Banff film festival returns to North Idaho

It’s a 50-year celebration for the Banff Centre as its Mountain Film Festival World Tour returns to North Idaho.

In Sandpoint, shows will be held Jan. 16-18 at the Panida Theater. 

Shows will start at 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 16; at 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 17; and at 6 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 18. All tickets are sold through the Panida website at panida.org/events. This year marks the 31st year the film festival has presented at the Panida Theater.

In Coeur d'Alene, shows will be held Jan. 23-25 at the Kroc Center.

As with each new “Banff” year, a wide variety of films encompassing mountain sports, humor, and culture will take over the Panida screen, said Michael Boge of Mountain Fever Productions which sponsors the tour's stop in Sandpoint.

This year, the 2025 Best Film on Mountain Sports and the winner of the Audience Choice Award is “Best Day Ever,” which follows the stories of mountain bikers Greg Durso and Allie Bianchi as they navigate the relentless challenges of life with humor and attitude. The film has won over 13 awards worldwide to date.

Set in the Green Mountains, this is a story of grit, independence, and what’s possible when community and creativity come together. At its heart is the world’s first fully adaptive trail network — built to prove that everyone belongs outside.

Banff is always about finding films that you would not see elsewhere, and the short, quirky film “Jaunt” is no exception. The film follows Justice, who makes sense of the world of deadlines and endless to-do lists, with some good advice for all of us. 

“Robson” was a film first presented in Banff, Alberta, during the town's 50-year celebration in November. Mountain Fever Productions officials said they are super excited that the "intense" film was included in the tour. It is about Christina Lustenberger and Guillaume Pierrel's attempt at the daring first descent of Canada’s Mount Robson’s South Face. Climbing and adventure film, yes, but more so it's about Lustenberger's drive to achieve, using the Frenchman's incredible talent to make it happen. 

Since 1995, the Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival in Sandpoint has always been about community; this year is no different, Boge said.

Friday night, Jeff and Doti Rouleau will be on hand with great raffle items to support their North Idaho Mountain Sports Education Foundation NIMSEF, which helps underserved youth in the area with the opportunity to ski. Saturday night, Karen Brenner will be heading up the Independence Ski Team's “Taste of Sandpoint,” raffling off a substantial prize of dining experiences at Sandpoint area restaurants, and Sunday, The Friends of Schweitzer Ski Patrol will be on hand with raffle items and avalanche dogs to support their fundraising efforts with the dog program that keeps skiers safe on the mountain.

In Coeur d'Alene, the festival benefits the Kroc Center's swimming program, which aims to have all county youth learn how to swim by the time they are in the third grade.

The Banff World Tour immediately follows the Banff Centre Mountain Film and Book Festival in November, where a selection of the top films submitted to the festival go on a tour worldwide. The World Tour reaches over 550,000 audience members through more than 1100 screenings in 500 locations in 40 countries. In some years, it is even screened in Antarctica. From its humble beginnings in Banff, Alberta, 50 years ago, when a couple of filmmakers got together, it has truly spanned the globe. 

For more information, go to mountainfever.us.

BANFF CENTRE MOUNTAIN FILM FESTIVAL 

WORLD TOUR SCHEDULE

FRIDAY, Jan. 16

Serac

• "Mandala" (tour edit) — France, 2025, 6 minutes; no advisory.

Kilian Bron and his team journey from Kathmandu to Nepal’s remote Dolpo region, navigating dizzying ridgelines and timeless villages. Blending adventure, reflection, and human connection, their ride explores isolation, cultural encounter, and the meaning of responsible travel — capturing the raw essence of exploration in one of the world’s most secluded valleys. 

• "Flow Vision" (tour edit) — France, 2025, 8 minutes; no advisory.

There is something that has always excited Ambroise in downhill skateboarding: it’s those moments you experience two or three times in a season or even in your life. He has only experienced this a few times in his life while skating, so he decided to skate the most challenging road in Europe to immerse himself in this mental state — the flow state. 

• "Robson" — Canada, 2025, 49 minutes; advisory for coarse language.

Two world-class ski mountaineers, Christina Lustenberger and Guillaume Pierrel, attempt a daring first descent of Mount Robson’s South Face, retracing the footsteps of alpine pioneers and the weight of a legacy that has challenged generations. 

• "Emil & Karl —  Little Wheels, Big Mountains" (tour edit) — Germany, 2025, 23 minutes; advisory for coarse language.

Jakob and Konne, two adventurous fathers bring their two year old sons, on a six-day mountain bike tour through the Swiss Alps. From rumbling stomachs and croissant crises to unavoidable tantrums —  what begins as an ideal plan quickly turns into a test of patience for all four. 

• "Lines" — USA, 2025, 9 minutes; advisory for coarse language.

There’s a tense moment before every grand performance where apprehension turns to belief, and preparation meets presentation. We follow the interwoven journey of a skier and a rapper as they individually navigate this moment on stages of their own choosing. 

• "Old Man Lightning" (tour edit) — USA, 2025, 45 minutes; advisories for coarse language and mature subject matter. Film received the 2025 Best Climbing Film as part of the Banff Mountain Film Festival.

The best climbing, comedy, comeback ever made, with a conservation plight. It will make you laugh and cry and maybe pee your pants.

SATURDAY, Jan. 17

Crevasse

• "Jaunt" — USA, 2025, 4 minutes; no advisories.

In a stark warehouse office, Justice is weighed down by mounting deadlines and an endless to-do list. But every day, he finds escape in a one-hour ritual that reignites his spirit. 

• "Bridgers" — USA, 2025, 12 minutes;  no advisories.

Two Bozeman-based ski patrollers reflect on the rapid changes facing their home and the sport they love. With 50 seasons under his belt, Dene Brandt regards the future with an optimism that infects his younger co-worker. 

• "Beyond Parallels" — Canada, 2025, 45 minutes; advisory for coarse language.

After crossing Canada from North to South in 2021, the adventurers of AKOR expeditions set out on a new challenge: a crossing of the Canadian Far North from West to East, from the Yukon to Baffin Island. A 6,900-kilometre journey by bike, canoe, sailboat, and on foot. 

• "One Step Ahead" — Canada, 2025, 14 minutes; advisory for coarse language.

After losing his leg in an accident, Norwegian skier Bernt Marius gets back to doing what he loves best: skiing big lines in the Sunnmøre Alps

• "Trail to Bayanihan" — Canada, 2025, 22 minutes; no advisories.

Sam pedals through diverse landscapes in the Philippines, celebrating the joy of biking and the power of community. Riding with local groups like the Baguio crew, she discovers how biking bridges distances, connects cultures, and transforms her search for heritage into a celebration of shared humanity. 

• "Reel Rock: Riders on the Storm" — USA, 2025, 28 minutes; advisories for coarse language and nudity.

Big wall climber Siebe Vanhee enlists Drew Smith and fellow Belgian countrymen Nico Favresse and Sean Villanueva O'Driscoll to attempt the first free ascent of the elusive Riders on the Storm route on the East Face of Patagonia's Torre Central.

SUNDAY, Jan. 18

Moraine

• "Cold Calls — Japan" — USA, 2025, 6 minutes; advisory for coarse language.

"Cold Calls" is a ski film pieced together through conversations, memories, and whatever the season decided to offer! 

• "The Hive Architect" — U.K., 2025, 12 minutes; advisory for coarse language.

For the last 14 years Matt Somerville has spent the winters creating his log hives before driving around all of England in the summer, erecting them as non-intervention habitats for wild honey bees. 

• "Best Day Ever" — USA, 2025, 47 minutes; advisory for coarse language. Film won film festival awards for 2025 Best Film: Mountain Sports and 2025 Audience Choice Award.

"Best Day Ever" follows the stories of adaptive mountain bikers Greg Durso and Allie Bianchi as they navigate the relentless challenges of their disabilities with humour and attitude. Along the way, they embrace the tremendous support, friendship, and joy they find in their rural Vermont riding community. 

• "Deluge" — Canada, 2025, 2 minutes; no advisories.

Georgia Astle, Casey Brown, Carson Storch, and Tom van Steenbergen battle the elements. 

• "Dissidence" — France, 2025, 34 minutes; no advisories.

Two unexpected names are emerging on the stage of the climbing World Championships: Ravianto and Raviandi Ramadhan, twin brothers from Indonesia. With nothing but their own resources, "Dissidence" retraces their extraordinary journey, from the training walls of Jakarta to a climbing route in Savoie, France. 

• "A Baffin Vacation, Love on Ice" — Canada, 2025, 26 minutes; advisories for coarse language and nudity.

Join adventurers Erik and Sarah on yet another outrageous Baffin Vacation as they kite-ski north along the remote coastline of Baffin. Over their 69-day holiday, they ski mountains, climb an epic big wall, and cross a glacier in search of new rivers to whitewater kayak.

    A screenshot from "Mandala", which tells the story of Kilian Bron and his team who journey from Kathmandu to Nepal’s remote Dolpo region, navigating dizzying ridgelines and timeless villages.
  

    A screenshot of "Robson", the story of world-class ski mountaineers, Christina Lustenberger and Guillaume Pierrel in their daring attempt of the first descent of Mount Robson’s South Face.
  

    In "Beyond Parallels", the Banff Mountain Film Festival film tells the story of the adventurers of AKOR expeditions as the attempt to cross the Canadian Far North from west to east.
  

    A screenshot of "A Baffin Vacation, Love on Ice", a film that tells the story of a pair of adventurers as they kiteski along the remote coastline of Baffin.