Chris Anthony in the “Mission Mt. Mangart,” a documentary about the 10th Mountain Division.
Tricias Picks/Courtesy photo
The Aspen Historical Society is partnering with filmmaker Chris Anthony to present the Aspen premiere of “Friedl” at 6:30 p.m. March 3 at the Wheeler Opera House.
Anthony’s previous film, “Mission Mt. Mangart,” garnered the Best Historical Film/Documentary Award at the 2021 Cannes World Film Festival — as well as sold out shows at the Wheeler Opera House.
The Vail filmmaker’s documentary, “Friedl,” already won an award for Best Biographical Feature Film at the Remember the Future World Film Festival in Cannes 2025 before completing its final cut, which he finished this week — making small changes, like adding subtitles.
“It became a passion project, and it’s an amazing story,” Anthony said.
The film is centered on the extraordinary life of Austrian-American skiing champion, WWII veteran, and co-founder of Aspen Ski Corporation Friedl Pfeifer, along with Walter Paepcke.
Coming from a professional skier background, Anthony calls himself an accidental filmmaker — becoming a documentarian after stumbling across stories that deserved to be told. He attributes his filmmaking expertise to skills he absorbed after participating in Warren Miller ski films for many years.
It was while working on “Mission Mt. Mangart” that Anthony uncovered the next remarkable story of a daring ski race that took place on Austria’s highest peak around 1935-36, the Grossglockner. The winning skier of the first race in the series was Pfeifer, whom Anthony realized was the same Pfeifer whose statue is situated at the base of Ajax.
His curiosity about Pfeifer took him to St. Anton, where the American-Austrian skier was born, and “found out what an amazing person” he was. Following that trip, he drove to Aspen to further his research through the Aspen Historical Society, as well as the posthumous publication of “Why Aspen,” predicated upon an unabridged interview Pfeifer gave in 1984.
Pfeifer fled the Nazi regime and eventually landed in the United States, where he led the Sun Valley Ski School, served the US Army in the 10th Mountain Division, and then partnered to create Aspen Skiing Corporation. He was welcomed into the U.S. Hall of Fame in 1980.
On Lift 1 circa 1950, Friedl Pfeifer (left), an unidentified man (center) and actor Gary Cooper. Aspen Historical Society/Courtesy photo
Anthony enlightens the audience with information about the connection between Pfeifer and Paepcke and how the former came to Aspen as part of the training for the 10th Division — “along with the passion of the early community coming together.”
Anthony shared that he thinks the film is valuable for today’s young people.
“Hopefully, younger generations will see it and walk away going, ‘Wow, people really made sacrifices for what we have and, at the same time, understand that whole history,’” he said.
The run time is 52 minutes. For more information and tickets, visit wheeleroperahouse.com/event/aspen-historical-society-presentschris-anthonys-friedl.