The official world premiere of the new “Shades of Winter” movie “PURE” by Fischer freeskier and filmmaker Sandra Lahnsteiner will be held on October 9, 2014 in Munich.
In “PURE” an all-female group of exceptional skiers take the viewers on a journey of unspoilt adventures. 52 minutes of pure bliss will boost your urge to get out into the mountains and feel alive.
When we are young we chase and pursue our dreams without hesitation, with the pure curiosity of a child. Solely driven by the need to capture the pure feeling of living in the moment. And although our grown-up lives are sometimes burdened by responsibilities and the awareness of the complexity of life, we are still driven by the constant search for the special moments. Moments, in which we experience pure happiness, independence, fear and freedom – they keep pushing us to explore our limits…
Fischer Sports has supported the “all female skiing” project of our freeride pro Sandra Lahnsteiner from the very beginning. Fischer is very proud to be the partner for Shades of Winter as Sandra set a new standard in female freeski movies.”Christian Lutz, Head of International Marketing.
Sandra, who came up with the idea for the film?
The ‘Shades of Winter’ movies are both based in the first ski movie I produced, AS WE ARE (released in fall 2010), an all-girls ski movie featuring six European athletes. I then took a break from producing, but came back with the little free ski documentary SHUKRAN MOROCCO 2012. It was then that I knew I would love to produce an even bigger movie and the idea for ‘Shades of Winter’ was born.
What’s the difference between last year’s movie and PURE?
The goal was ambitious: to step it up in every aspect of producing a ski movie: ski performance, cinematography, story telling, post production, distribution and marketing. I’m pretty stoked about PURE now and I’m excited to hear the feedback.
What’s the best thing about working with other female riders?
We are friends, we love the same things, we like to challenge ourselves, we love those feelings we experience while skiing, we like to push ourselves, we can laugh about ourselves, we are just as we are, we are PURE.
Has it been a dream for you to produce?
I didn’t dream about producing ski movies. The only thing I realized pretty much from the beginning of my free ski career was that I loved the creative work in the mountains with TV-crews and photographers from the very first moments. The lack of female ski movies pushed my motivation as well and so this was exactly when and why I started organizing my first own production AS WE ARE in 2009. You can find movie posters and links to films and teasers here: http://www.sandralahnsteiner.com/en/media/, please click on ski films.
At that time I didn’t at all believe I could step it up and at some point have it at that professional level where I am now with ‘Shades of Winter’. Well, I guess no one else believed in it either!
So, producing ski movies isn’t a dream came true, but it’s a dream I never had come true. I have the biggest respect for all the competitors at the Freeride World Tour and Olympia etc. but to me the true beauty of free skiing is in the film aspect. This is what I love to do and I hope I can continue with it. I already have a new project in mind but first let’s focus on the release of PURE.
Not only do you ski in this movie, but you are directing and producing it too, what extra challenges does this bring to the table?
Well, I’d say switching between my different roles is the hardest!
Mario Feil, who also did the editing, mainly directed the movie but I wouldn’t leave my „baby“ alone at all – I was with him in the studio editing, putting the voiceovers together, and taking care of athletes and sponsors. The most difficult things is to switch between being a producer and an athlete on a trip – I might sit together with the media crew and mountain guides to discuss things, have responsibility about budget but need to be a pure athlete once I am on top of my line. This fast switch sometimes really challenges me quite hard. In the studio the tough thing is to put away personal emotions you have as an athlete and to focus on the project in total.
I love my job – I love to see the whole project coming together, sitting in the studio next to the editor and discussing shots. For me, this is another really hard time because, that’s when I represent us athletes; most of the time big emotions are involved in our skiing, in big lines and still sometimes some shots won’t make it to the edit for some cinematography reason. At this point it’s just super important to look at the project at its whole.
Producing ski movies now by myself since 2009 and especially ‘Shades of Winter’ for me is ‘learning by doing’. I improve every day, get to know more about the whole post production process with sound mastering, colour grading, music licensing and the whole marketing side working close with the film partners.
I have to say thank you to all the film partners and athletes for trusting in me these past years.
What was the inspiration to “Shades of Winter”?
My general inspiration for making ski movies is simple: I love to see an idea I have in mind come to life and I really love the creative work in the mountains with TV-crews, photographers and other athletes. That’s how I became a filmmaker.
My first “Shades of Winter” movie had its roots in “As We Are”, but this time my big goal was less the story but putting the performance and the action of us girls in the foreground.
WithPUREwe want to reach the next level of movie making. Again I want to showcase the best female action; but carried on by a smart little story that inspires, captured by the two fantastic cameramen Mathias Bermann and Mario Feil and our team. Everyday experience once again was my personal inspiration for the upcoming movie, all these feelings we experience in life and in skiing. Once I‘ve had the idea in my head I couldn’t stop thinking of it and together with director and editor Mario Feil we developed the story for “PURE”.
This movie promotes the idea that ‘girls rip too’, which is a movement across all action/outdoor sports at the moment, as we see a myriad of female athletes trying to create some better role models for young girls. What’s your opinion on the portrayal of female athletes in the media?
As “Shades of Winter” movies feature female athletes I am very much aware of the fact that we are role models for other girls. Well, at least I hope so! I think the important message to tell is not (only) that “girls can rip” but that we can do our own things and that we earned the spot in the industry by performance and not by looking good or cute.
What were the biggest challenges during the shoot?
Filming skiing is always challenging. And winter 2013/14 was especially challenging due to the lack of snow in the Alps (except for the Southern Alps) but also quite a dry season in Alaska and in Canada. But in the end you have to play with what you get.
The biggest challenge for me personally is, as I said before, to switch between being an athlete and the producer of the movie.
How do you prepare physically for a film like this?
We all do lots of sports and train a lot to prepare our body for winter and skiing. I love windsurfing and climbing in summer, which is perfect upper body training and I do a lot of biking and running. From September on I have a special workout in the gym to prepare my muscles.
Where can we see the film?
At the world premiere in Munich, Germany, on October 9!
Check www.shades-of-winter.com for the complete list of festivals and cinema tours
INFO: Fischer
