The stories of men and women who have explored the Dolomites meet the history of the Earth. The “DOLOMITISMO. Vertical Tales»” docuseries, conceived and directed by Emanuele Confortin and produced by the UNESCO Dolomites Foundation, retraces some ascents that marked the history of Dolomitism. Each of the nine episodes intertwines the present that unfolds through the raw emotions of contemporary climbers with historic testimonials of the past, from recent times to distant times long gone by and which sculpted these sublime landscapes capable of telling the story of 300 million years of our Earth.
“DOLOMITISMO. Vertical Tales” AT TRENTO FILM FESTIVAL
“DOLOMITISMO. Vertical Tales” will premiere at the 74th edition of the Trento Film Festival. We wait for you on 29 April at 4:30 PM at Cinema Vittoria in Trento. Book your seat through the Trento Film Festival. Click here to see a list of all the Trento Film Festival events.
DOLOMITES AND MOUNTAINEERING: TWO WORLD HERITAGES
The Dolomites were recognized as World Heritage Site in 2009 due to the natural and aesthetic beauty of their landscape and their geological and geomorphological importance. It is precisely in the mountaineering practice, itself recognized as Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2019, that, in view of these values, lies the demonstration of the great charm of the Dolomites.
Climbers were the first to want to touch them, feel them, set foot on them, stretch fingers, hands and legs on them: in short, to desire to experience them intimately. Retracing some of their stories offers the opportunity for a new perspective on the landscape wonders of the World Heritage Site and on the very practice of mountaineering in the Dolomites (Dolomitism).
THE EPISODES AND THE CHARACTERS
In each episode, lasting about 27 minutes, the experiences of climber Luca Vallata and the “guest” climbers who rope up with him, bring past events to life in the present and rebound into the abyss of the geological origin of the rocks, with contributions by geologist Emiliano Oddone and artistic suggestions taking life through the pencil of Gigi Dal Re.
In the first episode, entitled “Catinaccio, return to Cima Mugoni”, Gigi Dal Re himself retraces a historic route in the Catinaccio group, on which some years before his life changed; in the second, “Cadini di Misurina, the strength of an image”, Elisa Castellucci climbs Torre Leo and Torre Diavolo in search of traces of the great Emilio Comici, immortalized in a timeless photo; in the third episode, set in Brenta and entitled “Campanile Basso, an ordinary route out of the ordinary”, Davide Cassol ropes up with his friend Luca Vallata to reach the summit of one of the most famous pinnacles of the Dolomites; “Cason di Formin, on the wildest side” is the title of the fourth episode, in which in the Croda da Lago group Michael Tramontin tells of his passion for wild walls and the cold season.
The series continues with “Civetta, the wall of dreams”, where Claudia Mario climbs the Aste Susatti route on Punta Civetta, in the heart of Parete delle Pareti; “Croda Cimoliana, in the footsteps of history” is the sixth episode, where Ivan Da Rios faces one of the most coveted routes, the Gherbaz-Candot in the Oltrepiave Dolomites.
The seventh episode takes us to Pale di San Martino: “Sass Maor, the long-cherished dream” reveals the desire of young climber Sofia Mott, who retraces the centennial Solleder-Kummer route opened in 1926 on the enormous East face. The eighth story reaches one of the wildest places in the Dolomites: “Spiz di Lagunaz, the perfect dihedral” where Marco Bergamo and Samuel Zeni follow Vallata in the footsteps of Renato Casarotto and Piero Radin, who 50 years ago made a difficult first ascent in the depths of Pale di San Lucano; the series closes with the Queen: “Marmolada, the value of renunciation”, with Lorenzo Bellenzier, a young and talented climber who testifies to the importance of retracing one’s steps when faced with unexpected difficulties imposed by early winter.
In the nine episodes, the voices of Modesto Alverà, Anna Angelini, Alessandro Baù, Ettore De Biasio, Dante Del Bon, Marika Freschi, Mirco Gasparetto, Andrea Menardi, Franco Nicolini, Bruno Pederiva, Piero Radin, Elena Turro, Maurizio “Manolo” Zanolla, and Samuel Zeni also alternate.
A long journey, created by the UNESCO Dolomites Foundation thanks to the contribution of the Border Municipalities Fund and with the patronage of Club Alpino Accademico Italiano, Alpenverein Südtirol, C.A.I. Veneto, C.A.I. Alto Adige, C.A.I. Friuli Venezia Giulia, and Società Alpinisti Tridentini.
Wall filming and interviews are carried out by Emanuele Confortin; the dronists include, in addition to the director, Filippo Guerra and Leonardo Mizar Vianello; at the second camera, during the interviews, Elena Barban, Niccolò Mattia Colombo and Lara Piovesan; the screenplay is by Emanuele Confortin, the assembly is by Elena Barban and Lara Piovesan and the original music is by Sebastian Soso; the post-production and video and colour correction are by The Studio, and the coordination of post-production by Niccolò Mattia Colombo.
BIOGRAPHY: Emanuele Confortin
Nella foto da sinistra a destra:
gli alpinisti Davide Cassol, Luca Vallata e il regista Emanuele Confortin
Emanuele Confortin is an independent journalist and documentary filmmaker. He has long worked in crisis areas across South Asia and the Middle East, tackling on the ground some of the most pressing issues of our time, migration, marginalized minorities, and the impacts of climate change, often in mountainous regions. For years, he has dedicated himself to the conception, writing and direction of mountaineering and social documentaries, which have been presented and won awards at various international festivals. Among his most relevant works are “DOLOMITISMO. Vertical Tales” (2026), “100, Solleder Lettenbauer” (2025), “Renato Gobbato, Bagnin” (2025), “The last route of Riccardo Bee” (2023 – Audience Award for the best mountaineering film at the 2023 Trento Film Festival; Jury Award at the 2023 Orobie Film Festival), “Dam, Transhumant Chronicles” (2021 – UNESCO Dolomites Award at the 2021 Trento Film Festival; MUCGT Award at the 2020 Trento Film Festival), “Kinnaur Himalaya” (2020 – Mountain Wilderness International Award at the 2020 Torellò Mountain Film Festival).
He has been practising mountaineering for 25 years, is a CAI Academic, and a member of GISM.
This activity is part of the project “Capacity building. Strengthening the social and regional capital of the Dolomites World Heritage Site (WHS) for lasting and sustainable development of local communities”, established with the support of Fondo Comuni Confinanti.