IN JUST nine years, the Kendal Mountain Film Festival's worldwide prestige has risen to Himalayan heights.

Allan Tunningley previews the 2005 event, which promises to be the best yet....

ATTRACTING a guest list of top adventurers, which reads like a Who's Who of the climbing world, the nine-day Kendal Mountain Film Festival is now recognised as the leading exposition of mountain culture in Europe.

In terms of world renown, it is second only to the Banff Mountain Film Festival in Canada a kind of K2 to Banff's Everest.

This year, the organisers are promising "nine days of unparalleled entertainment on mountain based activities, sports, culture, art and mountain communities".

And if the exultant comments about previous festivals are anything to go by, this will ensure the Kendal event can only continue climbing to new heights.

Visiting South Lakeland in 2004, Banff's director Bernadette MacDonald said: "I can't believe how far the organisers have taken this festival in such a short time it is absolutely world class and still growing in leaps and bounds."

Jon Muir, the Australian adventurer and filmmaker, echoed her enthusiasm, saying of the 2004 event: "This has been a fantastic festival. I am delighted to show my films here. I only wish we had something similar back in Australia."

Organisers of this year's gathering, which now incorporates Britain's biggest adventure book festival, have refused to rest on their well-earned laurels and are billing 2005 with its theme "Wild is a place of the heart" as the most ambitious event yet.

So what is there to go wild about?

Well, at the heart of the festival, which runs from November 12 to 20, is a competitive film extravaganza featuring mountaineering and adventure films from around the world.

The films will be screened at Kendal's Brewery Arts Centre and Rheged, near Penrith, during the weekend of November 18-20.

On Sunday, the final day of the festival, an "Oscars" ceremony will be held, co-hosted by the mountaineering legend Chris Bonington, who is the festival patron.

The ceremony will feature ten award categories Mountaineering, Environment, Culture, Climbing, Adventure and Exploration, Short Film, Special Award, Extreme Film School, People's Award (voted for by festival audiences) and the Grand Prize.

But that's not all it's about. The wide-ranging events programme includes books and arts festivals, a photographic competition, lectures, interactive debates and seminars.

Festival director John Porter said: "We believe the event offers a fantastic opportunity for people in Kendal and across Cumbria to experience the very best of international mountain film and arts on their doorstep.

"This year we're bringing some of the most renowned adventurers, explorers and filmmakers to Kendal, screening world premieres and, we hope, bringing a real buzz and vibrancy to the town for those nine days."

The festival's main sponsors are the outdoor clothing and equipment specialists Berghaus and the North West Development Agency.

NWDA's director of marketing Peter Mearns said: "With an exciting line-up of exhilarating films, inspirational speakers and breathtaking events, Kendal Mountain Film Festival always provides a fantastic opportunity to showcase the very best of what Cumbria has to offer to an international audience.

"There is certainly no place more apt to host the festival than here in Cumbria, the birthplace of mountain culture and adventure."