After a devastating spinal cord injury turned his world upside down, lifelong outdoorsman Jesse Alberi refused to surrender his passion—or his purpose. MEND is a powerful and visually stunning documentary that follows Jesse’s extraordinary journey from a near- fatal accident to leading adaptive expeditions in the wild. Set against the breathtaking backdrops of Montana’s rivers and Alaska’s unforgiving backcountry, the film captures Jesse’s relentless drive to reclaim his identity and inspire others through the healing power of nature.

Keith Ailes, the director of MEND, came to me with a mountain of beautiful footage and an outline of Jesse’s powerful story. My first job was to build out the story edit, focusing on soundbites and structure to get the film flowing in an emotional, captivating structure.

After Keith did a pass putting in the stunning b-roll and slow-motion fly fishing footage, I came in behind him and polished the pacing and story beats. I also worked through archival footage to make sure we had the best moments.

The result if a 1-hour film that captures the beauty of nature and the story of a man who never gave up.