Josh Berman

I was lucky to spend some time shooting back in Vermont with @ben.0gden @rc.s and @paulamoltzan while they were kicking off Fall training in 2024. At the time the Olympics were 14+ months out and everything was framed as distant “goals” - first just earning a spot on an insanely competitive team, never mind the pie in the sky dream of medals in sports where a hundredth of a second can make or break a lifetime of effort. What struck me about all of them, aside from their sheer athleticism and talent, was a desire to do things differently- come up with their own training regimen and schedules, and to do (at least some of it) on the trails, hills, and dirt roads in their back yards. Turns out there must be something to their process and Fall Training in Vermont- this week all three landed on the podium! Huge respect to each of them- not only world class athletes, but all genuinely warm and kind people.

One of my favorite things about Fall is putting 1000 people in a venue and watching them take in the mindblowing content that my friends cooked up from the previous season’s adventures. Grateful to see that the @level1 flame is still burning 25 years after it was first lit. Thank you Denver!

FULL CIRCLE was nominated for an Emmy! We couldn’t be more excited to share the honor with some pretty incredible films. Thanks to everyone who has watched the film, or lent a hand throughout the past 4 years of production! And thank you @eddiebauer @gopro @spyoptic @ikonpass @darntoughvermont @hi5sfoundation @jacksonhole @cmh_heli @winterparkresort @volklskis @fattire for allowing us to bring this vision to life!

FULL CIRCLE is on Netflix, streaming in 250 million households around the world! It’s every filmmaker’s dream to put their work in front of the largest audience possible, and I’m forever grateful for all of the hard work and dedication from so many people over the past few year’s that’s turned this dream into a reality. This photo was taken on February 22nd, 2020, shortly after @trevor_kennison stomped the world’s first double backflip in a sit ski, at the site of his accident on Vail Pass. In a filmmaking career that spans over 25 years this day stands out more than any other- Trevor redefined what’s possible in adaptive sports, and what was possible for the scale and scope of this project. He accomplished something truly incredible and I was tasked with making a film that gave him the platform that he deserved. Frankly we had no idea what we were doing or where we were going with this film at the outset- and so the journey began... Thank you Trevor for trusting me with your story (and physical and mental wellbeing) over the past 4 years- it’s incredible to see how far this little project has come… and thank you to the long list of people who believed in what we were doing and helped out in some way- big or small! 📷 @taylormboyd

To my fellow composer friends and @_the_scl members, I’m excited to present the documentary Full Circle as consideration for Outstanding Original Score for an Independent Film. For the documentary Full Circle, the story behind the making of the score was as important as the score itself. The subject matter for the documentary involves adaptive athletes overcoming physical and mental trauma, and it was important to me for those involved in the creation of the score to also share in this same experience. I sought to track down and spotlight solo musicians living with disabilities and back them with the power of the @Pretium_Scoring string ensemble from Vienna with the help of orchestrator Jeff Kryka. Seeking musicians whose lived experiences resonated with the film’s subjects, and with additional support from @craighospital , the rehabilitation facility featured in the film, I was able to assemble an all-start team. This group of musicians living with disabilities included @eric_howk , guitarist for the band @portugaltheman , Quincy Jones artist and jazz virtuoso pianist @justinkauflinmusic , trumpet player #patrickhenryhughes , drummer Jason Barnes @cybrnetx , and virtuoso violinist @krinkebrian , who overcame a traumatic brain injury by going through the same rehabilitation program that film subjects went through. Thank you again to the incredible #dreamteam that made it happen. Full video in description. @Level1 , @XYZFILMS , @trevor_kennison #Level1 #XYZFilms #FilmRelease #TrevorKennison #FullCircleTrailer #FilmScore #documentary #FullCircleDocumentary #sclawards #SCL @ascap @ascapscreen #FYC

Truly honored to take home the Grand Prize at this year’s @banffmountainfestival for FULL CIRCLE! We couldn’t be more grateful for the opportunity to share the stories of @trevor_kennison and Barry Corbet with the world! The note from jury member @sarahleesteele says it all: “This film provides a raw and unapologetic look at the difficulty of reinventing oneself. It is a documentary that 'goes there' - giving us hope and inspiration, but also making us deeply uncomfortable by introducing us to the difficult realities that come with paralysis. Trevor and Barry's stories capture our hearts because they represent the indomitable human spirit that moves mind and body beyond disability. Their stories of personal alchemy, and of turning tragedy into triumph, force us to ask ourselves the question posed by poet Mary Oliver, 'What is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?’ FULL CIRCLE wouldn’t have been possible without the support of so many! @eddiebauer @darntoughvermont @hi5sfoundation @ikonpass @jacksonhole @cmh_heli @winterparkresort @gopro @fattire @spyoptic @volklskis_usa 📷 @eye_b_long

4 years ago a baby-faced @trevor_kennison sat down in front of a camera in the @level1 office and spent the better part of 4 hours digging into his life, accident, recovery, and reinvention. I knew immediately that he had a story to tell, but I didn’t yet realize how big that story could be. My team and I have spent countless hours and literal blood, sweat and tears in the field and in the edit suites to get this thing across the finish line. It’s truly exceeded all of our hopes and expectations and I couldn’t be more proud of what we’ve accomplished. Here we are now on the eve of our theatrical release about to roll out FULL CIRCLE in NYC, before moving on to Denver, LA, and then on to markets across the US and Canada over the next few months before the eventual digital release. It’s a literal dream come true and I couldn’t be more grateful for all the hard work and support from so many that have made this film possible! I highly encourage all my friends and fam to find a screening near you (this film is meant for the big screen!)- adding more dates and theaters almost daily to the film’s website - FullCircleFilm.co

The culmination of 4 years of work from my team and I, and a couple of lifetimes lived… proud to release the official trailer for FULL CIRCLE, now live on the @gopro Youtube channel. Much thanks to GoPro for bending their rules and making this the first piece of non-GoPro content that they’ve ever shared on their channels. Check the full trailer and keep an eye on www.FullCircleFilm.co to see when the film is showing in a theater near you!

Leaving @mountainfilm with a full heart after an incredible 4 days of great people, awesome docs, lots of sunshine, and two powerful screenings of FULL CIRCLE. Makes me so happy to see this film resonate with such a diverse audience- young, old, die-hard @level1 fans, and those completely removed from snow sports culture alike. Our team also couldn’t be more proud to take home the Student Jury prize for best film- as a documentary filmmaker there’s no audience that I’d rather make an impact on… this next generation is the one that will be tasked with fixing all the problems we’re leaving for them and its important to help open their eyes to a growing number of important topics, not the least of which is disability. Hats off again to the Mountainflm team for putting on the best film festival I’ve ever attended, and building such an incredible community around it.

I’ve spent the past 3+ years working with @trevor_kennison and an incredibly talented team on this one. What started out as a short film about Trevor returning to the site of his accident has turned into a full length feature doc- a story about turning tragedy into opportunity- and so much more. Very excited to share it with the world, kicking things off with our premiere next week at @officialsbiff More exciting news and updates soon!

This year’s early birthday present was a special one. @annnnnie.b and I could not be more proud and excited to welcome miss Lily James Berman to the world. She joined us on the morning of March 23rd and has since been keeping us very much exhausted and sleep deprived- but very much in love with her. I’m remembering just enough about how to change diapers to be useful and Annie is impressing me every day that goes by with her ability to adapt to the new reality of motherhood (for a newborn at least). Forrest is excited to be a big brother, Kodi and Leroy are enthused to have another member of their pack, and we’re all overjoyed to have such a beautiful little bundle of a baby girl.

A year ago I was preparing to go under the knife- heart surgery- to have a failing heart valve repaired. I was first diagnosed with a mitral valve prolapse when I was 18 and lived with the symptoms and consequences until I couldn’t. I was fortunate to have an awesome surgeon who successfully repaired the valve and I can write this here today with an *almost normal fully functioning heart. Heart Disease is the #1 cause of death in the US and something that will statistically touch everyone at some point - directly or otherwise. My good friend @gabeanders0n had his life saved twice after suffering a heart attack with the help of modern medicine and organizations like @american_heart who are putting resources into research, prevention, science, and transforming healthcare. I’m helping Gabe raise money to support the American Heart Association and @level1 is kicking in a $500 gift certificate to sweeten the deal. We’ll pick a random winner from all donations made through my page. Link in bio to donate.