Coming to DIRECTV’s Something To Talk About series tomorrow, Thursday, November 21: DESERT RUNNERS
Jennifer Steinman’s portrait of the ultimate ultramarathoners made its debut earlier this year at Edinburgh. It’s gone on to screen at Mill Valley, Denver, IDFA, Vancouver, and the Hamptons, picking up audience awards at the latter two.
The 4 Deserts Ultramarathon series challenges runners with four weeklong 155 mile endurance races through the world’s harshest terrains, all in one year – Chile’s Atacama Desert, China’s Gobi Desert, and Egypt’s Sahara Desert. If a runner completes at least two of the three, s/he qualifies to participate in The Last Desert in Antarctica. The four subjects of Steinman’s film, ranging in age from 25 to 56, aim to make it to Antarctica, pushing their bodies to their limits, and each dealing with different motivations and challenges. What emerges is a study in determination and of the psychology of individuals pitting mind against body, played out over stunning, albeit often treacherous, landscapes.
what (not) to doc 