MOUNTAIN BIKE
Roam
(2006)
This film, by Vancouver-based The Collective, used color-saturating 16mm cameras set on zip lines to capture panning images of mountain bikers doing backflips from Whistler to Morocco. Filmmakers have tried to replicate Roam's in-the-moment feel. None have succeeded.
SNOWBOARD
(2008)
The fluid, hi-def shots of big-mountain riders like Jeremy Jones flossing down alpenglow-bathed slopes in New Zealand and Tokyo stand up to anything ever shot on snow.
KAYAK
(1998)
Paddler and videographer Chris Emerick's 28-minute film, shot across the West, captured modern kayaking at its point of inflection, when boats were suddenly small and agile, freestyle moves were being invented, and sponsors were flush with cash. Ah, 1998.
SURF
(2003)
Maverick's; Cortes Bank; Laird flying on a hydrofoil board; bikini-clad pros ripping glassy barrels—this is the only contemporary surf documentary that holds a candle to Riding Giants.
SKI
(2003)
Because the music is better than most, the cinematography is top-notch, and the bros do little talking, choosing instead to stick to what they know best: skiing some of the most impressive big-mountain lines ever filmed.
CLIMB
(2009)
This short movie by Sender Films is not so much action epic as it is a thoughtful profile of free soloist Alex Honnold. But the footage of Honnold scaling Yosemite's 4,800-foot Half Dome is more terrifying than any climbing act we've seen on film.