“Warren Miller films are an experience.”
If, like me, you have never skied in your life, the name Warren Miller is likely a name that you haven’t heard before. If however, you are an avid skier, or winter sports fan of any kind, then the name Warren Miller is a legendary one, synonymous with the very sport of skiing itself. As I found after watching the new documentary Ski Bum: The Warren Miller Story, even though I fall into the former category of having not known of Miller, afterwards, I was left moved by the story of a man who – like Steve Jobs, or Henry Ford, or his idol, Walt Disney before him – became a titan of their industry and grew an entire sport itself.
Directed by Patrick Creadon (Wordplay, Catholics vs. Convicts), Ski Bum tells the story of Warren Miller and his 55-year career as a skier and filmmaker, which Miller himself recounts for the film (as Miller would pass away a few short months after sitting for the interview, his presence gives the documentary even more significance). As he remembers at his Orcas Island, WA lodge, growing up a surfer in Hermosa Beach, he would eventually hear the calls of the nearby Californian snowy mountains and shortly thereafter dedicate his life to hitting those slopes – soon proudly calling himself a “ski bum” by dedicating his weekend to sleeping in his car and hunting rabbits to stay up there. Miller would also take his 8mm camera and shoot his skiing, eventually making movies that would snowball (pun intended) into Warren Miller Productions, with Miller shooting, editing, narrating, and marketing these new ski movies himself. His eventual road shows would turn into annual events, gaining legions of fans around the world that would popularize the sport of skiing and in the process, immortalize his name with it.
With interviews from Olympic skier Jonny Moseley and skier/filmmaker Greg Stump, among others, Ski Bum isn’t short of subjects willing to sit for the film to celebrate their idol. Yet the most striking part of Ski Bum is the film’s use of archival footage, which features never before seen pictures and videos from the Warren Miller Entertainment library. As associate producer and assistant editor H. Nelson Tracey notes, “we accessed film reels that had never before been digitized! There are some unbelievable shots unearthed specifically for this film. In many ways, making this documentary was a bit of a scavenger hunt.” This beautifully rendered early-50s and 60s footage transports audiences not only to just beautiful mountain slopes, but to another time altogether.
And while Ski Bum is a gorgeous celebration of the man, the film also digs deeper, past the surface-level snow, to reveal darker moments in Miller’s life, including having an alcoholic father, the passing of a first wife, and financial hardships that would at one point bankrupt Warren Miller Productions. It’s these moment that his children (who also sit for the film) speculate as to why he himself was a figure who wasn’t always there for his family, pursuing his life’s mission and larger goals. One thing’s for sure: Ski Bum will make you realize the magnificence of a man who saw not just the beauty in mountains, but shared that magnificence to the world, who will celebrate him on the slopes for all time.
Ski Bum: The Warren Miller Story is now available to rent on Amazon, GooglePlay, YouTube and iTunes, as well as available to purchase on Blu-ray or DVD on Amazon.
