MISSOULA — A ski film premiering in Missoula on Wednesday night highlights the vulnerability and dedication of a team of strangers who turned family while chasing big dreams in the big mountains.
From learning at Missoula's Marshall Mountain and Lolo Pass to the massive terrain in Alaska, Shawna Paoli has gone all in through her last 12 years of snowboarding.
Now sponsored by brands like Jones, she teamed up with three other women to organize an Alaskan backcountry expedition. Two filmers joined in from LemCool Collective along with a guide. Many things were challenging logistically; the crew even had to change mountain ranges entirely, but those setbacks paved the way for a raw, engaging experience.
"It was just dumping snow in the Tarrillos and the plane couldn't land on the glacier because it was too deep and so we decided to pivot and we went to the Talkeetna Mountains. Avalanche danger was high. I think the biggest thing that everyone learned in this project was to just go with the flow, just kind of take things as they come one day at a time, and yeah, I think that is just a really good takeaway for life in general,” Paoli recalled.
The Underdogs will be screened on Wednesday night at the Zootown Arts Community Center. The doors open at 7 p.m. with the show starting at 7:30 p.m.
