The 17th edition of BBK Mendi Film Bilbao Bizkaia festival is getting off to a great start and with a lot of energy. Top class filmmaking, full venues at the Euskalduna Congress Centre in Bilbao, Commencing with an emotional Opening Session, many international and local protagonists, memorable conferences... Everything red hot, just like the image on the poster for this year's edition.
At the Opening Session, members of the Basque and Navarre Mountain federations, For the Basques: Zigor Egia and vice-president Ricardo Hernani and the newly appointed president Miren Eizmendi and predecessor Martín Montañés for the Navarre Federation were delighted to receive The WOP Mendi Film Award, the Basque-Navarre Mountaineering Federation was founded 100 years ago.
At the same event, the posthumous tribute to the Japanese mountaineers Kazuya Hiraide and Kenro Nakajima was also incredibly special and emotional. Hiraide's widow, Sokoh Etoh, accompanied by her children, thanked those attending the Euskalduna and the organisation for the gesture.
The Euskalduna Auditorium was packed to the rafters for the Opening Session. And on Saturday and Sunday there was also a great atmosphere in the other venues, both to enjoy the film sessions and to follow the exhibitions and conferences. Among the locals, the filmmakers Marta Gómez and Paula Iglesias presenting ‘Flying Hands’ with the presence of the Pakistani protagonist Aniqa Bano, Janire Etxabe and Hodei Zambrano with ‘Haize Lerroak’, Mikel Lizarralde and Maite Arroitajauregi Mursego with ‘Zazpi’, or Alfonso García and his production team and protagonists of ‘Una mirada atrás, el arte de equipar’. On an international level, the presentation of ‘The Last Expedition’ by Eliza Kubarska, the writer-poet-climber Erri de Luca with ‘L'etá sperimentale,’ the mountaineer Hélias Milleriux with ‘Nuptse, l'inaccessible absolu,’ or the filmmakers Matteo Maggi and Cristiana Pecci with ‘Marmolada, Madre Roccia’. 
The presentations of the books ‘Fast & Light’ by the legendary mountaineer Silvo Karo and ‘My Mountains’ by filmmaker, journalist and adventurer, Sebastián Álvaro were memorable. And at the same time, the exhibitions ‘Tximist Everest 1974’ and ‘Nos queremos en las cimas-Gailurretan izan gaitun’, which highlights the contribution of women to Basque mountaineering, have been an enormous success.
Such a spectacular start to the festival hints at the prelude of what is to come this week. From today until Thursday, Base Camp moves from Euskalduna Bilbao to Sala BBK. In the afternoons, two sessions per day, at 17:30 and 19:30, many good films and interesting guests who come to present them. Filmmakers such as Bertrand Delapierre, Iñigo Grasset, Amaia Lejarreta, Luke Kane, Yohan Guignard, Ander Salsamendi or Aitor Intxaurraga... and protagonists such as surfers Natxo González and Garazi Sánchez, dancer Janire Etxabe, and many others.
Ticket sales for today are about to sell out, but there are still tickets left to enjoy the screenings at the Sala BBK: mendifilmfestival.com.
