Making Movies/Orana Films
On the summit of Mt. Everest in 1994, Kiwi guide Mark Whetu and his client Mike Rheinberger realize it’s too late to return to camp before nightfall. Following a freezing night just 50 meters below the summit, they try to descend but Rheinberger is stricken with cerebral edema. After a day long struggle Whetu must decide whether to stay with his friend on the mountain or save his own life.
As a result of the night at 28,800 feet, Whetu loses his toes to frostbite and enters a period of deep depression. Mark returns home to Queenstown and endures a long recovery and much emotional turmoil before deciding to return to the Himalaya as the leader of an expedition attempting to summit the world’s sixth highest mountain, Cho Oyu (8201m).
Winner of more than a dozen international film awards.