A free screening of “Chasing Ice” will at 7 p.m., Thursday, April 25 at Star Hall. The movie is made available through the Utah Film Circuit: Moab, an initiative of the Grand County Public Library and the Utah Film Center.
“Chasing Ice” earned an excellence in cinematography award in documentaries from the 2012 Sundance Film Festival, as well as best documentary at the Berkshire, Big Sky and Crested Butte film festivals.
“’Chasing Ice’ has garnered numerous accolades from every festival it has screened at,” said Sallie Hodges of the Utah Film Circuit: Moab. “It’s a visually stunning film that has captured undeniable footage of our changing planet. I’m extremely excited to be able to watch this on a big screen.”
In the spring of 2005, acclaimed environmental photographer James Balog headed to the Arctic on a tricky assignment for “National Geographic”: to capture images to help tell the story of Earth’s changing climate.
Even with a scientific upbringing, Balog had been a skeptic about climate change. But that first trip north opened his eyes and sparked a challenge within him that would put his career and well-being at risk.
“Chasing Ice” is the story of one man’s mission to change the tide of the history by gathering evidence of a changing planet. Within months of that first trip to Iceland, the photographer conceived the boldest expedition of his life: The Extreme Ice Survey.
With a band of young adventurers in tow, Balog began employing revolutionary time-lapse cameras across the Arctic to capture a multi-year record of the world’s disappearing glaciers.
As the debate polarized America and the intensity of natural disasters ramped up globally, Balog found himself at the end of his tether. Battling untested technology in subzero conditions, he came face-to-face with his own mortality.
It takes years for Balog to see the fruits of his labor. His hauntingly beautiful videos compress years into seconds and capture ancient mountains of ice in motion as they disappear at breathtaking rate.
“Chasing Ice” depicts a photographer trying to deliver evidence and hope to our carbon-powered planet.
“James is an incredible mentor and friend. He’s a perfectionist and will stop at nothing to create and image. But it’s not just about making a photograph,” said director Jeff Orlowski. “For him, it’s really about what the image is saying. What it means. And then how that can be communicated to the viewer. He has had a profound influence on my life, and unquestionably he’s been my greatest artistic influence. I think he is one of the greatest artistic minds of our generation.”
Orlowski offered to help Balog for free in 2007, and went with Balog and a team to Iceland where he installed his first time-lapse camera.
“I filmed the entire trip. It was mostly to document what he was doing and to have a record of the project,” Orlowski said. “Then I went with him to Greenland, and then Alaska, and then kept traveling with him, filming everywhere he went.”
The biggest challenge during filming was the harsh environments.
“We had weather as low as negative 30 degrees. One winter night in Greenland, I thought I was going to freeze to death in our cabin. Our heater was leaking gas so we decided to go to sleep without it. I woke up in the middle of the night from my own teeth chattering. I rubbed my body to stay warm, and suffered until sunrise,” Orlowski said. “But as cold as it was, and as difficult as it may seem, that was all the fun stuff. I’d do it all again in a heartbeat. I’d much rather be out shooting than editing.”
The Utah Film Center: Moab provides a monthly screening featuring some of the best dramatic and documentary films from around the world. Jessie Magleby of the Grand County Public Library said that they appreciate suggestions by patrons.
“The Grand County Public Library is delighted to be screening “Chasing Ice”, which was suggested by several different library patrons. It promises to be an exquisite and exciting film chronicling the adventures of a courageous team of scientists and photographers who brave extreme conditions to document this amazing phenomenon,” said Magleby said. “I think it will appeal to Moab’s many outdoor-adventure types and to anyone who enjoys excellent nature photography. This is definitely a film that will be best enjoyed on a big screen with good sound!”
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