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Brian P Hall
Brian Philip Hall (born 9 May, 1951, Kendal, England), is a British mountaineer, explorer, climber, photographer, and film maker. An outdoor adventure enthusiast, he began climbing in 1967 at the age of sixteen. He currently lives with his wife, Louise Hall, and is based in Chinley, England, and Queenstown, New Zealand.

After studying Geography at Leeds University and Ecology at UCNW Bangor he concentrated on developing his climbing skills and in 1975 saw Brian decide to take up climbing full time. Over the course of twelve years following this decision, he pursued high standards on both rock and ice in the Alps and Greater Ranges. Many of his most difficult climbs in the Alps were completed in the late 1970s, then throughout the 1980s he concentrated on major expeditions to the Himalayas and the Andes.

He is also an experienced photographer, and has worked on numerous photographic assignments with work published in many magazines such as National Geographic, The Observer, High, Climber, On The Edge, Climbing, Outside, and Vertical, amongst others.

Over the last twenty years, he has been involved in making climbing and mountaineering films, working in a variety of roles including Associate Producer, Chief Safety Officer and Climbing Cameraman on television and film productions.

An interest in the design, production and marketing of outdoor equipment led Brian to take upon the role of being Equipment Officer on many of the expeditions he undertook. This position had him sourcing all the suitable gear for each expedition, working on specialist designs with manufacturers, and producing critical reports and photographs upon return home to the United Kingdom. He now works on design, testing and training with a number of leading outdoor brands including Scarpa, Mountain Equipment and Grivel.

In 1980, together with John Porter, Brian co-founded the Kendal Mountain Film Festival (now known as the Kendal Mountain Festival).. It is one of the worlds major mountain festivals held annually in Kendal, England, running in the third week of November to celebrate mountain sport and culture in film, lectures, art and literature. Hall still works within the festival, delivering its prestigious Adventure Film Academy, a training course for adventure filmmakers. He has also sat on the judging panel of many International Film Festivals including Graz, Austria and Banff, Canada.

In 1982, while working in the retail sector as a climbing manager at Alpine Sports in Manchester, and Nick Escourts in Altrincham, Hall qualified as a British Mountain Guide (International Federation of Mountain Guide Associates), considered the highest international qualification, then established a guiding company called Mountain Experience, in partnership with his wife, Louise Hall. The company was based both in the Peak District, England, and the alpine town of Chamonix, France. The company was primarily focused on providing courses and private guiding in summer alpine climbing and in winter off-piste skiing and ski touring.

In 2008, alongside Porter, Hall developed an online mountain community film festival called SteepEdge. This has developed into a website offering a whole catalogue of archival and contemporary mountain and adventure sports related films. Films distributed cover a large range of outdoor sports, from climbing, mountaineering, trekking, skiing, snowboarding, mounting biking, adventure racing, para-gliding, bouldering, kayaking, caving and mountain environment.

Expeditions/Notable Mountaineering Ascents:

1970 - Bonatti Pillar, 3733 m (Petite Aiguille du Dru, France) N face

1970 - Cassin, 3308 m (Piz Badile, France) NE face

1971 - 1976: Winter ascents

- Lagarde Couloir, 4000 m (Les Droites, France)

- Boccolatti Pillar, 4248 m (Mt Blanc du Tacul, France)

- Croz Spur, 4208 m (Grandes Jorasses, France)

1976-77:

- Seven month expedition to the South American Andes including:

- Cerro Standhardt, 2600 m (Patagonia, Andes) with John Whittle.

- Huayna Potosi, 6110 m (Cordillera Real, Bolivia) with Jim Bridwell.

- Huascarán Norte, 6655 m (Cordillera Blanca, Peru) first alpine and second ascent of the French route, with Alan and Adrian Burgess.

1978 - Jannu, 7710 m (Himalayas, Nepal) first alpine ascent and climb of major worldwide significance, with Alan Rouse, Rob Carrington and Roger Baxter-Jones.

1979 - Expedition to:

- Kangtega, 6782 m

- Nuptse, 7861 m

- Mt. Everest, 8848 m

- results in the first ascent of N ridge of Nuptse, with Doug Scott, Alan Rouse and George Bettembourg

1980 - Baltoro Kangri, 7312 m (Karakoram, Pakistan) at the time the highest 'summit to base- camp' ski/mountaineering expedition of climbing then skiing.

1980 - Ninashanca, 5607 m (Cordillera Huayhuash, Peru) first ascent of W ridge

1980 - Mt. Everest, 8848 m (Himalayas, Nepal) attempted W ridge ascent in winter, reaching over 7000 m.

1981 - Rasac, 6040 m (Cordillera Blanca, Peru) W face

1982 - Ogre 2, 6960 m (Karakoram, Pakistan) failed high on the previously unclimbed peak.

1984 - Makalu, 8481 m (Kosi Zone, Nepal) failed attempt with Doug Scott.

1984 - Chamlang, 2319 m (Himalayas, Nepal) with Doug Scott. Hall was injured near the summit.

1984 - Baruntse, 7045 m (Khumbu, Nepal) with Doug Scott.

1986 - K2 8611 m (Karakoram Range) NW ridge. The tragic expedition where Hall's longtime climbing partner and friend Alan Rouse died, along with twelve other mountaineers on the peak that season.

1989 - Kedar Dome and Shivling, 6543 m (Gharwal Himalaya, India)

1993 - Mt. Fitz Roy, 3359 m (Santa Cruz, Patagonia) with Andy Parkin

1994 - 2003:

- Numerous rock climbing trips throughout Europe, Australia, Thailand, Vietnam, USA, Mexico, and expeditions in the St. Elias, Cirque of the Unclimbables, Baffin Island, Borneo, Equador, Greenland, South Georgia and Nepal

Books: - "The Face - Six Great Climbing Adventures" co-authored with Richard Else (BBC Publications) ISBN: 978-0563383192

Filmography: (year, film, role)

1978 - 'The Bat' - Actor (as Dougal Haston)

2000 - Rheged IMAX - (UK)

2001 - Shackleton IMAX - (South Georgia)

2002 - 007: James Bond - Live to Die Another Day - (Iceland) - Ski, action, safety and logistics

2003 - 'Touching The Void' - (Peru, Switzerland, France & Italy) - Organizing all mountain filming

2004 - 'Bridget Jones: On The Edge Of Reason' - (Austria) - Ski, action, safety and logistics

2004 - 'Balance of Risk' - Director / producer

2004 - 'Alien vs Predator' - (France, Italy) - Ice climbing safety and logistics

2005 - 'The Descent' - (Pinewood, UK) - assisted with training and cave action filming

2006 - 'True North' - (Svalbard) - Glacier safety

2007 - 'The Beckoning Silence' - (UK) - Organizing all mountain filming

2007 - 'The Far North' - (Svalbard, Norway) - glacier safety

2008 - 'The Summit' - Image Now Films (Switzerland)

2009 - 'The Descent Part 2' - (Pinewood, UK) - assisted with training and cave action filming

2010 - Scarpa 'Alpine X-Trail' advert - Director / producer

2010 - 'The Wildest Dream' - (Mt. Blanc Region, France)

2011 - '50 years in the Mountains' - Director / producer / actor

2012 - 'The Hobbit' - New Line Cinemas / MGM (New Zealand) mountain recess assistance

References:

- The Bat (http://www.steepedge.com/all-films/uk-climbing/the-bat.html)

- Balance of Risk (http://www.steepedge.com/all-films/disability-inspired/balance-of-risk.html)

- Scarpa Alpine X-Trail Advert (http://vimeo.com/12583550)

- 50 Years in the Mountains (http://www.steepedge.com/all-films/mountaineering/fifty-years-in- the-mountains.html)

- Kendal Mountain Festival (http://www.mountainfest.co.uk)

External Links:

Brian Hall at filmandmountain.com (note … the link is wrong)

Brian Hall at SteepEdge.com

Brian Hall at Venturefilm.co.uk

John Porter
John Porter (born 22 October, 1946, Springfield, Massachusets) is an American mountaineer, climber, explorer and adventurer. As a teenager, he learned to climb in the White Mountains of New Hampshire before serving his Mountain Apprenticeship in the American and Canadian Rockies. He studied at the University of Oregon, before moving to England in 1967 to continue postgraduate study at the University of Leeds. He has climbed extensively around Britain and the Alps with British and American exponents of clean climbing, and fast and light climbing, including Brian Hall, Roger Baxter Jones, Alex MacIntyre and Alan Rouse.

In 1975, he helped the British Mountaineering Council (BMC) host a climbing exchange with Poland. Along with Peter Boardman and Adrian Burgess, he completed a winter traverse of the Polish Tatra. He became friends with Andrzej Zawada during that time, and together they planned the first East to West Détente Expedition to the Hindu Kush. Along with Wojciech Kurtyka and MacIntyre, he made pioneering alpine style ascents of the North East face of Kuh-e Bandaka in 1977, and the Changabang South Buttress in 1978. With MacIntyre, Porter made new routes in theAndes in 1979, including the Southern faces of Ranrapalca, and Nevado 3 in the Los Nevados National Natural Park.

John currently lives in in the Lake District with his wife Rose and two daughters, Sarah and Laura. He also works as a freelance consultant for business development. He has been active in the development of mountain culture projects, and climbs regularly with Sir Chris Bonington, and has written many climbing articles for magazines and books such as Hard Rock, Classic Rock, and edited the Himalayan news for Mountain Magazine for over a decade.

In 1980, together with Brian Hall, he co-founded the Kendal Mountain Festival (also known as the Kendal Mountain Film Festival). It is an annual festival held in Kendal, England, running in the third week of November to celebrate mountain culture in film, lectures, art and literature. In 2008, also alongside Hall, developed an online mountain community film festival called SteepEdge, offering a whole catalogue of archival and contemporary mountain and adventure related films. Films distributed cover a large range of outdoor sports, from climbing, mountaineering, trekking, skiing, snowboarding, mounting biking, adventure racing, para-gliding, bouldering and caving.

He has served as vice president of the BMC, a trustee of the Mountain Heritage Trust, and is a committee member of the Alpine Club.

He is currently completing a biographical book on Alex MacIntyre, a long time friend who was tragically killed while the pair were attempting a new route for the Southern Face of Annapurna in 1982. The book will detail the pairs time together, alongside Porter's analysis on the generation "that nearly climbed itself into extinction."

Expeditions/Notable Mountaineering Ascents:

1977 - Kuh-e Bandaka, 6868m (Hindu Kush, Afganistan), NE face, new route, with Alex MacIntyre and Wojciech Kurtyka

1978 - Changabang, 6864 m (Garwhal Himalaya, India), S face direct, new route, with Alex MacIntyre, Wojciech Kurtyka and Krzysztof Zurek

1979 - Cordillera Blanca, 5500 m (Andes, Peru)

1980/1981 - Mt. Everest, 8848 m (Mahalngur, Himalayas), W ridge in winter

1982 - Annapurna, 8091 m (Himalayas, Nepal) S face direct

1984 - Diamond Couloir, (Mt. Kenya, Kenya)

1986 - K2, 8611 m (Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan) NNW ridge

1988 - Kedar Dome, (Garhwal Himalaya, India)

1990 - Chong Kundam, 7071 m (East Karakoram, India)

1998 - Sepu Kangri, 6956 m (Nyenchen Tanglha, Tibet)

2000 - Southern Greenland [I could not source the specific details of this climb online, John has said he can provide the details of the four new routes he trekked with Chris Bonington]

Books/Articles:

John Porter, Bandaka and Changabang, AAJ 1979; Changabang South Buttress, Climbing, No. 55, 1979; South Side Story, Mountain, No. 65, January/February 1979

[John has said there are other articles in Mountain 'Reverse Polish' about Bandaka the year before Changabang and the climb to Sepu Kangri, and he has copies he can locate for information if need be. He mentioned a front cover story in the 1st edition of an American publication called Alpinist as well]

References:

[I have left out the reference to the Kendall Mountain Festival as I am aware of the misgivings that resulted from the company that took over and the resulting grievances]