Local professional skier, Veronica Paulsen is well known as the first woman to land a backflip into the infamous Corbet’s Couloir at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort during the Kings and Queens of Corbet’s competition in 2020. She is also a filmmaker and has created a series of short films highlighting other Jackson area athletes.
The YouTube series pulls back the curtain on what it’s like to be a modern pro skier with behind-the-scenes footage of challenging adventures in the Tetons.
“We see a lot of the accomplishments of what our fellow athletes in this town are doing, which is some impressive stuff in the mountains,” Paulsen said. “But we don’t always see all the work and the hours that go into each accomplishment. So I wanted to be able to showcase that to people all around the world.”
Being a professional athlete herself, Paulsen can offer a unique perspective when interviewing her peers and dig into the essence of what makes them tick. Adventure sports filmmaking requires a lot of location shooting in frequently tough spots. Used to having other people film her, Paulsen, now behind the camera, knows what’s essential to make great tape in remote places.
“It takes so many little things to line up for that perfect shot. Not only do the athletes have to be on their A-game, but so do the filmmakers,” Paulsen explained. “All the equipment has to be working, the weather, the snow safety, etc. And so when all these aspects come together and line up, it’s magical.”
Being a part of the local athlete circle provides no shortage of ideas for future episodes and Paulsen vows to cover a lot of bases.
“I’d love to keep doing them forever. I think it’s so expandable. I can do all different types of mountain sports. I’d love to keep doing this for years,” Paulsen said.
On the latest episode, “Teton Hard B*tch,” Paulsen links up with fellow athlete and friend Madison Rose to tackle the steep and technical couloir known as “Apocalypse.” Rose specializes in a different type of professional skiing with a focus on her endurance abilities in mountaineering, which was something that the freestyle skiing Paulsen wanted to get into herself.
“That’s one of the best things about the series that I get to pick things that I want to learn and can kind of put a film together about it,” Paulsen said. “And [Rose] was just such a blast the whole time. She was so encouraging and helped me with my goals. We just had so much fun that day and I’m glad it came through on the film.”
Listen above for KHOL Film Critic Jeff Counts’ full conversation with professional athlete and filmmaker Veronica Paulsen.
