Banff’s Film Finalists: What to Watch
Banff's 2026 film competition has 83 finalists from a record 610 entries. The screenings to book, the passes left and how to plan nine days in Banff.
The Banff Centre Mountain Film and Book Festival has named its 2026 competition finalists: 83 films from 16 countries, chosen from a record 610 entries from 59 countries. The festival runs from 31 October to 8 November at Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, with screenings also at Lux Cinema Banff and artsPlace Canmore. Now that the program is set, here’s what to watch and how to go.
The films to book
Banff Centre picked out these ten finalists as highlights. All screenings are at Banff Centre unless noted.
- Everest: The Other Side (USA, 115 min, Alberta premiere). Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi follow ski mountaineers Jim Morrison and Hilaree Nelson as they attempt to climb and ski Everest’s direct North Face. Sat 31 Oct, 2 p.m., Jenny Belzberg Theatre; Sat 7 Nov, 7 p.m., Lux Cinema Banff.
- Mountains of the Moon (USA, 49 min). Chris Benchetler’s night-shot ski film, set to the Grateful Dead, with a live score by Ross James & Friends. Sat 31 Oct, 8 p.m., Jenny Belzberg Theatre.
- The Lost Cache (USA, 63 min, Canadian premiere). Skier Griffin Post and glaciologist Dora Medrzycka go looking for the gear, including an aerial camera, that Bradford Washburn left on the Yukon’s Walsh Glacier in 1937. Thu 5 Nov, 7:30 p.m., Jenny Belzberg Theatre; Fri 6 Nov, 7:30 p.m., artsPlace Canmore.
- Good Luck, Kid (USA, 24 min, Canadian premiere). Renan Ozturk’s portrait of photographer Taylor Shaffer on an Alaskan expedition with Alex Honnold and Tommy Caldwell. Fri 6 Nov, 7:30 p.m., Jenny Belzberg Theatre and artsPlace Canmore.
- Only Music // Snake River (USA, 40 min, Canadian premiere). Musicians on a multi-day river trip. Fri 6 Nov, 7:30 p.m., Jenny Belzberg Theatre and artsPlace Canmore.
- Annapurna: Dreams and Nightmares (USA, 114 min, world premiere). Don Bowie on fear and loss on one of the world’s most dangerous mountains. Fri 6 Nov, 7:30 p.m., Margaret Greenham Theatre.
- Nuisance Bear (Canada, 87 min). Gabriela Osio Vanden and Jack Weisman’s film about polar bears, tourists and wildlife officers on Hudson Bay. Sat 7 Nov, 2 p.m., Jenny Belzberg and Margaret Greenham Theatres; Sun 8 Nov, 3 p.m., Lux Cinema Banff.
- Derek vs Derek (UK, 88 min, North American premiere). Two English neighbours, both named Derek, feud over a rewilding project. Sat 7 Nov, 9 a.m., Jenny Belzberg Theatre and Max Bell Auditorium; 2 p.m., artsPlace Canmore.
- Threshold (USA, 84 min). A year with cross-country skier Jessie Diggins, the most decorated American skier ever, as she struggles with an eating disorder and tries to win back her World Cup title. Sat 7 Nov, 2 p.m., Lux Cinema Banff; 7:30 p.m., Max Bell Auditorium.
- The Last First: Winter K2 (USA, 98 min). Amir Bar-Lev on the race to make the first winter summit of K2. Sun 8 Nov, 9 a.m., Jenny Belzberg Theatre.
The program also includes 12 world premieres, 24 North American premieres and 20 Canadian premieres. The other finalists feature athletes including Andrzej Bargiel, Alannah Yip and Sasha DiGiulian. An international jury, including Oscar-winning cinematographer Rose Bush and BAFTA-nominated producer Beki Henderson, awards CAD $30,000 across 10 categories plus a CAD $5,000 Grand Prize. Winners are announced on Sunday 8 November.
“With more than 600 submissions from filmmakers around the world, the calibre and diversity of work continue to grow,” said Joanna Croston, Banff Centre’s director of mountain culture.
Beyond the screen
Keynote speakers include climbers Barry Blanchard, Ines Papert and Sarah Hueniken, the 2026 Summit of Excellence recipient. They are joined by ecologist Suzanne Simard, novelist Claire Cameron and conservation biologist Kevin Van Tighem. British mountaineer Leo Houlding headlines a fundraising event on 3 November. Free talks run on the Rab stage, and the festival marketplace and patio parties with live music return.
Plan it
- Tickets: single tickets start at CAD $20 through the Banff Centre Box Office. Lux Cinema Banff and artsPlace Canmore sell their own screenings, on sale since 5 October.
- Passes: both Festival Weekend passes (CAD $425) are sold out. The Chomolungma Festival Pass (CAD $1,650, including a $330 tax-deductible donation) is sold only until 8 October.
- Can’t travel? The Online Film Pass (Canada and U.S. only, per household) streams about 80 films from 12 to 22 November. It costs CAD $125 in Canada until 22 October, then CAD $150.
- Stay: Banff Centre Hotel offers a festival rate of CAD $256 a night plus fees and taxes. For the opening and closing weekends, book Banff or Canmore rooms early.
- Which weekend: opening weekend for Everest: The Other Side and Mountains of the Moon. Closing weekend, 6 to 8 November, for the densest run of finalists and the awards.
- Getting there: Banff is about 90 minutes by road from Calgary International Airport. Early-November weather can bring snow to the Bow Valley, so book a winter-ready car.
Sources
- Banff Centre, media release ‘2026 Banff Mountain Film Competition Finalists Announced’, 5 Oct 2026
- Banff Centre, 2026 passes and tickets
- Banff Centre, Chomolungma Festival Pass
Catherine Crowe is Pacific Market Editor at Not An Atlas, leading our Australia and New Zealand coverage from just outside Wellington, on the southern coast of New Zealand's North Island, by way of Canada. A speech-language pathologist, mother and former model, she travels the way she listens: closely, and for the story underneath. She still writes on family and wellness travel, and the long-haul logistics of both.