Must Watch: Kilian Bron Rides Glaciers, Ice Caves, & Alpine Ridgelines in 'Switzerland Paradise'
Join Kilian Bron and his film crew to discover the highest peaks of Switzerland in all their glory!
Like with all their latest projects around the world, including “Follow the Light” in Turkey and “Colors of Mexico,” Kilian and his media team have spent months researching, organizing and filming as much as they possibly could.
The results are in the magnificent and out of the ordinary images that highlight the most beautiful places in the country! From the most remote alpine glaciers to ice caves, footbridges of several hundred meters or the immense variety of landscapes that Switzerland can offer, let yourself embark on this new ‘MISSION.’
“Switzerland Paradise” is a video project made with one of Kilian's partners, Tissot. Photos are by Mathieu Ruffray and Tristan Shu, and are shown in the latest published book by Kilian Bron that goes by the same name.
Over the years, mountain biking has become my preference. The “discovery” and “exploration” runs gave their names to the MISSIONS and I spent more and more time inspecting summits and other spots of Switzerland.
- Kilian Bron
Glacier
My interest in glaciers started with our adventures around Mont Blanc, in 2015. I think back to a particular ride with my mate Antoine Montegari. The very same Antoine who used to guide me and support me then for the track inspections in our impressive trip to the Dolomites in Italy. (…) That’s what I eventually did this summer, spending two whole days exploring the area. And it was one of the two highlights of the trip. The shelter we were staying at looked like a spaceship that had landed in a boulder field. The view of the Matterhorn was simply fantastic, and we were about to film the glacier and an area full of huge crevasses that I had spotted from my window before!
- Kilian Bron
Ice Caves
After the glacier, it was logical and essential to find an ice cave. As usual it wasn’t easy! (…) It is the second biggest highlight of my trip after the Zermatt glacier. A technical and fast ride where previously, skiers had done natural jumps with repeated turns in the same places. An impressive discovery in the Arolla region, where you can ski down as well . One question though: for how long?
- Kilian Bron
Dam
A succession of images in the video follows the flow of water. I set off from the top of Glacier 3000 before hurtling down snow, ice caves, mountain pastures and the various valleys. On my way, there was this dam. Artificial, I admit, but which becomes a playground like everything else. These structures are part of the Swiss landscape and I’d rather use them as a wall ride than just cross over it. (…) In all our videos, I try never to deviate from the trail or to modify the existing field. All you need is to do is adjust, even if it means having a less smooth and more technical ride than it could have been with a few blows of the shovel.
- Kilian Bron
Behind The Shot - FPV VS Kilian Bron
Behind each video of 3 or 4 minutes are hundreds of hidden shots, days of hiking and many hours waiting for the right light. Depending on the locations, the weather and seasons must also be considered. Our alpine adventures force us to film in a window of 3 to 4 months during the summer, particularly in high alpine areas at snow-covered-altitudes that are inaccessible the rest of the year.
When all the conditions align, you must seize the opportunity! This FPV rush is a good example. A one-minute line which only represents a few seconds in the final video, integrated into the other shots.
- Kilian Bron
Huge thank you to TISSOT for the support !
Directed by: Kilian Bron & Mathieu Ruffray
Film: Mathieu Ruffray - Pango Visual
Drone FPV: Cinematic Flow
Edit: Mathieu Ruffray - Pango Visual
Photography : Pango Visual / RedBull / Tristan Shu
Music & Sound Edit:
Fakear - Out Of Reach
Tristan Barton - Life Force
Must Read This Week
62 Comments
Also, and I say this as an FPV drone enthusiast, I find most of the FPV drone shots in bike videos quite irritating, it always seems like they are on the bring of getting too close to the rider and have to take evasive action with some jarring maneuvers. I either want to watch a video of an FPV pilot doing ridiculous flippy freestyle or a cinematic one, but not a mix of both. The super-wide FOV of the GoPro is not always beneficial either, I wonder why they don't just stick an Insta360 on there and worry about reframing the action later.
Nice edit anyway, but not its best by far... and the music is so cheesy.
I was used to much better soundtracks from Commençal.
Could have been a great movie.
If you actually want to get a headache, go watch the first segment from "Tales From Cascadia." I had to skip most of that section. How editors are ok with putting that out is beyond me... I guess it's maybe new and exciting? But, damn, that was rough.
This does more for Switzerland tourism than some multi million campains.
Thank you Commençal for all the quality videos.
You can look at the dates on the festival website
Has vibes of "dream ride" but in Swiss style - wish they would have chose a different swiss watch sponsor though with real movements like Omega or even Breitling.
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