Peek into the world of Belgian climber Siebe Vanhee’s authentic, raw process of his first season climbing on Yosemite’s hardest big wall. The infamous Dawn Wall proves to be a challenge in more ways than one.
“Darkest before Dawn” combines genuine storytelling with a cinematic approach bringing together a story beyond just the climbing. The film encapsulates the beauty of the body language when hanging from its fingertips thousands of feet off the ground.
This film was part of VIMFF 2023, VIMFF 2023 Tour and is no longer available for viewing.
My name is Alex Eggermont, I’m originally from a small town in Belgium you probably never heard of. That’s where I’ve spent most of my life.
The first part of my time there was focused on getting a degree in Electro- Mechanical Engineering. But after graduating, I didn’t start to work quite yet. I left for Chile, shipped my motorbike over, and started riding it up North. I eventually found out that rock climbing was kinda fun. So, I kept doing that.
Riding. Climbing. For 11 months. Until I got to Canada. I worked for a year in BC, followed by two more years dirtbagging around the US, Asia, Canada, Patagonia, Europe. I started guiding climbing in Vietnam and kayaking in Greenland. I was working freelance during the rest of the time. Building websites, translating, trading pictures for cams and portaledges.
Meanwhile, I shoot the things I see.
And I mean, I think I like that.
I’m now guiding in Iceland few months a year, and the rest of time, I spend it trying to balance photography and videography and numerous other projects, based here in Squamish, BC.
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