Alex Honnold

“Free Solo” follows free soloist climber Alex Honnold as he prepares to achieve his lifelong dream: climbing the face of the world’s most famous rock – the 3,200-foot El Capitan in Yosemite National Park – without a rope. The award-winning documentary will be screened at 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 2, in The Cole Art Center.


NACOGDOCHES, Texas – The Stephen F. Austin State University School of Art and the Friends of the Visual Arts will present a free, one-night screening of the documentary “Free Solo” at 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 2, in The Cole Art Center @ The Old Opera House in downtown Nacogdoches.

From award-winning documentary filmmaker E. Chai Vasarhelyi and world-renowned photographer and mountaineer Jimmy Chin comes “Free Solo,” a stunning, intimate and unflinching portrait of free soloist climber Alex Honnold, as he prepares to achieve his lifelong dream: climbing the face of the world’s most famous rock – the 3,200-foot El Capitan in Yosemite National Park – without a rope. Celebrated as one of the greatest athletic feats of any kind, Honnold’s climb set the ultimate standard: perfection or death.

“Free Solo” is a National Geographic Documentary Film release. It won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature; Critics’ Choice Documentary Award winner for Most Compelling Living Subject of a Documentary, Most Innovative Documentary and Best Sorts Documentary; BAFTA Award winner for Best Documentary; and American Film Fest winner for Best Film, among other awards.

The film runs 100 minutes. It is rated PG-13 for brief strong language. For more information, visit https://www.nationalgeographic.com.

This screening is part of the School of Art’s monthly Friday Film Series and is sponsored in part by William Arscott, Nacogdoches Film Festival, Karon Gillespie, Mike Mollot, David Kulhavy, John and Kristen Heath, Galleria Z, Jill Carrington, Jean Stephens, Jim and Mary Neal, Richard Orton and Main Street Nacogdoches.

The Cole Art Center is located at 329 E. Main St. For more information, call (936) 468-1131.