Meet Jimmy Chin

Oscar-winning filmmaker, National Geographic photographer and one of the world's most respected adventure storytellers. Jimmy's journey began as a self-described "climbing dirtbag," until a photograph of his climbing partner sold for $500 and set him on the path to becoming one of the world's foremost mountain photographers. His landmark achievements include the first American ski descent of Everest in 2006, and the first ascent of the Shark's Fin on India's Meru Central in 2011 alongside Conrad Anker and Renan Ozturk — a journey he documented and co-directed as the film Meru. He went on to direct Free Solo, chronicling Alex Honnold's climb of El Capitan, which won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2018. A North Face athlete since 2001, his other credits include the Netflix feature NYAD and the documentary The Rescue, alongside his New York Times bestselling photography book, There and Back.