Nordic Inn
Film Notes

Establish altitude and scale before anything human appears. 9,898 feet, two million acres of national forest, and a mountain that hasn't noticed you.

• –Mt. Crested Butte at first light, locked off, no movement in frame15s
• –Cloud or spindrift moving off the ridge line12s
• –Aspen trunks, wind in the branches, slow10s
• –Wide of the valley from a lift or a road pull-out, very slow pan14s
• –Snow falling against dark trees, no horizon12s

The walk in. Unhurried, boots in snow, nobody rushing. This is where the 1963 building gets to be a character.

• –Boots crossing the parking lot, low angle, snow crunching10s
• –The building from the road — blue timber, the old lines, snow on the eaves12s
• –Hand on the front door handle, pause before it opens8s
• –Door opening → warm interior light spilling onto snow10s
• –Skis or a bike being set down, gear at rest8s

The emotional centre. Fire properly established before the first frame, lamps on, overheads off. If one sequence has to carry the whole film, it is this one.

• –Fire, close, filling frame. Nothing else. Let it burn15s
• –Wide of the room, fire at one side, mountain going dark through the window14s
• –Firelight moving on leather and timber10s
• –Wine pouring from the dispenser — card tapped, glass filling, red against the light12s
• –Hands around a mug, fire out of focus behind10s
• –The cookies. Close, warm, on a plate8s
• –Two silhouettes at the window, still, looking out12s
• –Board game mid-play, hands only, no faces10s

The one that sells a winter booking. Steam against a blue sky, snow on the rail, the mountain still catching light. Get there 40 minutes before you think you need to.

• –Steam rising off the water, mountain behind, nobody in frame yet15s
• –Hand resting in the water, steam moving past it12s
• –Shoulders and back of head, facing the mountain, absolutely still14s
• –Bare feet on the heated deck with snow either side10s
• –Fire pit catching, first flames, chairs pulled up12s
• –Breath in cold air, backlit by the fire pit8s
• –Last light leaving the peak, timelapse or very long hold20s

Quiet, early, east light across the tables. Everything laid out before the first frame — nothing assembled around the camera.

• –Coffee pouring, steam, window light behind it12s
• –Light moving across the laid table, empty room14s
• –A mug set down by the window, mountain behind10s
• –Frost or condensation on the inside of the glass10s
• –Someone sitting alone with coffee, from behind12s

Calm and made. Curtains open, beds to hotel standard, every cable and bin out of frame. Light doing the work.

• –Light moving across linen, very slow14s
• –Bed with the mountain framed in the window — expose for the view, not the room12s
• –Curtain moving, mountain out of focus beyond12s
• –Detail: triple-sheeted corner, 400 thread count, raking light8s
• –Sitting up in bed, calm, looking out — from behind or side, no face12s
• –A dog settling on the floor of a pet-friendly room10s

The closest thing here to the NAMI register — a private sauna, hot tubs on balconies, a bar that opens onto a mountain. Shoot it as a retreat, not a rental.

• –Hand on the cedar sauna door, then the door opening — steam release12s
• –Inside the sauna, soft light, wood grain, steam15s
• –Water on hot stones, close, sound recorded10s
• –French doors opening from the bar onto the deck, mountains beyond12s
• –Private balcony hot tub at dusk, steam, two glasses on the rail14s
• –Chef's kitchen, hands working, nobody talking12s
• –The long dining table laid for the whole house, empty, waiting12s
• –Exterior at dusk, whole house lit on the hillside15s

Unglamorous and high-converting. Skiers and riders choose a lodge on exactly these details, and almost nobody films them.

• –The wall of boot warmers, boots going in, straight on and symmetrical10s
• –Skis racked in the storage room, slow push or static10s
• –Bike being hosed at the wash station, water in the light12s
• –Gloves and a helmet drying, steam off them8s

Crested Butte gives you far more than the groomers — fat biking, snowmobiling, dog sledding, ice fishing, the Nordic Center, backcountry and the extreme terrain it's famous for. Shoot the walk to the lift as one continuous piece: it proves the location claim better than any sentence.

• –The walk to the lifts — skis on shoulder, inn behind, lift ahead, one unbroken take20s
• –Chairlift passing overhead, from below12s
• –A single skier crossing frame, camera locked off, small in the shot12s
• –Fat bike tracks in fresh snow, low and close10s
• –Dog sled team — the sound alone is worth the trip14s
• –Nordic Center trails, classic tracks running away from camera12s
• –Ice fishing hole, still, cold, minimal12s
• –Snow-loaded spruce against blue sky, no people12s

A separate trip. Wildflower Capital of Colorado, 750+ miles of singletrack in the Gunnison Valley, the 401 Trail, Snodgrass, Doctor Park, Teocalli Ridge, rafting, climbing, jeep roads, and the Silver Queen running to a view over Gothic.

• –Wildflower meadow with peaks behind, wind moving through it15s
• –Walking through flowers waist-high, from behind, slow12s
• –A rider on singletrack, entering and leaving frame, camera still12s
• –Summer chairlift, valley opening up underneath14s
• –River water over rock, close, sound recorded12s
• –Aspens turning gold, late September, wind through them15s
• –Elk in the valley at distance, long lens, absolutely still camera15s

The reason people choose Crested Butte over Vail. Painted Victorian frontages, independent shops, a proper bar and restaurant scene, and the free shuttle that gets guests there without a car.

• –Main street at golden hour, mountains closing the end of it15s
• –Two or three painted storefronts, static, one after another8s ea
• –The Mountain Express pulling in, doors opening10s
• –Bar or restaurant window at dusk, warm inside, cold outside12s
• –Bakery or coffee counter, steam and hands10s
• –Bikes leaning against a painted wall, nobody around10s

The connective tissue. Grab these whenever they present themselves — they are what let the edit breathe between the bigger shots.

• –Snow melting off a roof edge, drip in the light10s
• –Rain or snow on a window with the mountain behind, focus on the glass12s
• –Birds crossing frame against a clean sky10s
• –Woodsmoke leaving a chimney, sky behind12s
• –Two glasses touching — hands only, fire behind8s
• –A silhouette at a window, still, looking out12s
• –Boots by the door at the end of the night10s