The Cast and Crew
Ben Stephenson
Zanskar Ski School - Director and Co-Founder
Shangku Shelter Film - Executive Producer, Co-Director, Storyteller, Archive Cinematography
Ben is a geologist living in Canada with a passion for outdoor sports and travel. He first visited Zanskar in 1993 while studying for a PhD from Oxford University and co-founded the Zanskar Ski School with Amin in 1998. Ben enjoys long ski trips, one of them was a 600km ski crossing of the Himalaya. He attended the Banff Centre’s Adventure Filmmaker’s Workshop in 2008 and produced a short film in 2009, about skiing up Mt Logan. He regularly leads trips for the Alpine Club of Canada, and enjoys public speaking, both professionally and while fund-raising for ZSS.
Vera Neverkevich Hill
Producer, Co-Director, Writer, Editor, Additional Cinematography
Vera grew up between Arctic Siberia and Saint-Petersburg, Russia, but now calls Canada home. She holds an MA in Film from Raindance. Vera has had principal roles in four short narrative and four documentary film productions and most recently produced and directed her debut dramatic short film Burned. Vera volunteers as a film artist for the Beakerhead festival, and has trained at Calgary Society of Independent Filmmakers, Alberta College of Art and Design and Calgary Actor’s Studio.
Jason Long
Script and Story Consultant
Jason is a Calgary-based screenwriter and screenwriting teacher, and a graduate of the National Theatre School of Canada.
Amin Zanskari
Zanskar Ski School - Director and Co-Founder
Amin is the first mountain guide from Zanskar and co-founder of the Zanskar Ski School. As an outdoor education officer, Amin taught skiing, climbing and trekking to locals and tourists alike. An ascent of Nun (7135m) stands out amongst his routes. Amin has acted as an election officer, coordinated mountain rescue, is widely recognized as a community leader, and a passionate advocate of pluralism. In 2015, Amin was recognized with a lifetime achievement award from the Alpine Club of Canada.
Yana Kehrlein
Co-Director, Director of Photography, Colorist
Yana is a French-American filmmaker and visual artist. Raised in the south of France, he studied Philosophy at Université de Provence before moving to Montreal, Canada to pursue visual art. He has won numerous awards for his unique digital artwork and has had multiple solo exhibitions in Canada and Europe. He holds an MFA in Film Production from Columbia University, has taught classes in documentary filmmaking and had his films shown in festivals across North America. Yana currently lives in the Rocky Mountain Trench and works internationally as a film director and director of photography.
Rob Watson
Story Consultant
Rob is a British producer, a graduate of the National Film and Television School, and a Raindance MA Film mentor.
Urgain Dorjay
Zanskar Ski School - Director and Manager
Urgain is the manager of the Zanskar Ski School. He is a man of many talents; carpenter, tailor, metal-worker, farmer, building contractor, ski instructor and trekking guide. Urgain specializes in winter travel, has guided the famous frozen river Chadur trek many times, has coordinated rescue efforts for backcountry accidents and has taught avalanche awareness to the Indian army. He is particularly proud of his greenhouse, which has a decent crop of vegetables and doubles as a ski boot drying-room!
Dewi Wood
Director of Sound
Dewi is an award winning composer, audio and media producer with over 20 years of experience in digital communications and the arts.
He has produced original music scores and sound designs for NASA, Rolex, Mercedes-Benz, Accenture, Dell, Nike, Las Vegas LVCVA, Procter & Gamble, Hyatt, Samsung, Critical Mass, CBC, Ashes & Snow, Bravo!, National Film Board of Canada, Decidedly Jazz Danceworks, ATP, Vertigo Theatre, and Alberta Ballet.
His scores have been heard internationally, with notable screenings at the Lincoln Center, MOMA, Sundance Film Festival, and the National Arts Centre.