8th Pakistan Mountain Festival Concludes

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 10th Dec, 2018 ) :The two-week long '8th Pakistan Mountain Festival' concluded here Sunday evening with the screening of international mountain films, cultural and musical performances, the mountain youth forum and a brief ceremony with recognition of services of the supporting organizations and individuals.

The festival was the flagship annual event of the Development Communications Network (Devcom-Pakistan) to commemorate importance of the mountains.

This year the festival was supported by the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP), Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF), Centre for Culture Development, Gilgit-Baltistan Youth Council and Islamabad Devcom Centennial Leo Club (IDCLC).

The Mountain Cultural Show was the last event that comprised of an exhibition of paintings by 20 art teachers and display of handicrafts, horticultural products and cultural performances from different regions.

The films screened at the Pakistan Mountain Festival were some of the best selected from the Inkafest International Mountain Film Festival, which took place in Peru - South-America.

The films screened included El Mostro De Los Andes, produced by Juan Andr�s Coriat in 2017. The film is about Victor Rimac, 31, has dedicated his life to the mountain and his specialty is the Solo Climbing.

After achieving the North Summit of Huandoy (Huaraz) alone and in less than 24 hours, his friends began calling him "El Mostro Andino". It is wonderful Peruvian short film of one's efforts and consistent struggle to achieve the goal.

M.S.N.M, produced in 2017 by another Peruvian producer Mauricio Quintanilla Rodr�guez, narrated the story of the journey high above the Peruvian Andes through the dramatic clouds and peaks. Paired with an original score, M.S.N.M. was a simple yet enchanting glimpse at a magical land.

La Vuelta Al Huascar�n was the best short film of the Inkafest 2018, produced in 2017 V�ctor Jes�s � another experienced and skilful producer from Peru.

It was about the legendary 'Return to Huascaran' to explore the Cordillera Blanca that was at the foot of the highest mountains in Peru.

The film discovered the Andean villages, rich in stories you could not find written in a book. The race route passed through the highest and most impressive mountains of our beloved Cordillera Blanca.

For the film, the producer toured sacred sites, artisan villages, and diverse ecosystems of Huascar�n National Park and quickly understood because the place has so many myths and legends, being a small mortal at the foot of the giant snow-capped and exposed to the tremendous power of nature.

It is said that, in ancient times, Huascar�n, the highest mountain in the country, was a young mortal who fell in love with the daughter of the god Inti named Huandoy.

Daulaghiri, a film by the Argentinian producer Guillermo Glass, Cristi�n Harbaruk, has received Ascenso A La Monta�a Blanca, the grand prize of Inkafest 2017.

This 72-minute long film described the adventure of four Argentinian friends, Guillermo, Christian, Sebasti�n and Dar�o, decided to make a documentary recounting their long ascent of the Dhaulagiri.

However, Dar�o died during a solo attempt to reach the summit. After their return, Guillermo would begin to film a second journey on the trail of his expedition companions, in an attempt to work through the questions that have continued to torment him since the day of the accident, and in particular the choices that took them too close to the extreme limit.

Reynaldo � the rainforest hero was produced in 2013 by Crees Foundation. It narrated the story of Reynaldo Ochoa who was an inspiration to the people of Manu in the Peruvian Amazon rainforest.

For the past 20 years he has dedicated his life to finding new ways of living in balance with his environment. By encouraging farmers to plant trees with their crops and enabling families to grow fresh organic produce he is helping to forge a sustainable future for the region, both protecting the environment and allowing local people to flourish.

Speaking at the concluding ceremony, the Devcom-Pakistan Director and founder of the Pakistan Mountain Festival, Munir Ahmad thanked the organisations for their support to the festival.

He said from the next year more valuable attraction would be added to the festival that would enhance the scope and mandate of the festival. "We will be starving if the mountains are not protected from over exploitation and steps are not taken to make the mountains more resilient. We need to take care of the people before thinking of the mountains. If the custodians are not safe how they would protect the local resources of the mountains", he commented.