Film Blog: Why Expedition Films Fail (And How You To Make Yours Better)

On Monday, January 30th, 2012 in Moving Image, Practical Advice, The Film

A great number of expeditions and adventures are filmed, especially now the equipment to do so is cheap and accessible. But few projects ever reach the screen. My own film, Janapar, might well become one of them. Whinge, moan, etc.

So far, James and I have received four rejections from four of the biggest film festivals — Sundance, Berlin, South By South West and Rotterdam. (Technically, we’ve received three rejections: Rotterdam didn’t feel it worth contacting us at all.)

It does beg the question: Why are so many film projects unsuccessful? Read More »

(More) Evidence For The Value Of Crafted Adventure Media

On Monday, January 23rd, 2012 in General, Other People's Adventures

While defending my views on the use of social media on expeditions or journeys, I thought I’d share a reminder I recently received of why I bother raising such points and investing so much energy in all of this.

Hi Tom,

It’s been great following your adventures thus far, and I look forward to the book with anticipation.

I also want to say a massive thank you for giving me the necessary push, along with Andy last year, to embark on my own adventure! Read More »

This Free "Bike Touring Basics" eBook Will Get You Up To Speed

On Thursday, January 19th, 2012 in General, Other People's Adventures

If only everyone would read this gem of a free eBook before planning an epic bike ride. Bike Touring Basics, published by Friedel and Andrew Grant of the TravellingTwo.com cycle touring community website, tells you everything you need to know if you’re a newcomer to the world of bicycle travel. It also very wisely sets out what you don’t need to know.

Bike Touring Basics cover Read More »

Why I Won't Be 'Live-Tweeting' My Next Expedition

On Monday, January 16th, 2012 in General

This post was borne of a heated debate I recently had with a couple of friends. It arose from a remark along the lines of “I don’t have time to read your blog, but I do have time to read Twitter updates, so you should be ‘live-Tweeting’ your trips because more people like me will know what you’re up to”.

(In case you don’t know, Twitter is an online community based entirely on real-time public status updates. You can publish what you like, as long as it fit into 140 characters or the length of an SMS. My own feed, for example, is here.)

Array

Well, I won’t be ‘live-Tweeting’ my future trips; not for my friend, nor anyone else. And here’s why. Read More »

New Year, New Gear - Considerations When Comfortably Roughing It

On Monday, January 9th, 2012 in Gear, U.S. West Coast 2012

I have a good working relationship with Mountain Safety Research, better known as MSR, who for several decades have been quietly turning out top-quality equipment for use in the world’s wild places. The little green 2-man Vaude tent which was my home for so long is now well past its best, and with two significant trips planned for 2012, I decided it was time to replace it with one of MSR’s tried-and-tested offerings.

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Read More »