Through failure sprouts growth.

WALMSLEY is a feature-length documentary that follows Jim Walmsley’s journey from the depths of a US Air Force Missile Silo to becoming the first American man to win UTMB by running 100 miles faster than anyone else in the world.

Synopsis

The loosely knit fabric of all sports is dyed with the idea of “goals”. They come and go, public or private, they inspire us and others. The commonality is that true greatness is never achieved without one. Greatness requires a lofty goal–and a person's identity to align with it. This is an intimate, raw, and inspiring documentary about Jim Walmsley pursuing–through many failures– and achieving his goal to be the first American man to win UTMB.

Jim Walmsley found ultra running through an unlikely sequence of events. After running in circles on the track semi-seriously through highschool and college, he hung up the shoes to join the military. After analyzing Jim’s personality and skillset, they assigned him to a nuclear missile silo in Montana where he spent weeks underground in isolation. He was eventually kicked out of the military which inspired him to get back to his roots: running. Instead of circles, Jim needed to find freedom, so he went to the trails–eventually becoming one of the best ultra-distance trail runners America has ever scene.

After setting 4 of the fastest course records at America’s biggest trail race, Western States, Jim grew restless and hungry for a new goal and ladder to climb: UTMB – the super bowl of trail running. It’s a 100+ mile race that circumnavigates Mont Blanc, the highest point in Europe, and goes through three different countries while doing so.

Jim attempted to win UTMB 4 times, each time failing in a different capacity. Finally, he decided that he needed to go all-in on his mindset, training, and lifestyle in order to be as good as the europeans and moved to to live and train in France with his wife Jess.

In 2023, he became the first american male to ever win UTMB, through a wildly dramatic turn of mid-race events. He now sits on the shoulders of the great American women who have won the race time and time again.

How the film was made

WALMSLEY is a true documentary with intimate, raw, and never-before-seen footage of Jim & Jess’s life. We are eternally grateful to both Wahoo, HOKA, Jim & Jess to giving OVRLND.studio nearly 100% creative control and unlimited access to create this film. It’s the culmination of 4+ years of work and the compilation of the previous shorter WALMSLEY 1-3 series. We took an organic approach to filming this by embedding ourselves in Jim’s life. Ultimately OVRLND.studio's friendship with Jim is what enabled us to create this unique film, from a perspective that no one else could tell.