An array of uplifting movies from the Banff Mountain Film Festival will screen at the Fox

January is the perfect time for the Banff Mountain Film Festival to arrive. The inspiring shorts are a great antidote to the post-holiday blahs. There are an array of uplifting films slated for the festival, which is set for Friday and Saturday at the Fox Theater.

“To Be Frank” is one of the funkiest shorts of the fest. The 11-minute movie focuses on Frank Paine, a 73-year-old surfer, who can be found navigating the waves off the coast of Hermosa Beach, California, every day.

Like most of the subjects in the Banff films, “To Be Frank” can’t help but motivate viewers to be physically active. Anna Wilder Burns was moved to make the short a few months after surfing with Paine, who has been “hanging ten” in Hermosa Beach for more than a half-century.

“He is the most welcoming and stoked human being, who you can talk to forever,” Burns said.

But the film, like the ocean, is bigger than Paine. Burns captures the sense of community in Hermosa Beach and the mental and physical benefits to surfing.

“It allows you to detach from whatever is going on in the water and be enveloped,” Burns said, calling from Hermosa Beach. “It puts everything in perspective and makes you feel small in a huge ocean.”

“Pioneers: XC Skiing” features Joe Dubay, who after winning the American Birkebeiner, the largest cross-country ski race in North America, was disqualified for wearing the wrong bib. Dubay and his former roommate Chris Parr, who lent him the bib, return to the “Birkie” 11 years later, to pioneer a new sport, tandem cross-country skiing.

The pair reinvented the ski to develop a fresh winter sport.

“It takes a very different thinker to do this and Joe Dubay is just that,” Parr said from Minneapolis. “We had a blast getting out there.”

Parr filmed everything on a GoPro and left the slopes everyday for dinner at White Castle.

“The shrimp nibblers and the onion fries make for great fuel for skiing,” Parr said.

There are a number of other memorable films screening at the festival.

”After You’ve Gone” is about a female fishing guide in the Adirondacks overcoming the hardships of battling cancer and losing her husband. A trip to Argentina turns her life around.

“Still Alive” is a compelling film about Klaas Willems, who was told he wouldn’t live past the quarter-century mark, due to cystic fibrosis. A decade later, Willems climbs in clean air. His journey takes on a new dimension after being diagnosed with cancer.

“Soundscape” shares the sightless experience of climbing a mountain via echo, location, touch and imagination. Erik Weihenmayer, an adventurer, who is completely blind, ascends a massive alpine rock face deep in the heart of Sierra Nevada.

A sedentary life isn’t an option after catching the variety of shorts. Paul Fish, the founder and owner of the late and lamented shop, Mountain Gear, continues to bring the Banff Mountain film festival to Spokane, which is back for the 38th year.

“This festival always has something for everyone,” Fish said. “It all starts with the Banff Centre, which has amazing writing classes and film classes.”

The Banff Centre, which is based in Calgary, started as a single drama course in 1933 and has grown to become a pacesetter in arts, culture and creativity. The Banff Center, which is located in the Canadian Rocky Mountains, started its film festival in 1976, with the focus on mountain culture.

“So this festival has always been a natural for Spokane,” Fish said. “Continuing this is my way to stay connected with the outdoor community. I get a chance to see my friends and give something back.”

Fish is hoping outdoor enthusiasts pass on the slopes and hit the Fox for the Banff films.

“It’s going to be really cold and icy, so skiing is going to be as much fun as it could be,” Fish said. “Come out to see the movies instead.”