TimeOut

In the short film "TimeOut" by Andreas "Mone" Monsberger and Roman Rohrmoser, the freeskier and biker Roman and Georg Almer meet at a special spot on earth that attracts and connects them both to the same extent. With innovative camera work, "TimeOut" tells the story of Georg, the "dropout," who has chosen the path to nature, and Roman, the "freerider," who finds fulfillment in nature off the beaten path. The interplay of summer and winter and biking and skiing creates the unique flow of this film. Roman and Mone have captured a real timeout in moving images while also giving one or two life lessons to remember. Roman had the idea for this new film project for quite some time – ever since he started riding single trails on his bike.

His bike tours kept taking him to spots he already knew from the winter. At first, he came to scout for the winter, but then also to ride similar or the same runs. So the idea was born to make a movie showing both the summer and winter lines, but the realization proved to be not so easy, and the years went by. When Roman proposed the idea to his sponsor in the fall of 2020, he immediately received positive feedback. Some of his other sponsors also got on board. Mone, Roman's office partner, filmer and photographer, was also enthusiastic. Mone himself is a professional snowboarder and biker who has been behind the lens for over ten years and has already produced a couple of films worth seeing.

In mid-November, Mone and Roman started with the first bike shots. On the very first day, everything could have already come to an end. While finishing one of the last scenes, Roman missed a jump and went a bit too far to the left. Unfortunately, there was a tree in his flight path. After this painful encounter there was no way to continue filming for several days. When the first snow began to fall in late November no one knew if and under what constraints the ski resorts would open. In addition Tyrol was in Covid lockdown. However, the guys were still able to go ski touring – whether that was allowed in the lockdown or not, they weren't sure, but they didn't want to be deprived of this only pleasure.

And so, in mid-December 2020, Mone, Roman and photographer Tom Klockner were finally back in the snow at 6 a.m. with their powder skis. Around 8 a.m. the sun came up, and they had managed to hike nearly 900 meters in altitude. It was a blast to finally be back on the mountain while the lockdown in the valley paralyzed everybody. The group took advantage of the crimson morning light and filmed the first line for their movie. Once at the bottom Roman put the skins back on right away, as if in a frenzy, to make a second run 600 vertical meters later. At 10 o'clock they were back at the car, and the first scenes were a wrap.

Alaska, Canada... all great, but when it's all perfect at home, there's nothing better than having the backcountry right in your own backyard – a fortunate situation for which Roman and his friends are genuinely grateful, not just during the lockdown. December passed with hardly any precipitation, and the guys ended up chasing the snow. Since you weren't allowed to leave Tyrol without a Covid test, it wasn't that easy. Also, one was not allowed to stay overnight unless it was "for business"; accordingly, few hotels were open. After several hours of driving the group arrived at the snow-covered Nassfeld.

After five days and a lot of cool shots they returned to the Zillertal, which in the meantime had also received quite a bit of snow – but unfortunately with a lot of wind. Since it had been cold for a long time without any precipitation, the snow and avalanche situation was anything but safe. It was not until the end of March that Mother Nature graced the Zillertal with excellent conditions, at least as far as the snow was concerned. The sun hid defiantly, but you can't say no to 80 centimeters of powder overnight. And it stayed cold. March 28 was the last shooting day in the snow, in the sunset high above the valley on a northern flank, with perfect conditions and perfect light.

More days in the high alpine were to follow, but conditions and various restrictions due to Corona slowed the team down, so they slowly focused on the bike scenes. The whole season was challenging due to Covid, the lockdown or quarantine measures. But also the snow and weather situation was not easy. Therefore the plot of the movie had to change here and there, but in the end, Mone and Roman managed to create something unique. The first feedback on the film was already overwhelming. With music, specially produced by friends, the interplay of bike and ski and the interviews and life wisdom of Georg Almer make a great story. After the cinema tour in the fall Timeout will also be available online.

INFO: Film "TimeOut" – 16min Premiere: Cinema November '21 – online December '21 Film tour: alp-con.net | alp-con.net/snow-filmblock Camera/Editing: Andreas "Mone" Monsberger Director: Mone/Roman Specially produced music by www.sempre-caoz.com and BRX Christoph Abfalter Photos: Mone and Tom Klocker Roman Rohrmoser: 36 years, Ramsau in Zillertal, freeski pro and biker approx. 17 movie parts, approx. 6 of them were partly co-produced; for TimeOut, however, everything was organized by him and Mone from beginning to end.