The 16th Palma Mountain Film Festival (MCMP) concluded this Tuesday with a day combining film, experience, and reflection at the Teatro Principal in Inca. The closing event served as the premiere of the latest documentary by Mallorcan filmmaker and mountaineer Tomeu Rubí. Breaking new ground. Diary of the 1st graduating class of the Balearic Islands mountaineering training groupA film that follows the opening of a new route, the Directísima Mallorquina, on the 5,800-meter Santa Cruz Chico in Peru's Cordillera Blanca. Rubí, along with Cati Lladó, Pep Roig, and the young climbers featured in the film, participated in a discussion afterward, sharing anecdotes from the expedition and reflections on the future of mountaineering in the Canary Islands. "We want to move away from the economic aspect that is overcrowding the mountains and creating a lot of problems," emphasized Rubí, who has been combining her passion for film and mountaineering for over 25 years. The second part of the day featured Sílvia Vidal, one of the most prominent climbers on the international scene, who spoke with Hugo Biarge about her career and her outlook on life. Vidal captivated the audience with accounts of his solo expeditions and reflections on human limits, solitude, and mental fortitude. "When they tell me it can't be done, I say: let's try it," he stated.

The 16th edition of the Colonya Palma Muntanya Film Fest already has winners. The closing ceremony, held on Sunday afternoon at the Xesc Forteza municipal theater in Palma, served to announce the award-winning films from among the 463 films from 74 countries competing this year.

Mountain writer and filmmaker Jean-Michel Jordà has 30 years of experience in audiovisuals, 40 documentary films, and 12 international awards. His work will be screened on October 24th at the Xesc Forteza Theater. Everest Invaders, which focuses on the human destruction of a unique territory. It also questions the touristification of mountaineering, which is why it uses the term "neoalpinists."

Catalan mountaineer and filmmaker Ester Sabadell is a member of the jury for the 16th Colonya Palma Film Fest, which will award several short film prizes. She is well acquainted with the reality she will be examining: she worked as a camera operator on the Spanish-language TVE program. On the Edge of the ImpossibleCarrying the camera on particularly challenging routes, she admits, "is a plus." "You barely have the strength to climb, let alone go ahead of people, take out the camera, ask them to wait, because you have to film, and of course, people don't wait because they're doing their best," she recalls: "It's very difficult." She recalls as an anecdote that she once "slept with the camera batteries in her sleeping bag so they wouldn't run out." "In the end, the camera is your partner; you become a friend, you sleep," she recalls.

Hiking and trekking are more popular than ever. But success must also be accompanied by responsibility. This year's 16th edition of the Colonya Palma Muntanya Film Fest will lay the groundwork for this collective reflection. "Where do we come from, where are we, and where are we going?" summarizes its director, Bartomeu Tomàs. Between October 18 and 28, eight documentaries and twelve short films from eleven different countries will be screened, and sixteen guests will participate in discussions with the aim of bringing the Balearic public closer to mountaineering culture and leaving no questions unanswered.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 18

From 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Galatzó Refuge

AND BALEARIC SYMPOSIUM ON HIKING AND TRAILS. 'WHERE WE COME FROM, WHERE WE ARE, AND WHERE WE ARE'

This event aims to promote collective reflection on the trajectory and future of hiking and trekking in the Balearic Islands. In this regard, all stakeholders involved—clubs, athletes, guides, and institutions—will meet to analyze the current situation and future challenges. These include promoting the conservation of mountain habitats in a manner compatible with their public use, as well as moving toward inclusive, safe, and sustainable hiking. Other issues to be addressed will include the role of technology, regulation, and new models of collaboration between clubs, institutions, and the federation.

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