Walking the Himalayas

standard.co.uk

I'd been waiting for Lev Wood's second series, 'Walking the Himalayas' for some time, having followed the Twitter storm caused by his first series 'Walking the Nile'.

This one though, had a slightly different tone than the first, whether that was intentional or not, who knows. This one felt as though it was more about Lev and his challenge, rather than the places he travelled through, and the people he met along the way. These encounters seemed all too brief and I wanted to know more about life throughout the mountain range , more about the history, (and less about the fuel crisis).

That's not to say the series wasn't good, it was, but the bar was set very high with 'Walking the Nile'.

In Ep 1, Lev began his journey with Milang, by wading unnecessarily through a lake he could have walked around (like the crew did) - but then, why not, I guess. He travelled high into the mountains where the air thinned, where tribes are scarcely populated and settlements far and few between. We meet a mountain tribe,and are told how short the life expectancy is up here, particularly for women. It made me wonder, when you visit remote tribes like this, surely there's a risk that you may carry illnesses that they are not immune to? If so, is there something you can do to prevent it? I'd never really thought about it before and wondered whether the production team had either. (I also wanted to know, when Lev and Milang are both on camera at the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan at the snow top, who is the third person holding the camera?!!).

In my opinion Lev lost a few adventurer points in this episode, when he hit the rope-bridge and succumbed to a feeling of what looked like genuine terror. The wooden planks were precarious but as an ex-squaddie I did think - come on, step on the wire and man up!

EP2

In Ep 2 Lev's terror increased, when his tent was invaded by a large spider. Though this time, it was nice to know that even someone like Lev is scared of spiders - maybe I'll camp in the jungle yet!

dawn.com

Throughout his journey through Northern Pakistan, it still amazes me that everything, everywhere, is written in English - 'Look to your Left Nanga Parbat' - you don't quite realise the extent of British imperialism until you see things like this - everywhere. It almost feels wrong to see it in English.

Later Lev is faced with another questionable river crossing donning a home-made pulley system. Lev was reluctant to climb aboard but did so anyway, needing a helping hand to get back across to Milang - who sensibly turned down the offer to follow. I would've jumped at the chance to pull myself across, even if my arms were left aching for days - in fact I already have, in the pitch black in River Valley, New Zealand and I can back Lev up 100%, they're harder than they look!

We learnt a bit more about the people of the region here, and it was interesting that the community living by the line of control on the militarised border with India, are happy for their children to leave the nomadic life, even though it dates back to the 6th century. Tradition vs. opportunity; it's a tough one wherever you grow up I guess.

channel4.com

EP3

In Ep 3, Lev reaches Nepal where we say goodbye to Milang and hello to his old friend Binod. The pair trek across the country coming close to crocodiles and fast-flowing rivers. 

After the tragic death of journalist Matthew Power during the last series, I can guess that no-one in the production office wanted to answer the phone to the shocking message that Lev, brother Peter and Binod were all in hospital. Having been moved on by communists in the village, the boys had decided to get a taxi elsewhere. The brakes had failed in the car they were travelling in and the car had plummeted and rolled off the side of a steep verge, leaving Lev's shoulder dislocated and Binod concussed. Of all the dangers that they face by walking on foot across the Himalayas, the most dangerous part of their journey was the 5 minutes that they spent in a car. Lev spent a week recuperating with minimal pain relief before flying back to the UK for further treatment.

The team were soon back on their feet though, his brother back on the camera as soon as they got to the hospital. 

EP4 

awesci.com

In Ep4, after 5 weeks away to recover, Lev returns for Binod, sharing an emotional reunion with his wife and children. Continuing the journey, the researchers did well to find a rather extreme form of collecting honey - hallucinogenic honey at that. Men flung themselves down the cliff towards angry bees, to gather a rather meagre amount of honey but allowed for some entertaining recollections from villagers of the properties of it. In this episode the team revisit the villagers who rescued them after the car accident to thank them. The entire village gathers around to greet them, showing just how friendly these remote villages often are to visitors. The pair continue their walk towards Everest towards royal festivals of Bhutan.

twitter.com

EP5

In the final episode, Lev and Binod complete their trip in Bhutan - travelling via a village that expressed an obsession with artwork portraying the male sexual organ - which Lev of course found unusually uncomfortable. The pair equipped themselves with the national dress, to celebrate the former King of Bhutan's birthday, narrowly managing to catch a few comments from the locals about the society they live in - I would have liked more of that throughout the series. They then visited a local monastery in hope of seeking good luck for a safe passage. It seemed that luck was not on their side as they are warned not to progress on their journey. Of course, Lev isn't one to heed this kind of warning, he presses on nevertheless.

channel4.com

The end was near, with a climb to a snowy peak in Bhutan, without Binod by his side. Binod has been suffering with bad feet from the hard roads and was unable to join him, which was clearly an emotional moment for them both. If only the government were more relaxed with timings, perhaps Lev could have waited until Binod was fit enough to join him. Perhaps this was what they had been warned of.

All in all, the production team did another grand job. The addition of Binod was a good chance to hear more of Lev's personality but didn't offer much more in terms of content.  In fact, it may even have discouraged Lev to find conversation elsewhere, which previously had been the way the audience found out about the regions he travelled through. It was less exhilarating than 'Walking The Nile', but equally as addictive.

PD Jamie Berry has another successful series under his belt, averaging about 2.2million views per episode. The stakes were relatively lower than series 1 but enjoyable nonetheless. I can't wait to hear what's next for the October Films team.

Making A Documentary - Walking the Nile

On Saturday 25th October, director Jamie Berry gave up his time to speak at the Imperial War Museum's free event 'Making a Documentary’, equipped with his trendy new laser pointer. He went on to speak about the production process of his latest work, 'Walking the Nile' which documents the year-long journey of ex-military man Levison Wood as he walks the world’s longest river. Jamie shared with us exclusive clips that may or may not exist in the final cut of the four-part series for Channel 4, as well as knowledge of logistics, research and of filming in conflict, all of which were of great interest to me, being the areas I wish to work in.

Walking the Nile - Tom McShane

The trip along the Nile meant traveling through dangerous territory. Directly, the newly independent South Sudan, with gangs, armies and rebels involved in the power struggle between the presidential contenders. With oil fields in the North and severe conflict surrounding the journey, Lev (the talent) was quite literally dodging bullets, sending Channel 4's alarm bells ringing and bringing the team's 52 page risk document complete with escape plan, into the spotlight to get Lev out. With Lev in low spirits when he arrived in Sudan the team then faced problems with this unanticipated jump in the journey and failed to secure their VISAs into Sudan. Even when problems like this occurred however, even after all of the kit was confiscated, after the team spent 24hrs under house arrest, after hotels were bugged and Lev was dehydrating in the middle of the Sahara, the production continued and they managed to capture some beautiful moments on film in return. The insight into the process doesn’t just offer up jeopardy to Lev’s outrageous attempt of walking 4250 on foot, but shows the remarkable talent of the production team in overcoming that jeopardy to complete the production.

Walking the Nile - Tom McShane

As the clips at the event were shown exclusively I won't reveal their content, I think the excitement behind the scenes is enough to whet your appetite, but you can be sure to expect unbelievable moments of cute and of crazy. There are remarkable examples of stunning scenery as well as culture, comedy, despair, elation and will. A real trip of a lifetime for us all. If you can’t wait that long then here’s a baby monkey clip to tide you over: http://www.channel4.com/programmes/walking-the-nile/videos/all/walking-the-nile-on-the-road-with-florence? 

Walking the Nile - Levison Wood

I think what I took from the seminar was that no production is a one-man job. Sure, Lev was the front man, a camera-op, an interviewer. Jamie was directing, editing but also counseling Lev along the way. And at every step there were researchers, contributors, production managers, security guards, fixers and camera crew all over the shot, bringing the series together. The core team were all present at the seminar too which shows what a real team effort the series was and that effort from all was evident, even in the short clips we got to sneak a peek at.

Jamie - Director

Speaking to Jamie afterwards, his advice for budding factual film-makers was to narrow down the programmes and genres you want to work in to specifics. Find the shows you want to make, research the companies that make them and email them directly. It might take 1 email, it might take 50, but if you talk about their work, as well as yours, flatter them, you will eventually be picked up. Just don't stop. It's always nice when people who've been there themselves still remember to give us newbies a little of their time, so a round of applause for Jamie!

Didi - Researcher

Didi, the researcher on the series also gave the advice to scour Talent Manager like it's the last thing you'll do. She had never worked in TV before but applied to work on the series and has not looked back since. And just for Didi if she ever reads this, your grandmother isn't the only one that can't wait to see the series!

I didn't think I was going to make it to the museum in time but having sprinted all the way from Elephant & Castle and arriving panting like I'D just walked the Nile, I'm so glad I made it. A huge thank you to the Imperial War Museum for putting on the free event. Remember to look out for 'Walking the Nile' in early 2015 and remember, no film is a one-man job, so buddy up!

Walking the Nile - Tom McShane

 See the rest of this week's IWM Film festival Programme where you can view over 20 short films for free! http://www.iwm.org.uk/film-festival-programme

Find out more about the show and the team here: http://www.channel4.com/programmes/walking-the-nile

Pictures: http://www.theguardian.com/world/gallery/2014/aug/08/walking-the-nile-in-pictures

More info: http://luxortimesmagazine.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/british-explorer-levison-wood-in-luxor.html

http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2013-11-26/walking-the-nile-one-man-will-attempt-to-trek-the-worlds-longest-river