30 films from 18 countries were screened in competition at Ulju Mountain Film Festival 2021. Films that contain respective identities as they reflect on the relationship between nature and humans and pose questions about the meaning of adventure and challenge comforted our hearts, exhausted from living through a pandemic, and enabled us to look back at how we are now. Five films were chosen as award-winners and one received a special mention after deliberation and passionate discussion, and we hope that these films will give you the courage to go on ‘nevertheless’ and the opportunity to think about nature, which should continue to the next generation, as they did for us, the jury.

알The historical value of the ‘The Hard Way’ expedition of the Southwest Face of Everest in 1988, a milestone in the history of alpinism, the images of legendary climbers, dramatic scenes, and archive material are well balanced while times of suffering and endurance and the true meaning of climbing are blended into the storytelling through interviews with survivors.

We were deeply impressed by this documentary's portrayal of overcoming hardship and the importance of family, as well as its powerful cinematography. The many years of effort turned in by the director has resulted in an unusually involving portrait of a remarkable boy, and an inspiring message of hope.

The sounds of people talking about climate change come together like a chorus. This film is made all the more sorrowful because of the beauty of nature seen along the way and it tells us that nature, which we are destroying, is also the very thing that can heal us.

Unlike most stories about Climbing developed into a positive way with courage and fear, this unusual animated film noir deals climbing with pregnancy in a very creative way. High tension, Rich layers, haunting images, an excellent portrayal of a woman’s struggling between career and just being herelf.

Adventure always means explore the unknown future fearlessly. This is a very short film with an epic journey. The immersive image is followed by a surprising ending, Very joyful to watch.

Maximizing the advantages as a road movie, alongside with showing worries and visions of reality of Asia with witty narrative and powerful image.

A mesmerizing film with excellent direction. We were unanimous in the selection of this film, as we felt that its social criticism will provide a great impact in expanding our reasoning skills.