More Than a Mountain: Eight Laurels and Counting

Written By Tori James

I'm so proud to share that More Than a Mountain has won Best Short Documentary at the Hollywood Best Indie Film Awards, and just last week expedition leader Jo Bradshaw and Loz Henshall attended the screening and panel discussion about the film at the Women in Film & Television, Cyprus.

More Than a Mountain is a documentary film made to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first female ascent of Everest, and the life and legacy of Japanese mountaineer Junko Tabei - a woman whose pioneering spirit has been largely hidden in history. The film follows the Yala Peak expedition in which an extraordinary group of women, led by fellow Everest summiteer Jo Bradshaw, walked in Junko's footsteps. What began as a trek became a story of connection, courage and celebration, and a chance to honour the values Junko lived by: access, representation, and opportunity for all. It's a film about remembering a woman history nearly forgot, and making sure her story is told far and wide.

Being part of this film has been one of the most meaningful projects I've worked on. Every festival selection and every award means the film reaches a wider audience, and Junko's story gets told a little further - which has always been the point of making it.

The journey so far:

There are more festivals still to come, so I'm hopeful there will be a few more laurels - and a few more people hearing Junko's story - on the way.

If you'd like to watch the trailer, see below, and to find the film at a screening near you head here.

Huge thanks to the whole team who brought this film to life: Wild Valley Media, Adventurous Ewe, York St John University, Jo Bradshaw and Rosemary J Brown.

And a huge shout out to every single one of you who became a crowdfunder to make it happen. We couldn’t have done this without you.

Tori James
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Honorary Fellowship - University of Wales, Trinity Saint David