Better than chocolate is one of those prime examples of what you can accomplish if you're highly motivated and have the guts to go all in and believe in your project.
This is the first ever video from Belgian photographer Haroun Souirji. It was done with no video knowledge and no budget but, according to Haroun “the most difficult was that I did it all alone, so I did not have a lot of time for each step. That will change on the next movie, where I will work with other people so I can be more creative.“
The “no video knowledge” is actually true, even though it's very hard to believe when you watch the movie. Haroun began doing video only 2 months before starting the shooting, and as if that wasn't enough, he was working on his Master's thesis in management during the first 3 months of shooting...
“Fortunately” he had a back injury at the time, making it impossible to climb, and this gave him more time to film of course.
So, the movie: Let me just begin by saying you can forget everything about Haroun not being a professional film maker. If he wasn't before, he is now.
In terms of footage, this is one of the very best climbing videos I've ever had the pleasure of watching. No, it's perhaps not as spectacular as some of the products we've seen, but the angles he finds, the close ups, the tempo, the balance between the actual bouldering and presentation of the featured climbers, the music... it all work together to create an amazing vibe.
This is a laid back bouldering movie about enjoying climbing, hanging out together and generally having a good time.
This does not mean the problems done are anything less than on a world class level, featuring first ascents and repeats up to and including 8C's.
Given the fact that Haroun is (I guess that's "was") not a famous film maker, the line-up he got together is quite amazing:
Paul Robinson, Chris Webb-Parsons, Michele Caminati, Andy Gullsten, Fred Moix, Anton Johansson, Robert Leistner, Julia Winter, Jule Wurm, Olivier Mignon, Antoine Eydoux and a guest appearance by Fred Nicole.
I highly recommend this one!
Why not enjoy it together with some chocolate and cheese?
Comments