There is an immeasurable number of ways to experience this planet.
Think about it. Seven billion people live on Earth, each with his or her own collection of likes, dislikes, dreams and fears; each with his or her own unique existence.
The thought often overwhelms me. For all the possibility this world offers, we each get but one life.
The weight of this revelation first struck me last January during Chattanooga’s Lookout Wild Film Festival, an annual four-day festival featuring short films about wild places and the people they inspire. In that dark theater, I watched life’s fantastic potential flash across the big screen: skiers, sailors, scientists, amateur adventurers, all carving – at times treacherously – their own paths through the natural world.
That night, as I walked the two blocks back to my apartment, I was overcome with urgency.
There is so much to do.
I suppose the beauty of being alive in this time and place is that we have the technology to learn about other ways of life, and to share our own – all the better when those experiences can be set to an emotionally charged soundtrack and depicted in a dark theater.
This year, LWFF returns to Chattanooga Jan. 24-27 and will be hosted at the Tivoli Theater for the first time. Over four days, it will showcase 425 films, stories from both our backyard and from far-flung places, from disc golf courses to snow-capped peaks, each chronicling another unique existence.
What does it feel like to be an 82-year-old competitive skier? Or a female firefighter? Or an inner-city youth in Memphis discovering climbing?
The world is full of answers – but first we must ask the questions.
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To preview a few of this year’s films, and to hear an interview with festival director Andy Johns, check out the video below. For more information on LWFF, click here.
Sunny MontgomerySunny Montgomery
Get Out Digital Editor
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