Our documentary "The Present" will be shown at the prestigious Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival (VIMFF), one of the greatest adventure film festivals in North America!
This 18-minute film directed by Timothy Dhalleine features the extraordinary story of Dimitri Poffé, a 34-year-old French man who tested positive for Huntington’s disease, a neurodegenerative, incurable genetic disease. As experts told him symptoms would start between the age of 35 and 40 years old, Dimitri took a hard yet courageous decision : to leave his bank job in Paris, to sell his belongings and to leave his homeland to travel the world.
Picture below : Dimitri Poffé gave a talk at EcoCamp in April 2023, on his way towards Ushuaia.
He eventually bought a bike and started a 18.000-kilometer (11.200mi) ride from Mexico to Patagonia to meet hundreds of people affected by the disease, associations and researchers. He called this unique project "Explore for Huntington". “The Present” features Dimitri's adventure through our favorite places in South America and an important, powerful message of hope.
While "The Present" is currently shown in some events (including some private exhibitions in our geodesic hotel EcoCamp Patagonia) and festivals around the world, it will be shown on March 3rd at the Cinematheque in Vancouver, as part of the event "Stories Across Latin America" between 7 and 10 pm (you can purchase your tickets here). The festival also offers the opportunity to watch it online, between February 23rd and March 24th.
"The Present" has been awarded in some international awards, such as the Los Angeles Film Awards (USA), the Travel Filmfest (Croatia), the Boston Indie Film Festival (USA), the Independent Shorts Awards (USA) and the Sudbury Adventure Reels (Canada) and received a honorable mention at the famous Lookout Wild Film Festival (USA).
This new selection is a fabulous way to spread the word about Huntington's disease while exploring the essence of adventure, something we are proud to support at Cascada. Watch some shots of "The Present" below.
Follow Dimitri to support his cause and discover some of the incredible destinations he has traveled to here.