape, a portal on the side of a frosty mountain leads to a long, dark tunnel and then a frozen door. Behind that door: the history of agriculture — …
The Snowblader
If you’ve spent time skiing around the Utah’s Wasatch Front, you’ve probably seen or shared a chair with Burke Weir. A local at Alta, Brighton, Snowbird, and Solitude, Burke …
The Tree Prophet
A poor and uneducated nurseryman from Northern Michigan is sent back from heaven with the mission to save the world from global warming by cloning the world’s oldest and largest …
The Trees Around You
Vancouver Island is home to some of the largest areas of old-growth forests on the planet. This is the story of ancient, biodiverse forests and the indigenous people who live among …
The Wild President
Unsung environmental hero Jimmy Carter grew up inspired by nature’s wonder. But not until he first paddled the Chattooga River did he understand the true power of wild rivers. To …
The World's Best Belayer
If dirtbag dreams could come true, climbers would send routes all day and never pay dues on the other end of the rope. This dream has been realized by a handful of climbers, thanks …
To Friends
It’s not the places you go, the fancy equipment you bring along or the people you try to impress through social media that make a trip special. Rather, the ones you go with …
Trail Builders: Sam Crowley
Twilight Zone
A brief escape from life at school in lower Michigan to the backcountry paradise and powder pockets of Mount Bohemia in the Kewennaw Peninsula. A short edit put together from our …
Walking Around
A day in the life of a 9 year old. A brief reminder of how simple life is as a kid and a reminder of where our thirst to explore the world begins.
Warren Dunes
This was shot in about an hour! I was camping near the dunes, and spent the afternoon hiking and exploring the sand dunes that overlook Lake Michigan. I also created the music for …
Water
Take a four-minute journey to some of the planet’s most spectacular glaciers, waterfalls, beaches, rivers and waterways. Destinations include, Iceland, Igauzu Falls Brazil, …
Water Warriors
In 2013, Texas-based SWN Resources arrived in New Brunswick, Canada to explore for natural gas. In response, a multicultural group of unlikely warriors–including members of the …
Waterway Jay
In 2017, Jay Gustafson launched Paddle for Progress, a two-year, 4,300-mile personal journey in response to Governor Dayton’s call for water action. Jay’s mission to …
Why Not Now: Vivian Stancil
Blind and afraid of water, Vivian Stancil learned to swim at 48. “I heard that blind people can’t swim,” Stancil says, followed by: “Oh, yes they can!” Two hundred and twenty-one …
Wild Coast
SUP surfers Emre Bost and Glen Pearson discuss the experience of living and surfing in Tofino, British Columbia.
Wild Ice: Backcountry Skating Alaska
Filmed in south-central and southeast Alaska over the course of two winters, “Wild Ice” features members of Alaska’s backcountry skating community including nordic bladers, hockey …
Winter the Grommet
A young surfer helps kids get clean water.
World Naked Bike Ride
The World Naked Bike Ride is a global protest where people cycle naked through cities. The ride is a celebration of bikes and bodies, a protest against oil dependency and a …
Wrangling Russia
In 2011, Russia’s largest meat producer, Miratorg, began recruiting American cowboys to help restart a national beef industry that had been destroyed during the Soviet era. …
YAHARA: Winter Trailer
A winter portrait of the Yahara Watershed and trail for upcoming film examining the history and environmental challenges of one of the best studies watersheds in the world.