The Metaphysics of Falling

Falling – it’s something that most adventure sports enthusiasts, regardless of their discipline, try to avoid. When it comes to bouldering though, falling is a part of the process. In scaling rocks by the hardest route, boulderers seek to achieve weightlessness and momentarily leave the world behind. But with nothing but a pad for protection, untethered and unharnessed, a misplaced foot or finger could be all it takes to succumb to gravity. 

MIDAIR explores both the physical and psychological highs and lows of climbing and falling from a fresh perspective, and if the thought of falling through thin air isn’t enough to get your heart thumping, the soundtrack certainly will.

Featuring professional climber Jim Pope amongst other familiar faces of the British bouldering scene, MIDAIR is set against the cinematic backdrops of a number of famed Lake District climbing spots to a hedonistic techno soundtrack. The unconventional climbing film is the result of director and climber Louis-Jack’s vision for an audio-visual expression of the heady mix of hardship and euphoria that climbers – boulderers in particular – experience in the act of ascent.

‘The reality is, at least for me, that I spend a lot of my time bouldering contemplating why the hell I do it,’ says Louis-Jack. ‘Here you are, huddled under a rock, in strange landscapes (not always picturesque), often battling adverse weather, with frozen toes, cursing a lack of skin or weak muscles, and not climbing but just falling – repeatedly!

‘I decided that this existential element needed to be in the film too. To truly convey the reality of bouldering. Ultimately, it’s because of this hardship and doubt that that the highs are as euphoric as they are. When, just for a moment it feels like you’re doing something truly  impossible – escaping gravity and leaving the world behind.’

For those unfamiliar with bouldering, it might seem like a strange hobby. The climb-fall-repeat repetition of the sport, with its potential for injury and propensity for failure, some might be reasonably baffled by the boulderer’s single-mindedness to reach the top of that one little bit of rock. MIDAIR offers a glimpse into the boulderer’s psyche, asking the question – why?

‘I’d like for the film to be a little window into the sport for people who have never tried it. An insight into this peculiar activity – why it’s so cool and unique, why it’s so enjoyable whilst also being really bloody hard,’ Louis-Jack explains. ‘Hopefully, an intriguing taster that will get your heart pumping and your palms sweaty!’