I am very proud to announce that my film – Everest: A Climb for Peace will begin airing nationwide on Public Television (PBS) starting this October! The film will be pre-released on the WORLD Channel, which airs on 120 Public TV stations nationwide including the following top ten markets: New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Dallas, Boston, and Atlanta.

The full release of Everest: A Climb for Peace is scheduled to start in November. As of today, in addition to the WORLD Channel, 185 Public Television stations have agreed to show the documentary. The film will show for the next 3 years and will reach literally tens of millions of people across the United States.  A complete list of airing dates and stations will be sent out and posted in the coming weeks and months as airing times and dates will vary per individual stations.

Narrated by Orlando Bloom and hailed as a “tremendous achievement” by the Dalai Lama. Everest: A Climb for Peace is not just a typical Everest film, but a socially relevant documentary about peace, war, and the human spirit - an inspirational film, which also has some of the most incredible Everest footage ever shot, including a dramatic rescue from near the summit of Everest.

On a personal note this is literally a dream come true for me! On October 2^nd, 2002 while 15,000 feet high on a mountaintop in Ladakh India I had a vision that I was going to create a world peace climb on Mt. Everest with people of different faiths and cultures. On May 18^th, 2006 most of that vision came to fruition when Israeli Dudu Yifrah unfolded a sewn-together Israeli / Palestinian flag on the summit of Mt. Everest. The climb was of course filmed.

…I knew that the climb would be a significant and important piece of history in time, but a film…that could live on forever! And so once the film was produced and finished, my mission for these last several years has been to get this on United States National Television. And now, starting in October, it will happen! When I found out I became so excited that once everything was finalized I bought a 50 inch Plasma TV just so I could fully enjoy watching the film on my local Public TV station here in Portland!

As we are still in the midst of two wars in the Middle East and things do not look so optimistic about having any sort of lasting peace between Israel and Palestine, I just hope that my film can inspire and perhaps touch people in some positive way across the United States and to let people know that sometimes the impossible is indeed possible and when people are united together and striving for a common goal that their religious, political, and cultural differences don’t really matter; and that in an atmosphere of peace and thru friendship and teamwork - that people can do amazing things, including climbing Mt. Everest in the name of peace.

…Things are still moving forward and my job is not complete just yet. I still dream of getting the film on television in the Middle East; I still have a book to write, and I want to do several peace treks in the coming months…This will all happen I am sure…stay tuned to find out when, where, and how!

And finally – for now…I would like to thank all of the people who have stood by me throughout the last 8 years, including my friends and family; a special thanks to my fellow producer and my main collaborator on the film, Billy Marchese. I could not have done it without him.  I would also like to thank Orlando Bloom for the incredible narration, and Judy Barlow at American Public Television who has helped champion the film onto Public Television. And of course, thanks to our Public TV sponsors: Epson, SanDisk, and Beyond Words Publishing. Thanks everyone!

It’s through actions of peace that peace is spread. Help spread the peace.

Lance Trumbull
Producer and Director of Everest: A Climb for Peace
Executive Director of The Everest Peace Project

Anyway, back to Tonya…The last time we saw each other was in August of 2008 - when we had a nice dinner and argued politics! This time she came over early and we just hung out, talked about Everest and played with my son Kaden. Unfortunately, time flew as always and we did not get a chance to discuss all the things that were on our mind - next time Tonya!

Below is a nice picture of me, Tonya, and my son Kaden.

I was very much looking forward to this trip for I was going to have a chance to speak directly with Jewish and Arabs about peace, reconciliation, and of course my film - Everest: A Climb for Peace.

When I arrived at in New York - I remembered why I enjoy living in Portland, Oregon (especially in the summertime) - no humidity in Portland. In Long Island - well…let’s just say - hot, muggy - and you could literally swim in the air….Anyway, the hotel was nice and I had a pleasant evening just hanging out with myself and HBO.

The next day was my full day of action and excitement. It started off around 11:45 when Kelly Alpert Vest - the Director of Community Relations picked me up to take me to the Community Center. I always find it odd meeting people for the first time that I have been speaking and emailing with over the course of several weeks. They never seem to look like I picture them in my mind. Of course, that is not necessarily a bad thing…Kelly was younger and taller than I was expecting and we seemed to get a long just great from the get-go, which is always nice. Next up - meeting the students.

Nazli Chaudhry, Lance Trumbull, Kelly Alpert Vest

The Jewish Community Center was enormous - and one of the nicest I have ever seen - and luckily they had air conditioning! The student were HAMSA students - as described by Kelly: HAMSA (Heroes Are Made through Service and Action) group is made up of University students (ages 19-27) from Israel and the US. The Israeli’s are both Arab Muslim and Jewish (8) and the Americans (10) are Muslim of varying backgrounds including Pakistani and Egyptian and the Jews are of both Sephardic and Ashkenazi descent. They have been working together for the past year. In January the group was together in Jerusalem for intensive identity and mutual exploration workshops with the Jerusalem intercultural Center. They formed deep bonds and worked through all kinds of issues and preconceived notions. They also did some hiking and touring together. Now they are together again in NY where we will be doing various trips and workshops to introduce them to American life and culture as well as inspire the group to maintain their commitment to peace and to use their various skills.…

The HAMSA Students

And so at first we all just sort of hung out, chatted, and then had a nice Chinese lunch! After our community meal, I gave about a 20 minute speech on how my Everest adventure came into being and about following your path and passions in life. It is the talk that I like to give to students and young minds who could perhaps be influenced positively and hopefully even be inspired by what I have to say. After the talk we remained sitting in a circle and had about a 90 minute back and forth question and answer session. They had some excellent questions and I felt really welcomed and happy to be sitting there with these bright and motivated students.

Lance Trumbull with the HAMSA Students

The day went by fast and 7pm came very quickly. We all came back - and were joined by many others from the Community Center for a Pakistani Dinner. As far as I recall I had not had this before (it was very good) - and I had some nice conversations with a couple of Palestinian students about peace, war, and ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

After dinner we had the screening of my film; I was happy as even more people showed up just for the film and the room was packed with about 100 people. But nothing relating to the Middle East is easy! Just before the film was to start the fire alarm went off! And so we all had to clear the building. Fortunately, it was literally a false alarm. It was now movie time…but wait…half way thru the film the projector broke and the DVD stopped playing! Did I mention nothing relating to the Middle East is easy! - Fortunately, we had a good crew and Kelly is fast on her feet - we immediately set up a new room and miraculously within a few minutes the 100 or so people were inside the new room and we finished up the movie.

The question and answer session lasted for about 20 minutes and as expected I was asked some poignant and thought-provoking questions. Afterward, I had the pleasure of speaking with several people who were interested in having me speak at their local peace center and church; hopefully, something will come from this as I truly enjoy speaking and screening my film to people everywhere;  it was a great day and night. But all good things must come to an end - and I had to get up at 5am for the morning flight out…

Thanks to all those who attended and thanks to Kelly, Bat-Sheva Slavin, the HAMSA Students and everyone at the Suffolk Y JCC.
Shalom / Salaam

Lance Trumbull

I figure it was time for a personal story once again…

I think my wife and I were as suprised as my son, Kaden. He stood there rocking back and forth as if he was listening to (insert your favorite band) when he had this buffudled look on his face of: holy sh_ _ - I am standing! Well, I guess he thought, “well I might as well take a couple of steps while I am at it” - and he did!

One. Two.
Houston we have lift off!
But then, boom! Right on his butt! - Another strange and wonderful look of - “hey what the hell just happened?!”

It was a very momentous occasion - so much so that he is now sleeping it off…

- Don’t worry, I will not post when he makes it to 3 steps! - Will wait until he can run!

Proud Pappa - Lance Trumbull

…Two weeks ago I got an interesting email from Dean Whitlow a producer in San Francisco asking for my help to consult for his shoot. And so I immediately called him and we had a very interesting conversation. He was going to be filming a corporate video with the theme of using Everest as a sales metaphor. And so I thought the perfect person (along with me) to help with this was Brad! And so together Brad and I were to act as the authenticity Everest and script supervisors. Me via email and phone and Brad, well Brad (along with all of his high altitude climbing gear) got a fun-filled trip to San Francisco where he shot an “Everest scene” inside a tent in a freezer at 0 degrees!

Below is a short summary of the day’s events from Brad:

“The Shoot began at 8am.  The location was a freezer warehouse, in the industrial district of San Francisco.  We had a 20′x100′ area located within a large freezer room to work with, and were surrounded by thousands of packages of Trader Joe’s frozen fruit!  The temp was a constant zero degrees.  Basically, once at the warehouse we set up the tent and lighting, made sure all was good with the camera equipment, etc.  Once the tent was set up, we decorated the inside with authentic Everest gear….ropes, carabiners, sleeping bags, goggles, headlamps, boots, pots and pans, etc.

Once the set up was arranged, the actors jumped into their high altitude clothing and sat down with the make up artist.  We were made up to look a bit haggard and cold.  Beards were accentuated, eyes were made to look tired, cheeks cold, etc.  Of course, once we all jumped into the tent and were in the freezer…we did not need any makeup to look cold.

We filmed for a couple of hours, then broke for lunch…then post lunch resumed filming for a few more hours.  A full range of shots…wide, medium and close ups were taken from many different perspectives as the actors read the script, over and over again.   The lead actor had just finished a shoot for an upcoming film by Clint Eastwood, starring Matt Damon.

Started at 8am, finished at 5pm.  Great day, with an awesome crew.  Went very well and will look authentic in it’s final form.  The overall video will be a mountaineering themed opening sequence for a corporate sales meeting.”

Pretty cool, huh?!

Lance Trumbull

Namaste!

I was very happy to get an email a few weeks back from National Geographic magazine that they were looking for a full spread image of Mt. Everest for their upcoming magazine feature on Water. I was even more excited when after several back and forth correspondence they decided to use one of the images that was taken by Namgyal Sherpa using my Canon SLR camera 28,000 feet high on the North Side of Mt. Everest. To see the image and read some terrific articles, please see the April 2010 edition. Image below:

View an Everest Peace Project Everest image in the April 2010 edition of National Geographic Magazine

Narrated by Orlando Bloom and hailed as a “tremendous achievement” by the Dalai Lama. Everest: A Climb for Peace is not just a typical Everest film, but a socially relevant documentary about peace, war, and the human spirit - an inspirational film, which also has some of the most incredible Everest footage ever shot, including a dramatic rescue from near the summit of Everest. 

View from 28,000 feet on Mt. Everest, Tibet

Information about The My Hero Project and Ron Kovic below.

Lance Trumbull with the Ron Kovic Peacemaker Award

The My Hero Project:
From Wikipedia: The MY HERO Project is a United States based non-profit organization that hosts stories on heroes and heroism. People all over the world write, produce and post written and video stories and works of art about their personal heroes on the The MY HERO web site. The MY HERO Short Film Festival, held once a year, showcases the films submitted from children and adults and recognizes commercial media that calls attention to real life heroes.

Ron Kovic:
From Wikipedia: Ronald Lawrence Kovic (born July 4, 1946) is an anti-war activist, veteran and writer who was paralyzed in the Vietnam War. He is best known as the author of the memoir Born on the Fourth of July, which was made into an Academy Award–winning movie directed by Oliver Stone, with Tom Cruise playing Kovic. Kovic received the Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay on January 20, 1990, exactly 22 years to the day that he was shot and paralyzed in the Vietnam War. He was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay (Kovic and Stone co-wrote the screenplay for Born on the Fourth of July).

Everest: A Climb for Peace: Narrated by Orlando Bloom and hailed as a “tremendous achievement” by the Dalai Lama. Everest: A Climb for Peace is not just a typical Everest film, but a socially relevant documentary about peace, war, and the human spirit - an inspirational film, which also has some of the most incredible Everest footage ever shot, including a dramatic rescue from near the summit of Everest.

The entire family was there to greet him - me, my wife Tikky, Joey - and the latest Trumbull addition: Kaden. Time was brief; Ali could only stay for the next 24 hours for his trip from the Middle East was going to be a short one, and he was there to visit and to help his son Nader take care of school business. Nader is going to the same great college - St. Martin’s University in Olympia - where Ali attended in the early 80’s.

And so we made the best of our time. After a very nice lunch we drove to Multnomath Falls - about a 45 minute drive. As usual it was beautiful, but damn it was cold and windy. It almost felt like being back on Everest once again! We left Tikky and Kaden in the car to relax and we decided to get some much needed exercise and take the many switchbacks up to the top of the falls. It was certainly nothing to brag about - but seeing both of us were stuffed from lunch - and both a bit out of shape, we were happy to get the exercise. Of course, Joey was there and he had absolutely no probably running up to the top. Even at 10 he is still in great shape, just like a puppy. I have been up on top several times and each time I go the view seems to get better! We took a few pictures and then made for a very quick journey back down.

Next stop - the Columbia / Mountain Hardwear employee store. Fortnately, I live near the Columbia headquaters. And fortunately, I have a friend who works at Mountain Hardwear - for this gives me the opportunity to get into the employee store by my house and get great deals on Columbia and Mountain Hardwear gear. Ali had a great time there - basically buying his entire family presents all in one shot. I love gear - and being in this store is like being a hungry kid in a wonderful candy store. It can be dangerous if you have your credit cards with you!

Later on that night we had a great dinner at Siam Cuisine in NW Portland; the best Thai food in the area! Two things that Ali really appreciates is good food and good beer; they have both there.

Unfortunately, before we knew it - the next morning was here. Ali slept on the couch; fortunately we have a big couch! We had a nice morning and then Ali was off back to go see his son in Olympia. It was wonderful to see Ali. In person everyone likes Ali - he is warm and engaging and nice to be around. Kaden is going to miss his new uncle.

Ali, Kaden, and Lance.

Hopefully we will see each other once again soon…

Lance Trumbull

When I walked in I was happy to see a section to the left that was surrounded by Tibetan Prayer Flags. TAP - the Tibetan Aid Project was in full force with flags, posters, brochures and several very enthusiastic volunteers. The main reason for the evening was to help raise money and awareness for TAP. “For forty years, the Tibetan Aid Project (TAP) has dedicated its efforts to restoring and preserving Tibet’s cultural and spiritual heritage. Working with an all-volunteer staff, the Project has served as a bridge between donors in the West and the Tibetan people.” I felt honored to be screening my film to help such a wonderful and worthy non-profit in any small way that I could.

I was also happy to see my good friend Jerry Price whom I had not seen in a while. Jerry is 75 years young and is one of the most friendly and inquisitive people that I know. Jerry climbed with us on our Kilimanjaro Climb for Peace back in 2005 and remains a good friend of my family and of course, The Everest Peace Project.

Jerry Price and Lance Trumbull

And so how could an already fun night become even better? Answer: free Zachary’s pizza! Hmmm pizza…! Since I live in Portland, Oregon it is not too often that I get to munch (or devour!) a Zachary’s pizza - and so my tummy was quite satisfied! Lhasa Beer was also provided as well. Although I do not drink alcohol I heard from several people that it was quite good. (note: thanks to La Val’s Pizza and The Cheese Board who along with Zachary’s also donated pizza).

After informative presentations by Rick Christiani and TAP’s Executive Director Rosalyn White,  an excellent short film about TAP and its great works was shown. It was now almost 9:30 and it was my turn. I introduced myself to the 60 or so people who eagerly listened to me tell them about how my Everest journey all began. After my short 5 minute introduction we then proceeded to show the 63 minute film. It seemed like we had a very good audience and this time, after about the 300th time watching the film, I too enjoyed it as it had been several months since I watched it.

Screening the film at Ironworks Gym in Berkeley, CA

After the film ended we had a lively Question and Answer period in which I happily answered questions for about 20 minutes. However, it was now 11pm and the gym was supposed to close at 10 and so we had to call it a night. As always I thoroughly enjoyed speaking directly to and with the audience - and as always I had some excellent questions to answer.

But the evening was not over. I had the distinct pleasure of having a 2 hour conversation with Linnea and Rick Christiani at their beautiful (and I truly mean beautiful!) home in the Berkeley Hills. I had originally met Rick and Linnea on Mt. Everest 3 years ago. While our Everest Peace Climbers were climbing the mountain they were there for a few weeks on a climb to the North Col. It was Linnea who really was the impetus and driving force behind making tonight’s screening and fundraiser for TAP at Ironworks Gym happen.

Rick and Linnea Christiana

Thanks again Linnea - and thanks again for everyone else who helped make this wonderful event become a reality.

In peace…Lance Trumbull

This is wonderful news as Orlando continues to do good in the world. Orlando Bloom’s first visit to Nepal came just a few weeks after he narrated my film in a sound studio in Hollywood in October 2007; one of the main film locations was Nepal. And the Everest Peace Project - through the help of its educational partner Room to Read - helped fund two libraries in Nepal for needy Nepalese children. Could it be that narrating my peace film and seeing the gorgeous Nepalese scenery and people inspired Orlando to reach out even further and to get involved in this incredible work with UNICEF?! Maybe…Probably not…but regardless, Orlando continues to provide his time for meaningful and worthy causes such as The Everest Peace Project film - Everest: A Climb for Peace - www.EverestPeaceProject.org  (which was also endorsed by His Holiness the Dalai Lama) and UNICEF. According to the BBC, his first task will be to film an appeal about the importance of clean water supplies.

Thanks again Orlando for all the good work that you do outside of Hollywood.

I had the distinct pleasure of working with Orlando Bloom and he was a true gentleman, professional and yet completely down to earth and as friendly as can be. Below is a horrible picture of me with Orlando. We were both having bad hair days! (And I was having a bad face day!)

Lance Trumbull and Orlando Bloom in the Studio recording narration for Everest: A Climb for Peace in October 2007.

Orlando Bloom in the recording booth recording narration for Everest: A Climb for Peace