Trail Running Films – So Hot Right Now

Lots of feature films are being released and new projects are announced, here’s a list of the ones I saw fly through my mentions over the last couple of weeks:

• The Chase Film – a film about the 2024 Cocodona’s men’s race, currently touring the country.
• The Finisher – a film about Jasmin Paris’ Barkeley finish, released on YouTube.
• The King of Moab – a film by and about Max Jolliffe’s 2024 Moab 240.
• “Courtney at Cocodona” – a new film project announced by Freetrail about Courtney Dauwalter’s 2025 Cocodona race.
• Unbreakable 2 – a film project announced by Freetrail and Journeyfilm on the Western States 2025 race.
• The Trail Running Film Festival is still touring the globe. Get your tickets and see it on the big screen!

Trail running and film making have a long history. I spoke with Scott Jurek about this at our Seattle show as he marveled at “how far” trail running films have come with those sweeping drone shots and general increase in quality. And I agreed, the films of TRFFF’25 looked extremely spectacular on that Cinerama screen of the recently renamed SIFF Downtown. But more so than the quality what has made trail running films special is the focus on the story. Trail running films aren’t just about shredding down a mountains by the burliest dudes. It’s about adventure, and humans exposing themselves to the possibility of failure, willing to struggle in order to feel alive, and individuals vulnerably and personally sharing a piece of themselves. In a time when many races have opted to adopt instantaneous livestreams and breathless recording of the action as it happens these stories are a great reminder of what trail running is all about, and I am glad they are not getting kicked to the curb in favor of ESPN-style live reporting.