The North Face
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The snow crunched beneath his boots. Ski mountaineer Jim Morrison took his final step up to the 20,000-foot summit of Great Trango Tower in Pakistan. He panned his surroundings in awe as the sunset began, overwhelmed by the views of the glaciated Karakoram mountain range.
“I grew up reading about these mountains, and seeing them all at once…” Morrison paused. “Typically, it would be days of hiking until you could see the next mountain. It was emotional in that regard.”
On February 4, The North Face hosted a screening of Trango at the Oriental Theater, followed by a reception complete with signature drinks at My Boy Tony.
Trango is the brand’s new documentary that follows ski mountaineers Christina “Lusti” Lustenberger and Morrison as they take on the first-ever ski descent of Great Trango Tower in Pakistan’s Karakoram Range. The screening is timed with the film’s upcoming twenty-city theatrical run.
The North Face
A post-screening Q&A included Lustenberger, one of the most accomplished big mountain skiers in the world and a former Canadian national alpine ski racer, and Morrison, whose high-altitude objectives continued on October 15, 2025, when he became the first to summit and ski the Hornbein Couloir on the North Face of Mount Everest, honoring his former partner Hilaree Nelson by scattering her ashes at the peak.
“The summit was also a poignant moment in my grief,” Morrison added. “I thought of Hilaree, and deciding to go back outside and go skiing for the first time, and deciding to embark on this exhibition.”
An hour before they set off to hit the summit, Lustenberger turned to Morrison, concerned about how late in the day it was. She asked what their turnaround time might be if they were to make that choice.
“I just looked at her and thought, ‘There’s zero chance I’m turning around. I’m going to the top no matter what,’” he recalled.
Trango Is a Film About Perseverance
On May 9, 2024, after two years of attempts, Morrison, Lusti and their team successfully climbed and skied down the 20,000-foot West Face of Great Trango Tower.
The film, directed by Leo Hoorn, documents the team’s preparation and execution of the descent. Joined by Nick McNutt and Chantel Astorga, Lusti and Morrison navigate risk, grief, and the physical demands of high-altitude exposure.
“You can fail over and over again, and you might set a goal that you won’t make, but if you keep pushing yourself, you’ll eventually win,” Morrison said. “That feeling is you’re flying and untouchable, and you’ll spend a lot of your life getting back there and waiting for that moment to happen again.”
Morrison walked into the theater during the last two minutes of the film, admitting that if he sat down and watched the last fifteen minutes, he knew he’d be overcome with tears.
“It still gets me,” he said. “So much had to happen to get to the top. It was such a long battle. I was really psyched to be there. I was proud that we finally got through all the adversities that prevented us from getting there on the first attempt, and more importantly, proud to get my team up there. It’s almost indescribable how satisfied I was putting my head on my pillow that night.”
How to Watch
Trango has screened at nineteen film festivals in nine different countries, and won the “Grand Prize Award” at the New Zealand Mountain Film Festival and “Best Editing Award” at the International Freesports Film Festival. Trango premiered at Sundance 2025.
The film will premiere on February 13 on Documentary+ and other streaming platforms to follow, along with a television broadcast on PBS in select markets, including Rocky Mountain PBS, this spring.
A Few Quick Questions With Morrison
Westword: Where’s home base?
Morrison: Lake Tahoe, California, but I spend a lot of time in Telluride.
Where’s your favorite spot to ski?
I love skiing in the side country of Telluride, the backcountry of the west shore of Lake Tahoe, but my favorite place is Samnuan.
What’s your mountain playlist sound like?
I don’t usually listen to music when I ski, but I do when I’m climbing up the mountain. I listen to a lot of pop music. Right now it’s “No Broke Boys” by Tinashe. And a lot of country like Dirks Bentley and Ella Langley. I also listen to audiobooks.
Tinashe is incredibly unexpected and baller of you. What else should we know about you?
I’m part of the athlete alliance of Protect Our Winters and co-chair of the board. I‘m passionate about it, and I think of it as a Denver/Boulder organization. Everyone should get involved. Oh, and go Broncos. It was really an amazing season. I thought I would be in San Francisco right now.
