Keeper of the Mountains is a portrait of Elizabeth Hawley and her unlikely key role in the Golden Age of Himalayan mountaineering, her defiance of the traditional gender roles of her day and her decision to settle alone in Kathmandu in 1960, where she has famously lived life on her own terms ever since.
Hawley, 91 and a former journalist, maintains the world's largest and most treasured archive of Himalayan mountaineering expeditions and her work is trusted by news organizations and publications around the globe.
All this despite never having climbed a mountain herself.
The film is an impressionistic snapshot of her life and the challenges she currently faces as she tries to maintain the mountaineering archives and her independence while dealing with advancing age.
Screenings and awards:
Screenings:
Mountainfilm in Telluride (World Premiere)
Lighthouse International Film Festival
Filmstock Colorado
American Alpine Club Craggin’ Classic
DocuWest Film Festival in Colorado
Port Townsend International Film Festival
Oaxaca FilmFest in Mexico
Crested Butte Film Festival
MountainSummit in Aspen
RockySpirit Festival in Brazil
Mountainfilm World Tour
Banff Mountain Film Festival
Banff World Tour
International Festival of Mountain Films in Slovakia
Brescia Winter Film Festival in Italy
Horyzonty Film Festival in Slovakia
Mendi Film Festival in Spain
Frozen River Film Festival
American Alpine Club Movie Night
Sun and Sand Film Festival
Boulder International Film Festival
Edinburgh Mountain Film Festival
Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival
Sheffield Adventure Film Festival
International Mountain Film Festival Domzale, Slovenia
New Zealand Mountain Film Festival
International Mountain film competition in Zakopane, Poland
Festival international du film de montagne Autrans, France
Mountainfilm Graz International Film Festival in Austria
21st Mountain Film Festival Salzburg, Austria
Bansko Mountain Film Festival in Bulgaria
Awards received:
Audience Choice Award Best Short Film at the Lighthouse International Film Festival
Best Director, Best Editor, Audience Choice, Best of Fest at Filmstock Colorado
Best International Film at RockySpirit Festival
Best Short Film at DocuWest
Special Jury Commendation Port Townsend Film Festival
International Festival of Mountain Films in Slovakia Prize For Mountain History Filming
Special Jury Mention Banff Mountain Film Festival
Named one of the “Best Adventure Films of 2013” by Outside Magazine
Special Jury Commendation, Edinburgh Mountain Film Festival
Sheffield Adventure Film Festival Special Mention Award
Additional generous support provided by:
The Mountainfilm in Telluride Commitment Grant Program and the American Alpine Club
The Leonard family
Everest footage provided by Sam Bricker
1963 American Everest photographs provided by the Barry Corbet collection located at the Henry S. Hall Jr. American Alpine Club Library
Website: miss-hawley.com
