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 One of an elite group of "free solo" rock climbers, he scales
sheer vertical cliffs thousands of feet high, alone and without
a rope.
Now his death-defying ascent in 2017 of the towering El Capitan
granite rock formation in California's Yosemite National Park is
taking him to the Oscars, where a film about his feat will
compete for the movie world's highest honor.
"Free Solo," nominated for best documentary, is an intimate look
at Honnold's experience of preparing for and climbing the 3,000
foot high (900 meter) wall, where a tiny slip of a foot or
misplacement of a finger could send him plummeting to his death.
The extreme danger of the ascent and the constant prospect of
death terrifies those around Honnold in the film, but it gives
the climber an equanimity he finds liberating.
"What's so satisfying about free soloing is having that feeling
of focus and not being self-conscious, losing that sense of
self, just being fully present in what I'm actually doing, just
doing the moves," the 33 year-old told Reuters.
At the heart of the documentary is the dilemma filmmakers Jimmy
Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi struggled with during
production: whether documenting Honnold's climb would make it
more dangerous for him or cause him to take risks he would not
otherwise take.
"Alex is someone who has thought more about his own mortality
than mostly everyone. And he has chosen this life,” Vasarhelyi
said.
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“We trusted him. We also trusted our own judgment that we would
always treat our subject with respect and the film's interests would
never trump those of Alex. But, you know, we had to address the
ethical question. And that's why we include the filmmaking, so that
audiences can understand what we were struggling with," Vasarhelyi
said.
The filmmakers installed remote-controlled cameras at the most
difficult points of the climb to avoid distracting Honnold, and also
set up zoom-lens cameras on the ground.
Camera operators still had to film much of the ascent while
suspended on ropes on the side of the rock face.
Vasarhelyi said the comment she hears most is how inspiring the film
is.
“We've been just humbled by this outpouring from audiences saying
that Alex's courage gives them courage and that they're inspired to
pursue their dreams," she said.
The Oscars will be handed out on Feb. 24 at a ceremony in Hollywood.
(Reporting by Reuters Television; Editing by Chris Reese)
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