CHAMPIONS OF THE GOLDEN VALLEY was an Official Selection of the 2024 Austin Film Festival. This documentary feature was directed by Ben Sturgulewski. This beautiful documentary is about the hope brought to the Golden Valley by Alishah, who established a ski club in Bamyan. It also incorporates a bit of backstory for two of the local ski club member’s top skiers and lays the groundwork for the present day reality for these three men.
Beautifully produced, with exquisite-lighting and vibrant colors, I found it particularly effective when they included black and white footage of the main subject, Alishah. This film stands out for its high production value and terrific storytelling. I loved how the filmmakers captured the crunch of walking on snow. With each step you can almost feel the chill in the air, while enjoying the crisp visuals. Bravo to Jason Mannings and Ben Sturgulewski who are both credited as cinematographers. I also loved the score that accompanies this documentary and want to compliment composers Joaquin Gomez and Cyrus Reynolds for their artistry. Their music cues only enhanced the rollercoaster of emotion I experienced watching this touching and important documentary.
Through this lens we get to witness a day in the lives of the males living in the Bamyan mountains. Filming women is forbidden in the village of Chapdara. At one point, one of the subjects shares how hard it is to accept that life can be different—and better—but that realization feels so distant, almost out of reach. As the documentary unfolds, some women gave permission to be filmed, adding a sense of inclusivity to the experience of everyone learning to ski.
The ingenuity of the locals presented in this film when making their own skis out of wood is precious. Especially, this one young man sharing how he’s called BOSS for making skis! The joy everyone experiences with skiing is extra special. The overhead shots of the village covered in snow is lovely to witness and not something I would have seen were it not for this amazing documentary.
At one point in the story telling, we are reintroduced to Alishah… it is now 2022 and he is in Germany as a refugee. The music cues are tender, the cinematography is in black and white and imperceptible slow motion captures a simple task like grocery shopping. Alishah is telling us about how he wishes he could go back to the community they had established in Bamyan.
As the documentary comes to a close, we do learn more about the top skiers from the Bamyan Ski Club and their current living situation. We learn that the female skiers who had been shown in the documentary are no longer in Afghanistan, much like Alishah. This is because the terrorist regime took over Bamyan. I will choose not to share more details from this documentary and instead invite you to watch it for yourself. It is a terrific and beautiful story about what sports brought to a people in an area of Afghanistan. Per Alishah, skiing was not just a sport but also a school to learn living, which is why they should always be remembered as CHAMPIONS OF THE GOLDEN VALLEY.
Melody Lopez, Producer Filmmaker Mixer Podcast (posted by Madelyn, Filmmaker Mixer Correspondent)
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