And the winner is....
Friday July 16, 2010 - Email this article to a friend

5 teams competed in Chamonix to make a 5-minute film including 5 different adventure sports. PlanetSKI saw the competition when it was underway and was there at the prize ceremony. We have the videos too.

The event was won by the Austrian team, Argon, in a closely fought competition.

The event is now in its 6^th year and this is the first time it has been held in Chamonix.

It seems a fairly appropriate venue given the image of the town as the home of extreme sports in The Alps.

"We had to wait until it was dark to see the films on the big screen here in Chamonix town centre. Glen Plake spent a couple of hours signing posters for the audience and we've been entertained by singers on stage," says PlanetsKI reporter, Lisa Young, who was in the town for the event.

"All the films are outstanding and skillfully made and I can't imagine it was an easy task to select the winner. There's a real party atmosphere now, the teams have done their job and now they are relaxing and taking in the moment. It's been am exciting night and the audience seem to really appreciate what's gone into making the 5 minute films in such a short space of time."

There was a party atmosphere in town as the films were shown.

"The atmosphere and ambience is great, so many people have turned up to see the films. Many people here come to visit Chamonix, they might go hiking or climbing but they never get the chance to participate or see these events at this level," one spectator, Raúl Revuelta Carbajo, said to PlanetSKI.

"As you can see they really appreciate the skill involved in making the films. The athletic level is so high. Every year the quality of the films gets better and better. All the hard works done and now it's time to party."

So, what is the winning film about?

"The main character is a supernatural being who has powers upon the earth. He uses these powers for evil causes to try to control forces of nature and their effect on humans. He wants to leave his mark on humanity before leaving this world though in the end humans prevail," says Argon.

See the film itself below.

"In film making, the most difficult thing to do is to communicate a message. For us as the jury, Argon conveyed more emotion than the others. The crescendo, the rhythm of the film was excellent. And of course the overall coherence that is necessary for a good production. The music, post production, scenario, high mountain settings were highly appreciated. In a normal situation it would take weeks or even months to do such work," says Stefano De Bendetti, the President of the judging panel.

Team Argon, who also won the winter edition of the Nissan Outdoor Games 2009, were well prepared for this 6th edition, having worked on their storyboard since December.

The main character in the film, Johannes Haberl, is also the team's composer and singer, who created the impressive music during the week on site here in Chamonix-Mont-Blanc.

"This is for sure the hardest production I ever made in my career as a filmmaker. It is so intense with many issues to coordinate, including 3-D animations, composing our own music and getting in all the action shots. It has been a huge challenge," said the elated team manager and producer, Seppi Dabringer, from Austria.

One team was a group of amateur film-makers who won a competition to take part.

We followed the team, Oseven, for an afternoon last week as they shot the mountain biking sequences - see the story here and below is the final film from Oseven