It was approximately 3am on day 4 of the 2013 Iditarod, while I was waiting for Lance Mackey to arrive at the Takotna checkpoint, that I was finally able to articulate why I set out to make The Great Alone. The Takotna checkpoint is situated in the tiny, remote village of Takotna, Alaska (population 52) and is known for the homemade pies that the villagers serve the Iditarod mushers, volunteers and visitors. Before we set out on our filmmaking we were told, "Make sure you film Lance in Takotna, the pie is amazing." It was great advice....
WHY WE RACE
I guess Lance Mackey is a lot like a piece of pie. Once you get a taste of his story and personality, you want to share it with others. And like a homemade pie, the tin is often dinged up, and the crust might not look perfect, but inside is a delicious recipe refined by time, wisdom and soul.
So often in my filmmaking, as I explore soulful stories of other people, ultimately I see elements of myself in them. I suppose my films are a way for me to explore my own vulnerabilities, weaknesses and hidden emotions.
When I set out to tell Lance's story I thought it might help me better understand my own life and specifically my relationship with my family. Because for me, The Great Alone is about much more than the sport of sled dog racing or the epic beauty found in Alaska. It's about family.
As a filmmaker, husband, father, brother and son, there are two moments in the film that resonate deepest in my soul and they both involve hugs. Hug number one occurs at the finish line of the 2007 Iditarod. This moment was actually the first scene I cut together when editing of the film began. During Lance's embrace with his Mom we witness Lance's transition from crying tears of happiness to the uninhibited, deep, gut wrenching tears only released when a child is in the arms of his mom. I call moments like these "real as dirt," so authentic, honest and raw that they penetrate your soul.
Hug number two happens shortly after and is between Lance and his Dad. While editing the film I nicknamed this hug the "healing hug," because after 30 plus years of pain, this hug marked the beginning of a reconciliation between a father and his son.
Though our film is structured around the two grueling weeks we spent alone in the Alaskan wild filming a race, the film could never be simply about the race. It's about why we race, and, in the end, what we live for. Lance Mackey let me into his race in a way no Iditarod racer had ever let a filmmaker do before. In so doing, he let me into his life, the why of that life, and ultimately, the why of life itself. It's a question so big that maybe only Alaska can hold it, and a question that can be so scary that few of us ever truly face it. Lance faces it head-on for us in THE GREAT ALONE, and my hope is that by sharing his story, the film will help all of us to answer that universal question for ourselves.
Greg Kohs
Reel As Dirt and Hock Films present a film by Greg Kohs / Starring Lance Mackey / Music by Craig Minowa / Director of Photography Ross Riege / Edited by Debbie McMurtrey / Produced by Jonathan Hock / Directed by Greg Kohs