Renan Ozturk is an American mountaineer, artist, and filmmaker who specializes in climbing, mountaineering, and alpine-style ascents in the Greater Ranges of Asia and North America. He is known for his climbing and cinematography in the Himalayas, Alaska, and Patagonia, as well as for his award-winning documentaries about people and places in the mountains.
Ozturk was born in 1980 in Tucson, Arizona. He grew up in the mountains of Montana and developed an interest in mountaineering and the outdoors from a young age. He attended the University of Montana, where he studied geology and photography.
In 2001, he moved to Chamonix, France, to pursue his passions for mountaineering and film. He quickly developed his skills as a climber, and soon began to make ascents in the Greater Ranges of Asia and North America. Over the next few years, he completed numerous alpine-style ascents, including the first solo ascent of K2 in Pakistan.
In 2007, Ozturk began to focus more on filmmaking and photography. He worked as a cinematographer for National Geographic and other outlets, capturing stunning images of remote locations. He also directed and produced several award-winning documentaries, including Meru (2015) and Valley Uprising (2014). These documentaries explore the history and culture of mountaineering and are widely admired for their cinematography.
In addition to his work as a filmmaker and photographer, Ozturk is also an accomplished mountaineer. He has completed ascents of some of the world’s most difficult peaks, including Denali in Alaska and Mount Everest in Nepal. He is also an avid skier, and regularly heads to the slopes of the French Alps.
Ozturk’s work has been recognized with numerous awards, including the Emmy Award for Outstanding Cinematography for a Non-Fiction Program for his work on Meru. He is currently based in Montana but travels extensively for his work. He remains committed to exploring the mountains and documenting the lives of people in the outdoors.
