Erik's extraordinary accomplishments have gained him abundant press coverage. The CBS Early Morning Show interviews Erik as a part of its series "Extraordinary People," on guiding six blind Tibetan teenagers to 21,500 feet on the flanks of Mt. Everest, and the subsequent creation of BlindSight, the documentary chronicling the expedition. Erik discusses the profound impact of the expedition on the students who were shunned by their society.
See Erik's latest Today Show appearance as he demonstrates a revolutionary new technology which helps blind people to "see." Click here to watch the video: http://video.msn.com/?mkt=en-us&brand=msnbc&vid=53f8adb8-1be5-4a10-be25-98132f73528f In June, 2006, Erik led a team of blind and sighted teens on a week-long trek through the Peruvian Andes in conjunction with Global Explorers, an educational leadership organization. The news program, NightLine, followed the adventure. Click here to watch the video: http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=2186161 Erik's memoir, Touch the Top of the World, was made into a feature film which aired on A&E throughout the summer of 2006. The movie tells of Erik's diminishing sight as a boy, his teenage struggle not to be swept to the sidelines and forgotten, and finally his triumphant climb to the top of the world. It is a story of the support of teammates and family, of parents who chose to be his partners in his adventurous undertakings, and especially of his wife Ellie who fought her own fears but did not stand in the way of Erik pursuing his dreams. The film was shot in Calgary and in the nearby Canadian Rockies. Jaffe-Braunstein Films invited Erik and his family to the set to observe some of the scenes, and to meet the cast: Peter Facinelli as Erik the young man; Jack Knight as Erik the boy; Sarah Manninen as Ellie; Bruce Campbell as Ed; and Kate Greenhouse as Ellen, Erik's mom. Peter Winther, the director, used Erik to play himself in one climbing scene, a dramatic self-arrest down a steep ice face. To view clips from behind-the-scenes, click here: http://www.aetv.com/touchthetop/ttt_video.jsp The documentary, Blindsight, is the story of a 2004 expedition when Erik and his Mt. Everest team, attempted to guide six blind Tibetan teenagers to the 23,000 foot Lhakpa Ri on the north side of Mount Everest. Blindsight was directed by Lucy Walker, who also directed the award winning documentary, THE DEVIL'S PLAYGROUND. It was Produced by Sybil Robson Orr and Steven Haft, also Producer of DEAD POET'S SOCIETY. The film recently premiered at the Toronto Film Festival. One reviewer wrote, "Blindsight premiered today at the Varsity theatre, garnering possibly the loudest and longest applause of any Real to Reel film so far at the festival. The film's director, Lucy Walker, documented the amazing story of six blind Tibetan children attempting to climb a 23,000 foot peak near Mount Everest in 2004. The children were lead by their teacher, Sabriye Tenberken, who is also visually impaired, and Erik Weihenmayer, a blind man who climbed to the top of Mount Everest. Filled with emotion, struggle, triumph and a rousing rendition of "Happy Together", Blindsight instantly became a festival favorite. Great cinematography combined with a complex journey of self-discovery and teamwork will have many festival goers talking about Blindsight." To see the trailer for Blindsight, click here: http://www.blindsightthemovie.com/multimedia.html Erik was a cover story in Time Magazine, Outside Magazine, and Climbing Magazine. He has been featured in People Magazine, Sports Illustrated, Biography, 20/20, the Today Show, Good Morning America, CNN's Sporting Life, American Closeup, and Men's Journal. Erik appeared on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Oprah, NBC's Nightly News, The Learning Channel, Discovery, Adventures with the Duchess, CNN/SI's American Voices, and much more. Erik's documentary, Farther Than the Eye Can See, has been nominated for two Emmy Awards and has taken home top honors at seventeen film festivals The film has raised over $600,000 for worthy nonprofit organizations. Shot in the same stunning quality HDTV format as the 'Star Wars' prequels and directed by award winning film maker Michael Brown of Serac Adventure Films, Farther Than the Eye Can See is an intimate look at what Time Magazine called, "One of the most successful Mount Everest expeditions ever." To see a video clip of Farther Than the Eye Can See, click here: http://www.seracfilms.com/web_trailers/qt/farthertrailer.html Click here to read a recent article about Erik in ESPN Magazine. The article is in David Fleming's '30-Second Column' sidebar.
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For more information on Erik call Leading Authorities Inc. at 1.800.Speaker. |