Ascent to Excellence

From accom­plished con­cert pianist to intre­pid back­coun­try adven­tur­er to world respect­ed moun­tain film fes­ti­val direc­tor to award-win­ning author (many times over), Bernadette McDon­ald has led a life marked by hard work, ded­i­ca­tion, care­ful atten­tion to detail and well-earned acco­lades. 

She also knows how to have fun.

An astute inter­view­er and pol­ished sto­ry­teller, Bernadette rec­og­nizes which adven­tur­ers and moun­tain per­son­al­i­ties will engage audi­ences and keep them spell­bound, whether it’s from their seats dur­ing film show­ings and live pre­sen­ta­tions at the Banff Moun­tain Film Fes­ti­val or while turn­ing through the pages of one of her excep­tion­al­ly well-craft­ed books. From her ear­li­est piano lessons to run­ning the Banff fes­ti­val for nine­teen years to writ­ing biogra­phies of remark­able peo­ple who trust­ed her to tell their sto­ries, Bernadette McDon­ald has con­tin­u­al­ly strived to reach her own peak not for her own ben­e­fit, but for the plea­sure of moun­tain enthu­si­asts around the world.

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