Is strength found in outrunning our physical reality — or in surrendering to it?
A Documentary Film
The Protagonist
A 32-year-old X-ray tech and father of two from Medford, Oregon. He grew up playing hockey in West Texas, where 'disability' was a bad word — so he learned to outwork it, to be undeniable, to never be anyone's burden.
That drive made him an extraordinary athlete. It's also the contradiction at the heart of the film: Pete is chasing a first for adaptive athletes on Denali while running from the very label that milestone would give him — and from a family that just wants him home.
The Foil
A professional athlete who proudly embraces the exact identity Pete is running from. Vasu champions the radical idea that being disabled is not something to outrun — it's something to live with, openly and without apology.
He is Pete's perfect foil: the embodiment of everything Pete is terrified to accept.
The Arena
Denali is an active, lethal antagonist that specifically targets the climbers' vulnerabilities. At negative 42 degrees, the extreme environment attacks the complex prosthetic systems Pete and Vasu rely on — causing crucial parts to freeze, become fragile, and break. This constant threat of equipment failure forces them into a terrifying physical limbo, testing Pete's belief in his own invincibility and amplifying the life-or-death stakes of every interaction.
The Approach
Severe, immersive verité coverage dictated by the extreme logistical constraints of Denali. With no porters allowed, the camera acts as an exhausted, freezing participant rather than an objective observer.
When the extreme environment makes visual coverage impossible, the storytelling shifts to raw, unvarnished audio — heavy breathing, clipped exchanges, and off-camera friction. But rather than pure misery, unexpected laughter acts as both a survival mechanism and a release valve between two men who see the world in opposite ways.
Hold My Leg
A fiercely independent amputee attempts to conquer Denali on his own terms — but when the lethal mountain begins destroying his prosthetics, he must survive a volatile test of will with a climbing partner who proudly embraces the exact 'disabled' identity he has spent his life outrunning.
Coming Soon