«Fulvio Mariani, born in La Chaux-de-Fonds in 1958, and Mario Casella, born in Sorengo in 1959, have been journalistically engaged with the mountains for over thirty years. Their work – the one is an author and television journalist, the other a film director and cameraman – takes them far from the beaten track. In it they investigate the backgrounds of alpinism as well as of daily life in the mountains – usually independently of one another, but also often together.

The films that Mario Casella and Fulvio Mariani have created together not only take a different look at mountain climbing; they especially illuminate the circumstances of life of mountain peoples – often in regions that are involved in geopolitical conflicts. With great curiosity, unbiased views and depth of focus they impart a new image of cultures, people and traditions that are otherwise rarely the focus of mountain films.

Among their most impressive documentaries are «Siachen, a war for ice», about the Indian-Pakistani border war, and the trilogy «The Silk Snow», in which they tell stories of the mountains on the Silk Road – in Iran, Afghanistan, China and Kyrgyzstan. Since 2012 they have produced the weekly summer show «Sottosopra» on the themes of adventure, travel, outdoor and mountain sports for the Swiss RSI television channel.»

Albert Mountain Award 2018