​Exploring Locally:
​Herb and Jan Conn’s Legacy
April 18 | 6pm
​Dahl Arts Center

Opening the Rapid City Festival on Saturday, April 18, the RCAC is thrilled to showcase a local film produced by South Dakota Public Broadcasting, “The Ups and Downs of Herb and Jan Conn.” Together, Herb and Jan Conn opened people’s eyes to new worlds of exploration through their hundreds of first ascents in the Needles and their discovery of a vast underworld of the Black Hills. Herb and Jan Conn inspired many climbers, cartographers, and artists to explore the hills and find their own inspiration.

After the SDPB film screening, you’ll hear from a panel of local explorers, Rene Ohms, Lindsay Stephens, Bridget Machacek, Chris Pelczarski, Daryl Stisser, Cheryl Mayer-Stisser, and Libby Oney. This panel will be moderated by Mike Ray. Mike Ray has spent more than 30 years working as both a journalist and science communicator. He is a graduate of South Dakota Mines who grew up in the Black Hills, where he has spent the better part of his life.

2026 FILM PROGRAM

The BANFF Centre Mountain Film Festival World Tour brings together breathtaking cinematography, inspiring narratives, and the world’s most daring athletes and explorers. Don’t miss this opportunity to experience the thrill of adventure on the Elks Theatre big screen.

​MORAINE
​Monday, April 20
Doors 6:00 | Films Start 6:30

The Moraine program kicks off the festival with a dynamic lineup of six films. These stories highlight athletes and explorers pushing the limits of human potential:
  • Cold Calls - Japan – Cold Calls is a ski film pieced together through conversations, memories, and whatever the season decided to offer!
    USA, 2025, 6 min
    Director: Alexi Godbout
    Producers: Blank Collective Films, Alexi Godbout
    Advisory: Coarse language
 
  • The Hive Architect – For the last 14 years, Matt Somerville has spent the winters creating his log hives before driving around all of England in the summer, erecting them as non-intervention habitats for wild honey bees.
    UK, 2025, 12 min
    Director: Max Weston
    Producers: Fera, Sidney Hiscox
    Advisory: Coarse language

  • Best Day Ever – Best Day Ever follows the stories of adaptive mountain bikers Greg Durso and Allie Bianchi as they navigate the relentless challenges of their disabilities with humour and attitude. Along the way, they embrace the tremendous support, friendship, and joy they find in their rural Vermont riding community.
    *2025 Best Film: Mountain Sports
    ​*2025 Audience Choice Award
    USA, 2025, 47 min
    Directors: Ben Knight, Berne Broudy
    Producers: Richmond Mountain Trails, Berne Broudy
    Advisory: Coarse Language

Intermission
 
  • Deluge – Georgia Astle, Casey Brown, Carson Storch, and Tom van Steenbergen battle the elements.
    Canada, 2025, 2 min
    Director: Scott Secco
    Producers: Scott Secco, Chris King
 
  • Dissidence – Two unexpected names are emerging on the stage of the climbing World Championships: Ravianto and Raviandi Ramadhan, twin brothers from Indonesia. With nothing but their own resources, Dissidence retraces their extraordinary journey, from the training walls of Jakarta to a climbing route in Savoie, France.
    France, 2025, 34 min
    Director: Rama Dio Syahputra
    Producer: Rama Dio Syahputra
 
  • A Baffin Vacation, Love on Ice – Join adventurers Erik and Sarah on yet another outrageous Baffin Vacation as they kiteski north along the remote coastline of Baffin. Over their 69-day holiday, they ski mountains, climb an epic big wall, and cross a glacier in search of new rivers to whitewater kayak.
    Canada, 2025, 26 min
    Directors: Rush Sturges, Skip Armstrong
    Producers: River Roots, Rush Sturges, Sarah McNair-Landry, Erik Boomer
    Advisory: Coarse language; Nudity

​ICEFALL
​Tuesday, April 21
​Doors 6:00 | Films Start 6:30

The excitement continues on Tuesday with the Icefall program, featuring six films that blend adventure, culture, and storytelling:
  • Rogatkin – From the highs to lows, Nicholi Rogatkin has changed the sport of slopestyle mountain biking with countless world-first tricks. Through a 20-year career of pushing the sport, he has been a positive inspiration for his community.
    Switzerland, 2024, 15 min
    Director: Keenan DesPlanques
    Producer: Keenan DesPlanques
 
  • A Sense of Fight – Callan Blanchknox reflects on the deeper meaning of climbing—beyond strength, it’s about movement, connection, and the sense of fight it brings—all while tackling the first ascent of an epic upside-down cave traverse.
    Australia, 2025, 2 min
    Director: Matt Raimondo
    Producer: Matt Raimondo
    Advisory: Coarse language
 
  • ​The Finisher: Jasmin Paris and the Barkley Marathons – The Finisher follows ultrarunner Jasmin Paris as she takes on the notorious Barkley Marathons, attempting to become the first woman to ever complete the race in its 38-year history. Through past failures and relentless perseverance, Paris pushes the limits of endurance and possibility.
    USA, 2025, 47 min
    Directors: Julia Marie Campanelli, Drew Darby
    Producers: Singletrack LLC, Finn Alexander Melanson, Robert Fisher
 
Intermission
​
  • That One Friend – Professional backcountry skier Sierra Schlag has built a career around focus, grit, and always chasing the next big line. She takes her job, and her skiing, seriously. But when Waverly Chin—aka Waves—her funky, free-spirited best friend, shows up with snacks and silliness, it’s a reminder not to take life (or skiing) too seriously.
    USA, 2025, 9 min
    Directors: Sara Beam Robbins, Grant Robbins
    Producers: The Road West Traveled, Sara Beam Robbins, Grant Robbins
    Advisory: Coarse language
 
  • The Book of George – From Brooklyn’s concrete jungle to the heart of the Everglades, meet George McKenzie Jr., a Black photographer transforming his lens into a beacon of change. Swapping the weight of a gun for the promise of a camera, George found his calling amid nature’s raw grandeur, capturing everything from city pigeons and rats to elusive panthers.
    USA, 2025, 15 min
    Director: Danny Schmidt
    Producers: Pure Gold Pictures, Danny Schmidt, George McKenzie Jr, Clay Barron
    Advisory: Coarse language
 
  • Arctic Alchemy – Traveling by packraft and foot through Alaska’s mighty Brooks Range, Roman Dial and his team have a goal of finding the source of a mysterious phenomenon poisoning watersheds in the Arctic. Along the journey, Roman reckons with fatherhood, personal tragedy, and the power of wilderness to both break us and bring us fully alive.
    USA, 2024, 29 min
    Directors: Colin Arisman, Zeppelin Zeerip
    Producers: Field Work Creative, Wild Confluence, Zeppelin Zeerip, Colin Arisman
    Advisory: Coarse language

The Banff Film Festival at the Elks will be hosted by Tass Thacker and Bruce Burgess Junek. A husband-and-wife team, world bicyclists, photographers, authors and entertaining speakers who have spent nearly 50 years cycling and exploring the world's most exotic places.

2026 Sponsors

 This support brings world-class films, thrilling outdoor stories, and community-driven experiences to the Black Hills. Thank you for making this festival an unforgettable event!
 Sponsorship Opportunities are available until April 1.

THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THE RAPID CITY ARTS COUNCIL

The Rapid City Arts Council staff and Board of Directors thanks the City of Rapid City for continuously supporting our mission and the arts. The generosity of our many volunteers, donors, and members drives our mission to champion inclusive, innovative and inspiring arts opportunities to enrich the communities we serve.  Additional support comes from the South Dakota Community Foundation, Black Hills Area Community Foundation, and the South Dakota Arts Council with funds from the State of South Dakota through the Department of Tourism and the National Endowment for the Arts. The Dahl Arts Center is a municipal facility of the City of Rapid City and is managed by the Rapid City Arts Council on behalf of the Rapid City community.
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