Meet Alex Harz

We recently connected with Alex Harz and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Alex, really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?

‘THE QUEST’ Documentary Series was seeded from a teenage commitment that I made while living in the flatlands of Omaha, Nebraska. After a lengthy soccer practice one day I was sitting on my couch watching something about Mt. Everest, and it was at this moment that I vowed to myself that one day I would climb that mountain.

Out of sight and out of mind for many years until sitting on my couch in Denver, Colorado watching random daytime television and for no apparent reason, a recollection of that teenage promise to climb Everest popped into my head. The following day my long quest began, because I felt if I couldn’t keep a promise to myself, how could I ultimately guarantee my commitments to anyone else?!

While standing on the 20,310 foot / 6190 meter summit of Mt. Denali, staring out over the beautiful Alaska Range, I had another epiphany. I realized I shouldn’t continue to sacrifice all the time, money, dedication and risk needed to try to make my Everest dream a reality, just for a few moments of witnessing the most breathtaking views imaginable from the highest points on earth. There had to be a greater purpose, and that purpose became sharing my love for storytelling, culture and adventure travel with the world through the eyes of a camera…and thus, ‘THE QUEST’ was born.

‘THE QUEST’ is an immersive 2D + Virtual Reality documentary series designed to take global audiences on “educational thrill-rides” to reveal amazing rarely seen stories from some of the most fascinating places on earth. The first films of the series, ‘THE QUEST: Nepal’ 2D Documentary (www.TheQuestNepal.com) and ‘THE QUEST: Everest VR’ Mt. Everest Virtual Reality Documentary (www.TheQuestEverest.com), are extraordinary quests to deeper understand and climb the most iconic mountain on earth, Everest, and to reveal the captivating culture, history and nature of Nepal.

‘THE QUEST: Everest VR’ is the only “real-life” 1st-person Mt. Everest Virtual Reality Documentary that takes you on an epic 52 day expedition to the Top of the World (29,032 feet / 8849 meters), and is the closest thing to climbing Everest without the rigorous training, planning and high risk needed to physically step foot on the mountain.  From experiencing Mt. Everest like never before and learning fascinating details about one of the most amazing places imaginable, ‘THE QUEST: Everest VR’ is a truly unique Virtual Reality journey like no other, and one which embodies the incredible human spirit of adventure that lives inside us all!

‘THE QUEST: Everest VR’ 360° Trailer = www.TheQuestEverest.com/virtualreality
* Use your mouse, finger or Virtual Reality headset to watch in 360 degrees *

‘THE QUEST: Everest VR’ can be experienced worldwide in VR headsets and on computers, tablets, cell phones, etc. by visiting www.TheQuestEverest.com/wheretowatch.

My continued purpose is to bring additional unique and motivational ‘THE QUEST’ films to a global audience, with the next production taking place in Africa in 2025.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

Being born in Spain, living in Germany, and spending most of my summers in Europe after moving to the United States, the desire to experience the wonderful landscapes and cultures of our world was entrenched in me early on. It became clear that international travel, adventure and storytelling would become major driving forces in my life.

With the great honor of having traveled across 6 continents, I have learned that it does not matter what language you speak, what religion you follow, how much money you possess or what job you may or may not have, there are only 2 kinds of people in this world…”good” or “bad”. Following this simple tenant, I feel that our commonalities as human beings can far outweigh our differences, and that all “good” people can have a positive impact on the lives of others and on our planet as a whole.

Since I was able to walk, athletics have always played a huge part in my life. College soccer, scuba, snowboarding, basketball, rock climbing, high-altitude mountaineering, etc. have all helped instill in me some positive life skills; discipline, dedication, team work, hard work and to never give up!

Passionate about filmmaking & adventure, with a love for being on either side of the camera, I have been fortunate enough to have developed a well-versed set of acting, production, writing, directing and communication skills over the years. Combined with a solid foundation in international business, marketing, PR and event management, I try to utilize this broad range of experience to enhance & maximize the potential of the projects I am involved in. From feature films to documentaries, from improvised comedy & radio to international sports marketing, I take great joy in working on a wide range of original projects.

I am currently engaged in ‘THE QUEST’ 2D + Virtual Reality documentary series, which spans 7 continents within the genres of adventure travel, history, natural history, nature, science, culture, pop culture, etc. More info about ‘THE QUEST’ can be found at…
www.TheQuestNepal.com
www.TheQuestEverest.com
– FaceBook @TheQuestSeriesPage
– Instagram @TheQuestSeries
www.AlexHarz.com
– FaceBook @aharz
– Instagram @alex.harz

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

The 3 most important skills or qualities that made my Mt. Everest dream and ‘THE QUEST’ series a reality were:

1) Do what you say you’re going to do…not only keeping the promises you made to others, but also the commits you made to yourself.
2) Never quite or give up finding a way to make your dreams and concepts a reality.
3) Be able to improvise to situations that arise that you did not expect.

Though at times it can be overwhelming and your dreams seemingly unattainable, but if you combine the above three skills or traits with a laser focus on your goals, one task, one step at time, you can get there.

What was the most impactful thing your parents did for you?

The most impactful things my parents did for me, was instill fundamental life skills…
My father taught me to keep my word, work hard, stay disciplined, and to never give up.
My mother gave me compassion, cultural understanding, a sense for helping others, and how to be a good person.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Alex Harz // ‘THE QUEST’ Series

Suggest a Story: BoldJourney is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems,
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
Highlighter Series
Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?

Those of us who were lucky to have someone see something in us long before

Highlighter Series
What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?

Sometimes a key moment can make a world of difference in our lives. Those moments

Highlighter Series
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?

We connected with some of the most resilient folks in the community and one of