Daron Letts
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Jan 06/06) - It's not an event for the vertiginous. The Banff Mountain Film Festival is coming to Yellowknife for its 15th year.

Two nights of films feature scenes of mountain climbing in the Canadian Rockies, base jumping from cliffs on Baffin Island, free ride mountain biking, desert crack climbing, paragliding and other extreme sports in extreme environments.

Overlander Sports and Blachford Lake Lodge bring the festival to Yellowknife every year as part of its world tour to promote active outdoor lifestyles in the North.

However, Overlander Sports owner Bill Stirling says the films cover more than just athletic themes.

"A lot of the films are very captivating," he said. "They move you into a different space. They show different parts of the world and how different people live."

Hockey Night in Ladakh is a story about an outdoor hockey game between out of shape, middle-aged Canadian embassy staff living in New Delhi and young, fit residents of Ladakh in Northwest India.

Players on the home team have the additional advantage of being acclimatized to the high altitude atmosphere.

Other films explore themes of art, environmentalism, oral tradition and cultural diversity. There are 16 films in all.

Filmmaker, international outdoor guide and avalanche control expert Kellie Erwin-Rhoads will introduce the films and field questions during the two evenings.

The films screen at the Northern Arts and Cultural Centre on Jan. 20 and 21.