The third edition of the Kathmandu International Mountain Film Festival this year is scheduled for 9-12 December, coinciding with the International Mountain Day on 11 December. Screened back-to-back at the Russian Cultural Centre, it will bring together 49 of the best international mountain films produced over the last three years.

The main aim of the festival is to entertain, inform and educate viewers about life and times in the mountain regions from the Andes to the Tatra, to the Himalaya. The range of presentations from 21 countries include adventure cinema, experimental shorts, light-hearted commentary and feature films. KIMFF 2004 will open with the premiere of On the Road with the Red God: Machhindranath by filmmaker Kesang Tseten.

This year, KIMFF has several satellite activities lined up:
10 December- Half-day workshop on Learn to Shoot like a Pro
11 December- Photo exhibition on Alps-Himalaya, On-the-spot painting contest for children, a 'Know Your Himal' quiz.
12 December- Slide presentation/lecture on Nepal's biodiversity by Dr Tirtha Bahadur Shrestha

Films will be screened from 9.30 AM to 6.30 PM at the Russian Cultural Centre, Kamalpokhari. All films are in English or subtitled.

HALL A
9 DECEMBER, THURSDAY
The Forbidden Team (54') 2.45 PM
Denmark, 2003, Rasmus Dinesen/Arnold Kroeigaard
A team finally gets to play football.

Sabuk Uprising, April in 1980-Dust Buries Sabuk (83') 3.55 PM
South Korea, 2003, Lee Mi-Young
On 21 April 1980 in a remote coal mining town called Sabuk in southeast Korea, miners revolted against wretched working conditions and armed themselves with scythes and clubs, looted weapons and explosives. They occupied Sabuk for three days. But behind what became known as the Sabuk incident were massive arrests and torture. These stories have remained untold for 20 years.

Starkiss-Circus Girls in India (77') 5.35 PM
Netherlands, 2002, Chris Relleke/Jascha De Wilde
Nepali girls in India's oldest circus.

10 DECEMBER, FRIDAY
The Secret of the Sherpa (90') 10AM
Austria, 2001/2002, Gertrude Reinisch
Sherpa life below Chomolungma.

Pororoca-Surfing the Amazon (26') 11.45 AM
Germany, 2003, Bill Heath
Riding the ultimate wave (nothing to do with mountains!).

EXPERIMENTAL SHORTS
Rocks (8' 5'')
Germany, 2001, Chris Stenner/Heidi Wittlinger/Arvid Uibel
Charming cartoon where the rocks speak.

Nuts & Bolts (6')
Germany, 2003, Andreas Krein
A man, a frog and a construction site.

Mouse (7' 5")
Germany, 2001, Wojtek Wawsczyk
Bigger is not better.

Peace into Pieces (4' 47")
Nepal, 2004, Raghuwar Nepal
Shattered hopes, experimental.

Schools in the Crossfire (52') 2.30 PM
Nepal, 2004, Dhurba Basnet
Education and the Nepali conflict.

Six Stories (43') 3.45 PM
Nepal, 2004, Mohan Mainali
Women caught in the crosshairs.

Travellers & Magicians (108') 4.45 PM
Bhutan, 2003, Khyentse Norbu
Tale of a monk and modernity

11 DECEMBER, SATURDAY
Farther Than The Eye Can See (72') 9.30 AM
USA, 2003, Michael Brown
The film is an intimate look inside one of the most successful Mt Everest expeditions ever. The film captures the emotion, humour and drama of blind climber Erik Weihenmayer's historic ascent as well as four other remarkable 'firsts' on Mt Everest. By rallying behind Weihenmayer, 19 of the 21 team members stood on the top, with the oldest climber to ever reach the summit along with his son, an American first.

The Return of the Mummies (41') 11AM
Philippines, 2004, Abner P Mercado
Filipino mummies go home.

Electricity for the Sherpas in Modern Times at Mount Everest (30') 12PM
Germany, 2004, Bettina Ehrhardt
The Khumbu Bijuli Company brings light.

Know Your Himal Quiz 12.30 PM
Quizmaster - Kunda Dixit
Editor, Nepali Times

On the Road with the Red God: Machhindranath (50') 2PM
Nepal, 2004, Kesang Tseten
The film captures the gritty reality of the spectacular 12-year chariot festival of the deity Rato Machhindranath, celebrated in 2003. More than a thousand years old, this is one of the largest, most significant and longest surviving festivals of the indigenous Newar community of the Kathmandu valley, and one of the most elaborate chariot festivals in the world today.

Into the Thunder Dragon (47') 3.15 PM
Canada, 2002, Sean White
Unicycling about Druk Yul.

Some Roots Grow Upwards-The Theatre of Ratan Thiyam (51' 30") 4.20 PM
India, 2002, Kavita Joshi/ Malati Rao
The guru and the troupe in Manipur.

Nima Temba Sherpa (52') 5.35 PM
Netherlands, 2003, Margriet Jansen
Mr Sherpa speaks.

12 DECEMBER, SUNDAY
Home (68') 10AM
China, 2002, Wang Yan/ Zhou Xiaolin
The Yao minority are being relocated.

Destination Mahabhir (41') 11.25 AM
Nepal, 2004, Mejan Pun/Dab Bahadur Garbuja
These honey hunters are Pun Magars.

Never Ending Thermal (47') 12.20 PM
Canada, 2003/2004, Sean White
Venezuelans celebrate the paragliding lifestyle.

Story of our climb (38') 2PM
Nepal, 2003, Dinesh Deokota
Nepali amateurs attempt a virgin peak.

Natural Heights (23')
UK, 2003, Helen Atkinson
Meditations on modern free climbing.

Mountain Beauties (60') 3.30 PM
Lecture and slide presentation on our Floral Heritage by
Dr Tirtha Bahadur Shrestha

Daughters of Everest (56') 4.45 pm
Nepal/USA, 2004, Sapana Sakya/Ramyata Limbu
The first Sherpa women's expedition on Everest.

HALL B
9 DECEMBER, THURSDAY
Marriage (80') 3PM
China, 1999, Bibo Liang
In the village in the Qinling mountains, marriage is still carried out in a very traditional manner, following the 'six procedures'. Two couples go through the marriage process from the first proposal to the actual wedding over a period of nearly a year. The matchmaker also stands out as an indispensable character throughout the nuptial process.

Tripping Towards Lhasa (27') 4.35 PM
USA, 2002, Leo Artalejo
A visual, meditative tale of a road trip.

The Gallotti Turns 50 (33')
Brazil, 2004, Priscila Botto/ Paulo de Barros
Around and about a Brazilian peak.

10 DECEMBER, FRIDAY
Meltdown (50') 10AM
UK, 2004, Richard Heap
The Khumbu's receding glaciers.

Shepherds Journey into the Third Millennium (124') 11AM
Switzerland, 2002, Erich Langjahr
One of the oldest cultural forms of human existence is that of the shepherd. In a time of upheaval and changes in values between tradition and future, the film, based on the transfer of herds between seasons, deals with the fundamental issues of human beings and their existence. The shepherds in the film do not come from an agricultural background, but have chosen this way of life out of a need for freedom to do something meaningful.

The Idu of Dibang (42') 2PM
India, 2002, Pramod/Neelima Mathur
A study of the Idu of Arunachal.

Random Voices from Kashmir (12')
India, 2003, Dr Parvez Imam
Kashmiri voices on the long conflict.

Random Voices from Kashmir (12')
India, 2003, Dr Parvez Imam
Kashmiri voices on the long conflict.

Eiger North Face - In the Footsteps of its First Climbers (52') 3.15 PM
Switzerland, 2002, Frank Senn/Thomas Ulrich
Retracing climbing history on the Eiger.

Thoughts in the Wind (19') 4.20 PM
Italy, 2003, Ermanno Salvaterra
Another meditation on mountaineering.

Alps: Coastal Peaks and Valleys (29')
Italy, 2004, Folco Quilici
Rocks of the Mediterranean. Glorious music.

Hummingbirds, Jewels of the Andes (50') 5.25 pm
Germany 2003, Heinz Von Matthey
Pleasing vignette on South America's tiniest bird.

11 DECEMBER, SATURDAY
The Adventure Is Not Yet Over (39') 10AM
UK, 2004, Richard Else
Bonington reflects on a life of climbing.

Base Matterhorn (22')
Austria/Switzerland, 2003, Mario Kreuzer
Leaping off the Matterhorn. Have parachute.

Condors and Bulls brought on Stage (41') 11.15 AM
Switzerland, 2001/2002, Andre Affentranger
The real and unreal behind a documentary.

Shepherd Women of Shambala (9')
USA, 2001, Joy Tessman
Pakistan's Ismaili women welcome an outsider.

Shared Flight (50') 12.15 PM
Poland, 2003, Miroslaw Dembinski
Paraplegic paraglider surmounts the odds.

The Conquest of K2 (49') 2PM
Italy, 2004, Alessandro Varchetta
The historic conquest of K2.

Makalu, That Old Dream (55') 3.10 PM
Spain, 2003, Sebastian Alvaro
Tragedy of a Spanish team on Makalu.

Mount Poi-The Big Thing (26' 27") 4.20 PM
Germany, 2003/2004, Jochen Schmoll
Climbers mix with Kenyan locals.

Alps: The Giants of the Val D?aosta (29')
Italy, 2004, Folco Quilici
Good views on rocks, people and ice.

12 DECEMBER, SUNDAY
Pizzet: Maybe The Last Year (52') 10AM
Switzerland, 2004, Ivo Zen
Chronicle of a mountain farmhouse.

Thumbnail (58') 11.05 AM
Spain, 2004, Jesus Bosque
Two women and a peak.

Wildness (56') 12.15 PM
Australia, 2003, Scott Millwood
Photographic quest to save Tasmania.

Adventure High (89') 2PM
Estonia, 2004, Liivo Niglas
Five young men bicycle from Mongolia to Nepal through the Tibetan plateau. Their one aim is to find out if there is a place for adventure in their responsible grown-up lives when they have family responsibilities.

www.himalassociation.org
Tickets (Rs 30 per screening) are available from 6 December at Saraswati Book Centre, Harihar Bhaban, 5521599
Mandala Book Point, Kantipath, 4245570
Suwal Music and Video, Lajimpat, 4421522
Dhokaima Caf?, Patan Dhoka, 5543017
Thamel Book Shop, opp Sanchaya Kosh Building, 4419849
Vajra Book Shop, Jyatha, 4220562
and at the venue.