Video: Preview the Sheffield Adventure Film Festival

2009 ShAFF Trailer from Matt Heason on Vimeo.

Text by Tetsuhiko Endo

And the nominees are…

Break out your cleanest sportswear and find yourself a good-looking date: It's time to hit the red carpet at a relative newcomer to the world of adventure film fests—the Sheffield Adventure Film Festival. It kicks off on February 28th and will feature three days of adventure film screenings and guest lectures. Judges will choose the best 46 films in six different categories including Best Climbing Film, Best Adrenaline Film, and the coveted Grand Prize.

Since it’s inception in 2006, the festival has been showcasing award-winning adventure movies from other festivals (Banff, Kendal, Telluride's Mountainfilm, etc.), as well as other high-quality independent films. Attendees can watch the premiers of 13 new films and check out the buzz movies of the past year, like the bold climbing documentary The Sharp End and the mountain biking opus Seasons. 

Guest lecturers include climbing greats Ron Fawcett and Chris Sharma, as well as filmmakers and guides from across the spectrum of adventure sports. Although there won’t be any gift baskets or limousines, any event organized by British climbers is sure to have a hell of an after party.

Sheffield is just a two-hour train ride from London. Train tickets start around $80, and with the pound as weak as its been to the dollar in the last decade, this could be the perfect time for a trip across the pond.