3500+ Films - 2.5 million words – 1 million viewers! Founder and Curator Carmela selects some of our most entertaining, powerful and inspiring Adventure films at We Are Moving Stories. These include shorts and features covering drama, animation, women’s imagined and real journeys; and endurance.

Total length of this section: 23 films.

<DRAMA>

2 Weeks in Lagos - A 2 weeks business trip to Nigeria becomes a thrilling love adventure. Length: 1 hour 50 minutes. Writer/Director/Producer Kathryn Fasegha:

The feedback reinforces my point of view that we need more realistic storytelling that allows us to showcase our individual uniqueness.

Arg Stairs - A comedy adventure about a resourceful caveman that conceives one of the most overlooked creations in human history: the stairs. Director/Producer Kyle Romanek:

What I think is unique about our film is that it’s an incredibly unusual premise with a familiar execution. When we tell everyone the concept most people imagine either a YouTube sketch or off the wall experimental movie. I think most people will be completely immersed within ten minutes and find it has a more conventional structure than you might expect.

The Adventures of Adderall Boy follows a distressed college student who experiments with a “miracle drug”. Little does he know the pill will invite supernatural abilities, certain challenges, and inherent dangers. 22.13 Minutes. Writer/Director Conor Holway:

At its most basic level, the film is funny. Although comedy is subjective, there are comedic moments that everyone can enjoy. Although Adderall Boy is just a college student, his struggle is relatable for anybody who has been pushed into a desperate place in their life. I think kids my age - especially - have prevalent stressors that go undiscussed; because essentially, when you turn 20,21,22; out of nowhere society expects kids to assume a massive amount of responsibility and develop a plan on what they really want to do with their lives.

The Adventures of Penny Patterson - High school senior Penny Patterson faces growing obstacles to winning the science fair after Steve, her lab partner and boyfriend, becomes a superhero overnight. Length: 19 minutes. Writer/Director Stephanie Donnelly:

We’d like the audience to rethink how women are typically portrayed in superhero stories.

A Night At The Movies - A shy movie fan must overcome his confidence issues when he and his crush, the theater concession stand girl, are pulled into a 1930s adventure film. Length: 16 minutes. Writer/Director Erik Carlson and Producer Lily Marroquin Scheib:

I wanted to do something fun and nostalgic of the adventure films I grew up with like Indiana Jones, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, and The Rocketeer. At the same time, I was fascinated with the idea/s of real people going into the fantasy of movies and the characters of a movie coming out into the real world and wanted to put my own spin on that concept.

The Love Bathroom - What would you do if you had an opportunity to have one last adventure before you say “I DO!” and would you still say “I DO?” Length: 5 minutes. Writer/Director Anna Fishbeyn:

The Love Bathroom is fun, witty, and sexy; it is that timeless fairy tale about a woman torn between the man her parents want her to marry, and her own unbridled desires – with a modern twist.

<ANIMATION>

ZOUA - When the imagination of children comes to life, a young boy goes on an adventure to escape a deserted island surrounded by hungry piranhas. Length: 7.12 minutes. Director/Actor Nicolas Wendl:

Tiziana Giammarino, the founder of Artistes-Pour-Rever and writer of Zoua... told me all the kids come from a Swiss cancer support organization, and that she wanted to encourage them to embrace their imagination and creativity. She helped them enter a more magical world by enabling them to create their own story and characters. It touched me right away and I knew this was something I wanted to help work on with her, and bring it to life for the kids to see on the big screen.

The Yogi Walrus - A Journey of a little adventures Walrus Emi. Length: 4.20 minutes. Writer/Director/Producer Marohnda Bay:

Everyone is like Emi. We all have an unhealthy relationship with SOMETHING - maybe it’s ice-cream, chocolate....expensive shoes, driving your car too fast. It’s good to ask ourselves why we do the things we do, and if we really SHOULD be doing some of those things.

<WOMEN’S JOURNEYS>

DARE TO BE WILD - A romantic adventure based on the true story of Mary Reynolds, a modern-day heroine, and environmentalist Christy Collard, whose shared passion for the wild takes them from the green hills of Ireland, to the arid deserts of Ethiopia and then to London’s Chelsea Flower Show as they reach for their dreams, one garden at a time. Length: 100 minutes. Writer/Director Vivienne deCourcy:

If you want to be inspired, enlightened and moved by what a young woman of twenty-three can do to change the world then Dare to be Wild is the film for you. If you like romance, adventure and a strong female protagonist - this is also for you. Wherever Dare to be Wild has screened, all over the world, we get emails from people telling us how much they loved it, how they look at wild nature in a total different light after seeing the film. It is unique.

The Benefits of Gusbandry - Love is SO gay. At her debaucherous 40th birthday party, serial relationship-killer Jackie meets handsome and charming thirty-something River—the perfect guy, who happens to be gay. Their ensuing adventures in self-medication, late-blooming, and questionable judgment lead them to discover a raucous new kind of significant otherness. Total Season Length (6 episodes): 77 minutes. Director Alicia J. Rose:

The Benefits of Gusbandry follows romantically challenged Jackie Rosenblum as she tries to get her shit together as a flawed single 40 year old. She meets sexy pants River Manning and is super crushed out on him until his true orientation is revealed. But once things are out in the open, their adventures get real REAL as their relationship blossoms.

Heads or Tails - Lilly convinces her best friend René to join her on a nocturnal trespassing adventure. Length: 9.16 minutes. Writer/Director/Producer Eva von Schweinitz:

At its heart, “Heads or Tails” is a coming-of-age story that deals with a young person’s struggle to find her place in the world, and more specifically to understand her identity and desires. While everybody’s answers to these questions are unique, I believe that we all constantly search for - or spend time running away from - a more fully realized self.

The Couch (web series) - In this Make It Yours dramedy series, a psychology graduate student must see four therapists at the same time in order to complete her required hours in time for graduation. Length: 7 episodes, approx. 55 minutes total. Producer and Lead Actress Ayelette Robinson:

If you have ever needed to feel less alone in your struggles, or questioned your life choices, or needed to see more of yourself as a woman or person of color on screen, or needed to feel like there is someone else out there who gets what it’s like not to know what you are doing with your life, then you should watch this series.

<WOMEN’S DOCUMENTARY JOURNEYS>

Equal Footing - Wyoming’s remote and vast wilderness provides the perfect canvas for Alpinist’s Kim and Julia to redefine preconceptions of the feminine. Isolated and exposed on the raw granite peaks of the Wind River Range, the experience of these two women explores the fabric of loss, life, and friendship. Length: 7.32 minutes. Director/Producer Dan Holz:

We decided to make Equal Footing because we saw a pretty big lack of a female focus in the world of adventure films. There are so many female athletes out there that are really getting after it that deserve recognition.
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Breath (Aliento) - Fear, breathing, movement, presence. Breath, an inside look at Margarita Cardoso’s process to climb one of the most technically difficult and beautiful sport climbing routes at Los Dinamos, Mexico City. Length: 17 minutes. Writer/Director/Producer Ulises Fierro:

This film leads the viewer into a perspective about climbing that is not often shared. An approach into the whole physical-mental process of this complex activity that was born from the very basic, but never-ending, the conflictive relationship between human and nature, which is rock climbing.
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This Mountain Life - Six riveting portraits of human passion set high in the awe-inspiring peaks of British Columbia as a mother and daughter attempt an impossible journey on skis. Length: 78 minutes. Writer/Director Grant Baldwin:

It will allow you to see BC mountains in a new way, and it will introduce you to people who are driven by a personal passion so deep that it can’t help but inspire others. Plus, it’s a really beautiful film. I say it’s a mountain film for people who don’t watch mountain films because you don’t need to be a skier or a mountaineer to appreciate the stories and awe-inducing visuals in this movie.

Love Birds - An American woman travels deep into the Amazon jungle discouraged with her marriage and on a quest for adventure, wild nature and a new sense of belonging. She unexpectedly meets Noe, an amazonian painter who teaches her what true belonging really means. Length: 7.40 minutes. Writer/Director/Editor Ashley Mosher:

If you’re interested in travel, adventure-not just for the sake of thrill, but because it awakens a part of yourself that nothing else does-if you’ve wondered where you truly belong in the world, or what people in other parts of the world go through (hint: it’s the same things we do), and if you want to expand your idea of exploration, I think you would be intrigued by this film and story.

<DIVERSITY>

Rewilding - REWILDING follows Anthony Dejesus, a 27-year-old budding artist and former inmate of Rikers Island, as he leaves New York City for the first time with Jesse Spiegel and Vitek Linhart, two avid rock climbers determined to create a program to take formerly incarcerated men into the wild. Little did they know, their adventure would become a dramatic illustration of the conflicts surrounding race and privilege gripping our nation today. Actor/Director/Producer Jesse Spiegel:

The path that led me to the Rewilding program and the creation of this film began with my own troubled youth. My first of many arrests was at the age of 15. The experiences I had in those court rooms had a deep impact on me. I saw firsthand how obvious conscious bias and unequal legal representation led to Black men and boys being treated and sentenced more severely than their white counterparts for similar charges. For me, even as a teenager, this was deeply disturbing and a call to action.

SHU-DE! - A Musical Adventure Half a World Away. Length: 85 minutes. Director Michael R Faulkner:

I really wanted to go to Tuva. Well that, and the fact that both beatboxing and xöömei are powerful vocal forms but are not all that well known. When Shodekeh, the beatboxer in the film, met touring Tuvan band, Alash Ensemble (AlashEnsemble.com), they began a dynamic musical collaboration that transcends, borders, cultures, and genres. I wanted to make a film that would share these sounds and rhythms with the world, as a kind of amplifier for the amazing work they are doing.

My Irnik - A young father teaches his son about the value of shared adventures, exploration and his ancestral Inuit heritage. Length: 15 minutes. Writer/Director/Producer Matthew Hood:

You should watch it because you will likely see a slice of life in Arctic Canada that you have not seen before.

<ENDURANCE>

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The Tough - A discovery arouses a man's imagination and propels him forward in an uncouth and obsessive way. Step by step, the camera participates as he explores places hitherto unknown to humankind, which offer increasing resistance to human delicacy. Length: 14 minutes. Writer/Director Marcin Polar:

This film can be the only opportunity for the viewer to feel real, dangerous underground exploration. During the shooting I tried to show, most conscientiously, the reality of this harsh unpleasant surroundings. The struggles that the main character of my movie experienced are an excuse to open a discussion on human curiosity and maverick exploration activities.

Resurgence - The survival story of a professional canyoneer after a near-death accident in the canyons of Southern Utah. Length: 19:00 minutes. Writer/Director/Producer/Editor Krushan Naik:

You should watch Resurgence because it will leave you feeling inspired, uplifted and motivated. You will have a sense that life is beautiful and worth fighting for, and to rise from your ashes no matter how hard life gets.

At 23000 feet - What does it take to reach the top of the world? A question everyone once in their life always thinks After creating the first world record for the fastest climb on Black Peak Mountain which is at an altitude of 6387 meters in 6 days, Kovid Mittal is all set to climb a 23000 feet mountain, his last chapter before he climbs Mount Everest, but will he be able to climb this 23000 feet monster despite his little to no experience? A Journey of a young boy battling his own emotions and demons in the hope that one day he shall climb Mount Everest. Length: 1 hour 30 minutes. Director/Actor Kovid Mittal:

It is a film that will motivate you to be the best version of yourself. It will make you realise it’s never too late to start anything in life. It will make you believe in yourself even if you feel defeated. It’s about rising from ashes.

Adventure Unknown - Professional wakeboarder, Alexa Score, perseveres through pain and impossible odds. Director/Producer Dana Johnson:

Alexa’s story has always encouraged me to persevere through extreme challenges. If Alexa can live every day with her illness and still keep a positive outlook, then I should be able to as well. Her story has helped me push on through adversity. I thought if I made a film about her, it could help to inspire others who are struggling to keep pushing.