Gilles Chappaz

Actor · Director · Writer

Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, Haute-Savoie, France

December 3, 1952

Biography

Gilles Chappaz, born in 1952 in Chamonix, son of a guide father and a champion skier mother, discovered skiing at the age of three, following his twin brother Xavier and his parents—the first couple of ski instructors in France—on the slopes of the Alps. He later became a national instructor and coach. While his brother became a guide, Gilles turned more to skiing and eventually journalism. Since 1979, he has been involved in Montagnes Magazine, created by Michel Drapier in Grenoble, and later at the origin of Vertical, created by Bruno Cormier in Chamonix. Today, Gilles Chappaz travels between Grenoble and Chamonix and has turned his hand to journalism, creating and developing magazines dedicated to the mountains (Montagnes Magazine, Vertical, Ski Français). At the same time, he has worked as a television consultant (France Télévision, TF1) and collaborated regularly with the press (Libération, Le Monde). He was also part of the team that hosted the Montagne magazine on FR3 since its inception in 1985. He was once the editor-in-chief of the magazine and for which he directed several award-winning documentaries. After spending four years in Paris as deputy editor-in-chief of L'Équipe Magazine, he devoted himself to directing documentaries, five of which were produced by Seven Doc. In addition to his directorial responsibilities, in 2009 he became director of the Montagne Collection, a book and DVD box set dedicated to those commonly referred to as the "Conquerors of the Useless," launched in 2009 by Seven Doc. Gilles Chappaz's films have received numerous awards at mountain festivals. They can now be found on DVD through his producer, "Seven Doc." A writer, he has also published numerous fascinating short stories.