Alex Dierker
Audience eagerly line up early outside Boulder Theater for MSP’s “All In”
Boulder Theater, September 26, 2018
For some here in Colorado, it is tough to build winter ski psych during shoulder season. The days get shorter, and as the rainy, cool fall weather appears, my coworkers bemoan the fact that summer in the Front Range is ending. No more cragging in Boulder Canyon, gone are the casual Boulder bike path commutes to the office, a jacket may be required, and heaven forbid a beanie!
But for the rest of us (aka all readers of WildSnow dot com), it’s the start of the new year. Maybe you’re like us in the Dierker/Perrot residence: checking the skins (hopefully well-preserved in the salad drawer of the fridge); re-molding ski boot liners; doing thousands of box jumps, weighted step ups, goblet squats, and long runs; debating gear to upgrade; and of course, rewatching beloved ski flicks and attending new film premiers for the season.
Our viewing pleasure kicked off with a fabulous one this year produced by Matchstick Productions and directed by Scott Gaffney: “All In.”
“All In” is their new ski flick for the 2018/2019 ski season, and Matchstick is “all in” on ski film gender equality, with a strong cast of women and men alike, ripping it up in British Columbia, Alaska, Utah, Washington, Japan, and South America. It was apparent from the start that this would be a film about incredibly talented and athletic human-skiers, with the editing cutting frequently between the athletes in a way that showed they were together in their passion for being in the mountains on two planks (and sometimes snowmobiles).
Also prevalent is excellent content that’s often ignored in these sorts of films. The cast talks about spending time in the backcountry with significant others, the long physical and mental road back from injury, conditions-assessments and decision-making, and enjoying the process of becoming better at what you do. This, combined with incredible cinematography of huge lines and fantastic skiing from the likes of Angel Collinson, Michelle Parker, Tatum Monod, Elyse Saugstad, Mark Abma, Wiley Miller, Johnny Collinson, and Cody Townsend. The entire package did not disappoint.
The event was sponsored by The North Face, Alaska Airlines, Sierra Nevada Brewing, and Freeskier; TNF put together schwag bags for the first in line for the show, Sierra Nevada beer always hits the spot and the Boulder Theater provided a perfect backdrop for eager viewers of all ages. It was good to see Protect Our Winters (POW) there as well, encouraging the audience (along with Angel Collinson and Wiley Miller, who were in the house) to participate in this Fall’s midterm elections.
Check out Matchstick Productions “All In” to help build your stoke and keep an eye out for the plethora of other great ski films coming out this fall!
To find a showing near you, check out Matchstick Productions tour schedule here.
(Guest blogger Alex Dierker grew up skiing the corn fields of Illinois, and moved to Jackson, Wyoming full-time in the winter of 2013. There, he met his future wife and recreation partner Dani and since then, they have become a two-for-the-price-of-one partnership. After chasing early mornings to remote and obscure moderates in the Tetons, they moved to Colorado and have been making powder 8’s year-round ever since. Check out their website here.)
Beyond our regular guest bloggers who have their own profiles, some of our one-timers end up being categorized under this generic profile. Once they do a few posts, we build a category. In any case, we sure appreciate ALL the WildSnow guest bloggers!
