Nicolas Favresse
Acting
Biography
Nicolas Favresse, born in Brussels in 1980, is a Belgian climber renowned for his versatile style, encompassing sport climbing, trad climbing, and big wall routes, particularly in high mountains and polar regions. A member of the Belgian Alpine Club's Rock Climbing Team, he has frequently climbed with his brother Olivier Favresse and Sean Villanueva, participating in notable expeditions to Patagonia, Pakistan, Baffin Island, and Greenland. Among his most celebrated achievements are the first ascent of Le Clou at Freyr, one of the first ultra-high-level routes in Belgium, as well as climbs such as Estado Crítico, Free Rider on El Capitan, The Secret Passage, Ledgeway to Heaven, and the South African route in the Paine Towers. He has also distinguished himself in trad climbing with demanding repeats and first ascents, reaching very high grades, making him one of the most complete climbers of his generation. His record also includes successes on big walls such as Salathé, El Corazón, and Riders in the Storm, often freestyle and on very long routes. Beyond performance, Favresse is associated with a committed, creative, and adventurous approach to climbing, where style, autonomy, and exploration are as important as pure difficulty. This philosophy has earned him significant international recognition, notably the 2011 Piolet d'Or, awarded with Olivier Favresse, Sean Villanueva, Ben Ditto, and Bob Shepton for an expedition to Greenland.
Known For
Every fall the REEL ROCK Film Tour brings the year's most exciting new climbing films to live audiences around the world. For 2010, the tour features six amazing short films, with stories from the cutting edge of alpine climbing, bouldering, sport climbing, and traditional climbing.
Reel Rock
Brittany, France, 1980s. A group of friends, fed up with the boring country life and eager for excitement, create a radio station.
Magnetic Beats
A gripping adventure into the world of cutting edge rock and ice climbing documenting what is possible with a ground up, no pre-practice approach resulting in raw, compelling and often frightening footage. The climbers in this film aren’t necessarily the strongest but they have the biggest kahooners(!); willing to take a 30 foot fall for the ultimate on sight ascent.
On Sight
Once again, Masters of Stone breaks through to the cutting edge of the sport. Harder, Faster, Bolder, Newer, and more...six points of breakthrough in all.... where human edges toward the superhuman. This is the Super Bowl, Olympics, and Boston Marathon of rock climbing, all rolled into one. More than any other sport, rock climbing continually redefines its rules and resets its limits. Yesterday's impossible becomes today's warm-up as advances in mental and physical mastery combine to break new ground. Every few years the Masters of Stone series delivers a new episode that captures these breakthroughs in a tasty mix of music, character, commentary, and above all, visual action.
Masters of Stone VI - Breakthrough
Embark on the Kamak ship, bound for Greenland and its pristine cliffs, following our favorite Belgians: Sean Villanueva O’Driscoll, Nicolas Favresse, Jean-Louis Wertz, and their newest Swedish recruit Aleksej Jaruta. After 2 weeks of sailing between storms and icebergs, the quartet sets up their base camp at the foot of the Mythic Cirque, a unique spot surrounded by rocky towers rising from the sea. Their goal: establish dream lines on these untouched summits, armed with their musical instruments. An ode to adventure and friendship!
Cherry on the Cake
A "team of savages," as their boat captain Bob Shepton calls them, comprised of Sean Villanueva O'Driscoll, Olivier Favresse, Nicolas Favresse, and Ben Ditto, set off for Greenland to attempt a first big wall climb. Arriving in Asia by plane, they prepare the sailboat for two months of self-sufficiency. Accompanied by whales, seagulls, and icebergs, they train on various rock faces before beginning their ascent of the seemingly impossible wall. It takes them 11 days to complete the climb, braving bad weather, the rock itself, the wilderness, and three different bivouac sites—all accompanied by music, of course! The return journey is not without its challenges, as they must avoid a cyclone and cross the Atlantic to reach Oben in Scotland.
Vertical Sailing Greenland
Big wall climber Siebe Vanhee enlists Drew Smith and fellow Belgian countrymen Nico Favresse and Sean Villanueva O’Driscoll to attempt the first free ascent of the elusive Riders on the Storm route on the East Face of Patagonia’s Torre Central.
Riders on the Storm
No description available.
Coconut Connection
REEL ROCK cranks it up to 11 with our latest collection of electrifying climbing films showcasing the sport's biggest stories and athletes. Featuring Ashima Shiraishi, Will Stanhope, Matt Segal, Brette Harrington, Kai Lightner, Mike Libecki and the Wild Bunch.
Reel Rock 11
In their infinite quest for virgin big walls, adventurers Sean Villanueva O’Driscoll, Nicolas Favresse, Stephane Hanssens and Evrard Wendenbaum, head in September 2013 to a remote valley in the westernmost region of China. There, they found a fantastic 1200m vertical pillar, culminating at 5842m. They spent 14 days on the wall facing snow storms and harsh conditions to finally achieve this amazing ascent with some frost bites but never forgetting to have a lot of fun and to play unreal musical sessions.
China Jam
No description available.
Dodo's Delight - The Adventures Of The Dodo
Attempt to make the first free climbing of the Mount Asgard.
Asgard Jamming
During the summer of 2020, Belgian climbers Nicolas Favresse and Sébastien Berthe set themselves the challenge of completing the Alpine Trilogy, three of the most difficult routes in the Alps. But the two friends, accompanied by their cameraman Damien Largeron, intended to have a fun and lighthearted experience: what better way to connect the three legendary routes than by bike and in the company of their dogs?! In just two weeks, a veritable caravan of joy embarked on one of the greatest climbing feats of recent years.
Alpine Trilogy - Doggystyle
Fontainebleau is one of the most popular climbing destination on the planet, with thousands of boulders spread over hundreds of areas. From the classic areas of the Franchard and Cuvier to the less known areas of Buthiers and JA Martin Come follow a group of the worlds best climbers as they explore the most hidden beautiful boulders of this enchanted forest. They will take you on a journey to parts of the forest you have never heard of and boulders you have never seen, Not only that but boulders just off the paths in the main areas that are so beautiful but seldom climbed.
Out of sight
Reel Rock 19 showcases three world-premiere climbing films spanning disciplines, characters, and continents: a heartfelt story of second chances in love and climbing on Squamish’s legendary Cobra Crack; an outrageous 18-day big wall epic on Patagonia’s towering Torre Central; and the pursuit of a lifelong dream—a 5.15 first ascent—made possible by an unlikely partnership.
Reel Rock 19
"Notes From The Wall" (2017) is a climbing documentary directed by Guillaume Lion. It follows three of Belgium's top mountaineers – Sean Villanueva O’Driscoll, Nicolas Favresse, and Siebe Vanhee – in their audacious attempt to free climb one of Patagonia's greatest walls. For 19 days, on El Regalo de Mwono (1,200 meters), in Torres del Paine National Park, Patagonia, the team faced extreme weather conditions, technical difficulties, and the mental exhaustion of long days and nights spent on this vertical face. Much more than just an ascent, "Notes from the Wall" captures the raw spirit of adventure, intense camaraderie, and moments of humor that punctuate the ascent of these elite climbers pushing their limits and reflecting on the meaning of climbing and friendship in one of the most spectacular—and unforgiving—climbing environments in the world.
Notes From The Wall
The latest film from the Belgian climbing team, following Asgard Jamming and Vertical Sailing Greenland, Venezuela Jungle Jam features Sean Villanueva O'Driscoll, Nico Favresse, Stephane Hanssens and Jean-Louis Wertz as they attempt a new free climb on the overhanging 500m wall of Amuri Tepul in the Venezuelan Jungle.