Climbing Into Life

Climbing into Life is a feature length documentary detailing the inspiring life story of Dierdre Wolownick, the mother of Free Solo’s Alex Honnold. Already an accomplished writer, artist, teacher and musician, she was inspired by her adult children’s passions eventually leading her to become the oldest woman to ascend Yosemite’s famed El Capitan. The story of how she went from a completely consumed mother and professor, shedding a bad marriage and ending up on the wall of El Capitan is riveting and nothing less than inspiring. From an unhappy wife and lonely mother to the status of athlete later in life, Dierdre confronts fear and ageism and gains a wonderful new community in the outdoors. At age 71 Dierdre pushes back against the societal norms that assume her retirement years will be spent slowing down.

In our society, women continue to be valued and judged by their age and appearance. Despite their contributions to our history and prolific influence on our culture, a tragic phenomenon often occurs in women beyond a certain age. They become invisible. These later years are a time when women are at the height of their expertise and accomplishments, yet their significance is rarely acknowledged in media or literature. Bringing older women’s stories to the forefront not only inspires older people but younger people as well.

Following Dierdre on her journey in life, the film highlights her resilience, fervent curiosity and challenges society’s definition of continued relevance. Rich in experiences and accomplishments, Dierdre challenges herself as she moves through each decade of her life. Through this film we celebrate the impact she has made hoping to inspire all generations and bring attention to the significance of her story. Climbing into Life celebrates the power of film to connect an audience that spans generations through storytelling that offers universally relatable themes of experience, success, loss, resilience and continued relevance.