Featured Image: Courtesy of Screen Story | Skier: Nikolai Schirmer
He might be on his way to claiming the title of the world's most recognizable skier. For years, Nikolai Schirmer's skill set has earned him widespread recognition. By harnessing his talent both in front and behind the camera, he's captivated millions with his YouTube videos, feature films, and now, an entire TV show.
Centered around Schirmer and his adventure partner/best friend, Krister Kopala, the TV series, titled "PEAKS," was filmed starting in 2019, and was originally released in 2023 on Norway's public broadcast station under the title "Eksponert," which translates to exposed. But just last week, the show debuted internationally. The project currently holds an astonishing 9.1/10 rating on IMDb.
Producer Anders Hereid set out to film a project exploring the friendship, risk, trust, rewards and consequences of life in the mountains as experienced by Schirmer and Kopala. While it was originally funded by state media agencies, the show became independent after the state saw Schirmers' booming YouTube channel and decided it wasn't worth spending money to promote a Norwegian who was already growing in popularity. But after seeing how incredible the production and stories were, Norway thought it worthwhile to expand the show under Altibox and NRK, Norway’s public broadcaster. And they were right.
"We went from kids following [our channels] to even grandmas knowing who we were," joked Schirmer as he discussed Episode One, recounting what it was like after the show was released in Norway in 2023. "People would start talking to us at the grocery store," continued Kopala, "and they'd get excited saying they'd seen us on TV. It seemed like everyone had seen it." Schirmer added, "It was quite a huge difference, actually. Suddenly, we weren't just hitting our specific [freeski] niche."
The boost allowed the pair to showcase freeriding to a new section of Norwegians, many of whom were enthralled with cross-country skiing but didn't care much or understand the other disciplines hidden throughout the sport, according to Schirmer. "It's been so cool to show people this other side of ski culture," said Schirmer.
It seems as though his reputation at home and abroad just keeps reaching new heights. With 217,000 YouTube subscribers and over 252,000 Instagram followers, Schirmer's reach continues to skyrocket. While his skiing is without a doubt remarkable, it's his storytelling abilities that truly separate him from the pack. It remains to be seen just how high his hard work will propel him, but we couldn't name many other people we'd rather have serving as freeskiing's unofficial ambassador to the globe.
Dive into Episode One of "PEAKS" with special commentary from Schirmer and Kopala below, or start watching the entire series today.
From YouTube:
Originally released in Norway, PEAKS is now launching internationally with English subtitles. Join me for a special online screening of Episode 1, followed by a live Q&A about the series, the crew, and the stories behind it. As a thank you for joining, viewers will receive a promo code for the full season.
