by Garth Meyer
The 76th annual Warren Miller ski movie, “Sno-ciety,” came to Hermosa Beach for two showings Nov. 15, in the hometown of the institution’s late creator, also its narrator for 55 years.
Miller’s daughter, Chris, appeared onstage at the Community Theatre, alongside a 1963 surfboard that once belonged to her father, recently turning up in a garage in Paso Robles.
“Sno-ciety” featured Finnish street skiing, female backcountry snowboarders in British Columbia, Scottish locals scaling brown peaks in search of snow in a lean year, a city-park ski hill in Denver, and a solo descent of a massive Alaskan mountain face.
“Sno-ciety” was familiar but different, different but familiar, while touting the togetherness and sense of community of skiing.
After about the fourth such mention, though, a member of the audience may have harkened back to when Mr. Miller once wryly observed another trait of this generational sport: “The family that skis together, b—ches at each other.”
The insight, given in that voice like the scent of varnished wood in an original mid-mountain lodge at Sun Valley, was the citizen that “Sno-ciety” was missing. Tough to replace, for sure.
The music of the new film was, for the most part, nondescript, though perhaps the producers did not have the budget to garner much more. After a product placement for Scotland’s Aberfeldy single malt whiskey, nonetheless, on came Simple Minds’ “Alive and Kicking,” from the height of Mr. Miller’s era.
Too much nostalgia?
“Sno-ciety” was narrated by Jonny Moseley, the 1998 Olympic freestyle skiing gold medalist, paired with a screenwriter who seemed to aim to match Mr. Miller’s style.
Instead of the old “Ski World” program given to attendees each year, in 2025, the movie began after commercials, complete with a CGI polar bear for Sorel.
Perhaps Mr. Miller may have had a comment?
During the intermission, hosts tossed merchandise to the crowd, and entered names for, and gave away all-expenses paid vacations – Alaska heli-skiing, Mammoth Mountain, Costa Rica surfing.
Then Chris Miller walked onstage and told of one of her earliest memories; being lifted onto her dad’s shoulders as a five-year-old while he caught a wave off of San Onofre.
Chris’ brother, Kurt, bought Warren Miller Entertainment in 1988 and later moved it to Boulder, Colo. He sold it to Time/Warner, Inc. in 2001 and the company is now owned by Outside magazine.
Prologue
Siblings Chris, Kurt and Scott grew up at 34th Street, on the Strand, in Hermosa Beach.
“I used to get jealous at the fact that my dad was gone so much,” Chris told Easy Reader. “But he was so passionate, so good at what he did.”
Mr. Miller, the product of a less-than-ideal family, got started in ski films after serving in the Navy during World War II, then living in a teardrop trailer in the Sun Valley (Idaho) parking lot, teaching lessons and selling (static) ski cartoons he drew. Mr. Miller’s father was especially distant, as the son detailed in his autobiography “Freedom Found” (2016).
“Most successful people get their fire from something,” Chris said. “Had my grandfather been there for my dad, I don’t think he would have done what he did. He didn’t have a home to go back to, really.”
In the early years, Mr. Miller live-narrated his ski films at every showing, in person, building his audience in ski towns across the country.
“Sometimes the crowd wasn’t very big,” Chris Miller said. “But the janitor, the projectionist; he’d count them too.”
Chris will appear again Friday night, Nov. 21, at a showing in Newport Beach, then Saturday in Encinitas as the 2025 Warren Miller film tour concludes. ER
