Organisers of the Fort William Mountain Festival 2007, a celebration of mountain culture, have announced details of open film, photography, art and writing competitions, that will form part of the exciting programme of events at next year’s festival.

After the success of the 2006 film competition the Fort William Mountain Festival 2007 has created another opportunity for both amateur and professional filmmakers from across the globe to showcase their work and share their passion for sport, culture and the environment. The festival will take place between 16th Feb and 3rd March 2007.

The aim of the the 2007 Fort William Mountain Festival is to celebrate mountain life and culture. As in previous festivals, there will be evenings focusing on mountain sports including snow sports, mountaineering, mountain biking and kayaking. Wild places and mountain culture are also important themes within the festival programme.

Entries for the Film Competition are invited for submission on these subjects and themes. The competition is also open to a broader spectrum of material if relevant to mountains and life around them. A panel will judge the films in the following prize categories: Grand Prize (£500), Best Short Film (£300 sponsored by Scottish Highlands and Islands Film Commission), Young Filmmaker (under 18 – £200) and Best Highland Amateur Filmmaker (£300). Each prize winner will have their film screened during the Festival alongside a stong programme of mountain films that includes the Best of the Banff Film Festival. They will also receive a specially commissioned commemorative plate made by Fired Art, Fort William.

A new addition to the 2007 festival will be the John Muir Trust Open Writing Competition, with the winning piece being published in the John Muir Trust Journal, one of the strongest voices in the campaign for the protection and conservation of wild places. The competition encourages entrants to share their experience of wild places and wild journeys. This can incorporate a journey or expedition on land or water, an exploration of a remote place, a climb, a walk, a river, a loch, a mountain. The winners will be announced at the ‘Wilderness Evening’ with a panel of authors on Saturday 17th February, the opening weekend of the Festival.

North Face of Ben Nevis

Entries for the 2007 Fort William Mountain Festival Photographic Competition are also now invited. Organisers are looking for photographers to submit pictures on various themes including Mountain Adventure, Mountain Culture and Mountain Landscape. The competition is open to both amateur and professional photographers together with a special junior category. The Grand Prize is a week’s photography holiday with Wildshots worth £600. Other prizes include cash and prizes from festival sponsors.

The People’s Choice Original Art Competition will be held in conjunction with the Art and Photo Exhibition at next year’s festival. It again promises to be an exciting and intriguing part of the festival. Each artist is asked to nominate one piece of their own exhibited artwork for the public visiting the exhibition to vote on as their favourite via a ballot box. There will be an overall cash prize as well as a junior category prize.

The entry deadline for the film competition is 31st December 2006; both the art and photography competitions share a 31st January 2007 dealine, whilst entries for the writing competition must be received by 26th January 2007.

Further details on all the Fort William Mountain Festival 2007 competitions, entry forms and rules and regulations can be found at www.mountainfilmfestival.co.uk.
The festival will take place between 16th Feb and 3rd March 2007.