Everest: The Other Side (2026)
Director: Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin Run Time: 115 min. Release Year: 2026
Starring: Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Hilaree Nelson, Jim Morrison, Jimmy Chin, Mikey Schaefer
Country: United States
Language: English
About the film:
An intimate portrait of two people bound by love, ambition, and the pursuit of the impossible. Elite ski mountaineers Jim Morrison and Hilaree Nelson fell deeply in love while reaching the pinnacle of their sport. Their drive sharpened into a shared dream: to climb and ski the direct North Face of Mount Everest—the most difficult and dangerous climb on the mountain and the most coveted ski line on Earth—something only a handful have ever achieved, and no one has successfully skied down.
“visceral and jolting at every turn, yielding a moving, multifaceted experience that needs to be seen to be believed”
—Siddhant Adlakha for The Wrap
The film had its world premiere at the 2026 Venice International Film Festival followed by screenings at Telluride and Toronto.
About the filmmakers:
Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin are a highly acclaimed filmmaking team whose work blends extraordinary visual imagery with deeply human narratives exploring people who push themselves to the limits of human endurance. Their collaborations include the critically acclaimed documentaries Meru (2015), which won the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival, and Free Solo (2018), which won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature and a BAFTA, along with seven Emmy Awards. Their other work includes The Rescue (2021), Return to Space (2022), Wild Life (2023), and the scripted feature Nyad (2023).
Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi was raised in New York and studied at Princeton University. Her independent features include Youssou N’Dour: I Bring What I Love (2008), Touba (2013), and Incorruptible (2015). Jimmy Chin is a Minnesota-born professional mountain climber and photographer with decades of experience documenting expeditions in some of the world’s most challenging environments. His photography has been featured in National Geographic, Outside, and The New York Times Magazine, and his bestselling book, There and Back, chronicles his adventures and experiences in the mountains.
See our upcoming films
MAJOR SUPPORT
Ohio Arts Council
Greater Columbus Arts Council
The Columbus Foundation
Campus Partners
WITH HELP FROM
G&J Pepsi
WOSU Public Media