Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi

Directing

Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi

Born

1979-01-01 (47)

Place of birth

New York City, New York, USA

Known for

Directing

Credits

35 titles

Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi is an American documentary filmmaker. She was the director, along with her husband, Jimmy Chin, for the film Free Solo, which won the 2019 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. The film profiled Alex Honnold and his free solo climb of El Capitan in June 2017. Their first scripted film venture was Nyad, a biopic chronicling Diana Nyad's quest to be the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida. Vasarhelyi grew up in New York City, and is the daughter of Marina Vasarhelyi, a college administrator, and Miklós Vásárhelyi, a college professor. Her father is a Hungarian-born Brazilian and her mother is from Hong Kong. Vasarhelyi is a graduate of The Brearley School…

Known for

The Oscars poster
7.1

An annual American awards ceremony honoring cinematic achievements in the film industry. The various category winners are awarded a copy of a statuette, officially the Academy Award of Merit, that is better known by its nickname Oscar.

The Oscars

1953

Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter poster
6.2

Some of this year's most talked about talent open up about the challenges and triumphs of creating critically acclaimed series and performances.

Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter

2015

The Rescue poster
8.0

The enthralling, against-all-odds story that transfixed the world in 2018: the daring rescue of twelve boys and their coach from deep inside a flooded cave in Northern Thailand.

The Rescue

2021

Wild Life poster
7.1

From Oscar-winning filmmakers Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, "Wild Life" follows conservationist Kris Tompkins on an epic, decades-spanning love story as wild as the landscapes she dedicated her life to protecting. After falling in love in mid-life, Kris and the outdoorsman and entrepreneur Doug Tompkins left behind the world of the massively successful outdoor brands they'd helped pioneer like Patagonia, The North Face, and Esprit, and turned their attention to a visionary effort to create National Parks throughout Chile and Argentina. "Wild Life" chronicles the highs and lows of their journey to effect the largest private land donation in history.

Wild Life

2023

Endurance poster
7.0

A century after Shackleton's Endurance sank beneath the ice, explorers uncover the legendary shipwreck and an amazing tale of survival.

Endurance

2024

NYAD poster
7.1

Athlete Diana Nyad sets out at 60 to achieve a nearly impossible lifelong dream: to swim from Cuba to Florida across more than 100 miles of open ocean.

NYAD

2023

Film credits

Series credits

Behind the camera

The Rescue poster
8.0

The enthralling, against-all-odds story that transfixed the world in 2018: the daring rescue of twelve boys and their coach from deep inside a flooded cave in Northern Thailand.

The Rescue

2021

The Rescue poster
8.0

The enthralling, against-all-odds story that transfixed the world in 2018: the daring rescue of twelve boys and their coach from deep inside a flooded cave in Northern Thailand.

The Rescue

2021

Wild Life poster
7.1

From Oscar-winning filmmakers Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, "Wild Life" follows conservationist Kris Tompkins on an epic, decades-spanning love story as wild as the landscapes she dedicated her life to protecting. After falling in love in mid-life, Kris and the outdoorsman and entrepreneur Doug Tompkins left behind the world of the massively successful outdoor brands they'd helped pioneer like Patagonia, The North Face, and Esprit, and turned their attention to a visionary effort to create National Parks throughout Chile and Argentina. "Wild Life" chronicles the highs and lows of their journey to effect the largest private land donation in history.

Wild Life

2023

Wild Life poster
7.1

From Oscar-winning filmmakers Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, "Wild Life" follows conservationist Kris Tompkins on an epic, decades-spanning love story as wild as the landscapes she dedicated her life to protecting. After falling in love in mid-life, Kris and the outdoorsman and entrepreneur Doug Tompkins left behind the world of the massively successful outdoor brands they'd helped pioneer like Patagonia, The North Face, and Esprit, and turned their attention to a visionary effort to create National Parks throughout Chile and Argentina. "Wild Life" chronicles the highs and lows of their journey to effect the largest private land donation in history.

Wild Life

2023

Endurance poster
7.0

A century after Shackleton's Endurance sank beneath the ice, explorers uncover the legendary shipwreck and an amazing tale of survival.

Endurance

2024

Endurance poster
7.0

A century after Shackleton's Endurance sank beneath the ice, explorers uncover the legendary shipwreck and an amazing tale of survival.

Endurance

2024

NYAD poster
7.1

Athlete Diana Nyad sets out at 60 to achieve a nearly impossible lifelong dream: to swim from Cuba to Florida across more than 100 miles of open ocean.

NYAD

2023

Free Solo poster
7.9

Follow Alex Honnold as he attempts to become the first person to ever free solo climb Yosemite's 3,000 foot high El Capitan wall. With no ropes or safety gear, this would arguably be the greatest feat in rock climbing history.

Free Solo

2018

Free Solo poster
7.9

Follow Alex Honnold as he attempts to become the first person to ever free solo climb Yosemite's 3,000 foot high El Capitan wall. With no ropes or safety gear, this would arguably be the greatest feat in rock climbing history.

Free Solo

2018

Love+War poster
6.7

Pulitzer Prize-winning conflict photojournalist Lynsey Addario reflects on a career working in some of the world's most dangerous war zones, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Love+War

2025

Love+War poster
6.7

Pulitzer Prize-winning conflict photojournalist Lynsey Addario reflects on a career working in some of the world's most dangerous war zones, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Love+War

2025

Return to Space poster
6.5

The inspirational rise of SpaceX as well as Elon Musk's two-decade effort to resurrect America’s space travel ambitions.

Return to Space

2022

Return to Space poster
6.5

The inspirational rise of SpaceX as well as Elon Musk's two-decade effort to resurrect America’s space travel ambitions.

Return to Space

2022

Everest: The Other Side poster
NR

An intimate portrait of two people bound by love, ambition, and the pursuit of the impossible. Elite ski mountaineers Jim Morrison and Hilaree Nelson fell deeply in love while reaching the pinnacle of their sport. Their drive sharpened into a shared dream: to climb and ski the direct North Face of Mount Everest—the most difficult and dangerous climb on the mountain and the most coveted ski line on Earth—something only a handful have ever achieved, and no one has successfully skied down.

Everest: The Other Side

2026

Everest: The Other Side poster
NR

An intimate portrait of two people bound by love, ambition, and the pursuit of the impossible. Elite ski mountaineers Jim Morrison and Hilaree Nelson fell deeply in love while reaching the pinnacle of their sport. Their drive sharpened into a shared dream: to climb and ski the direct North Face of Mount Everest—the most difficult and dangerous climb on the mountain and the most coveted ski line on Earth—something only a handful have ever achieved, and no one has successfully skied down.

Everest: The Other Side

2026

Everest: The Other Side poster
NR

An intimate portrait of two people bound by love, ambition, and the pursuit of the impossible. Elite ski mountaineers Jim Morrison and Hilaree Nelson fell deeply in love while reaching the pinnacle of their sport. Their drive sharpened into a shared dream: to climb and ski the direct North Face of Mount Everest—the most difficult and dangerous climb on the mountain and the most coveted ski line on Earth—something only a handful have ever achieved, and no one has successfully skied down.

Everest: The Other Side

2026

Lost in the Jungle poster
7.2

After a deadly plane crash strands four young siblings deep within the Colombian rainforest, a dramatic rescue mission unfolds, uniting Indigenous trackers and the military in a race against time. For the first time ever, this documentay offers the exclusive account of this incredible true story directly from the children themselves and the rescuers who scoured the Amazon rainforest for a grueling 40 days and nights to find them.

Lost in the Jungle

2025

Lost in the Jungle poster
7.2

After a deadly plane crash strands four young siblings deep within the Colombian rainforest, a dramatic rescue mission unfolds, uniting Indigenous trackers and the military in a race against time. For the first time ever, this documentay offers the exclusive account of this incredible true story directly from the children themselves and the rescuers who scoured the Amazon rainforest for a grueling 40 days and nights to find them.

Lost in the Jungle

2025

Bartali poster
NR

Gino Bartali became a national hero after winning the Tour de France in 1938 but whose career was put on hold for a decade following the outbreak of World War II. In 1948, ten years past his prime, he would attempt to reclaim his title despite years without competitive racing.

Bartali

—

Bartali poster
NR

Gino Bartali became a national hero after winning the Tour de France in 1938 but whose career was put on hold for a decade following the outbreak of World War II. In 1948, ten years past his prime, he would attempt to reclaim his title despite years without competitive racing.

Bartali

—

Meru poster
7.4

Meru is the electrifying story of three elite American climbers—Conrad Anker, Jimmy Chin, and Renan Ozturk—bent on achieving the impossible.

Meru

2015

Meru poster
7.4

Meru is the electrifying story of three elite American climbers—Conrad Anker, Jimmy Chin, and Renan Ozturk—bent on achieving the impossible.

Meru

2015

Youssou Ndour: I Bring What I Love poster
8.0

Senegalese pop sensation Youssou Ndour has spent the last 20 years in the spotlight as a world-renowned musician and the iconic representative "voice of Africa." At the height of his career, Youssou became frustrated by the negative perception of his Muslim faith and composed Egypt, a deeply spiritual album dedicated to a more tolerant view of Islam. The album's brave musical message was wholeheartedly embraced by Western audiences but ignited serious religious controversy in his homeland of Senegal. The film chronicles the difficult journey Youssou must undertake to assume his true calling.

Youssou Ndour: I Bring What I Love

2008

Youssou Ndour: I Bring What I Love poster
8.0

Senegalese pop sensation Youssou Ndour has spent the last 20 years in the spotlight as a world-renowned musician and the iconic representative "voice of Africa." At the height of his career, Youssou became frustrated by the negative perception of his Muslim faith and composed Egypt, a deeply spiritual album dedicated to a more tolerant view of Islam. The album's brave musical message was wholeheartedly embraced by Western audiences but ignited serious religious controversy in his homeland of Senegal. The film chronicles the difficult journey Youssou must undertake to assume his true calling.

Youssou Ndour: I Bring What I Love

2008

Youssou Ndour: I Bring What I Love poster
8.0

Senegalese pop sensation Youssou Ndour has spent the last 20 years in the spotlight as a world-renowned musician and the iconic representative "voice of Africa." At the height of his career, Youssou became frustrated by the negative perception of his Muslim faith and composed Egypt, a deeply spiritual album dedicated to a more tolerant view of Islam. The album's brave musical message was wholeheartedly embraced by Western audiences but ignited serious religious controversy in his homeland of Senegal. The film chronicles the difficult journey Youssou must undertake to assume his true calling.

Youssou Ndour: I Bring What I Love

2008

Incorruptible poster
4.0

In the Spring of 2011, Senegal was pitched into crisis when President Abdoulaye Wade decided to change the constitution to allow for a third term. An artist-led youth movement erupted to protect one of Africa' oldest and most stable democracies.

Incorruptible

2015

What if He Falls? poster
NR

In 2017, when Alex Honnold made his stunning free-solo ascent of Yosemite's El Capitan, he was taking an unimaginable risk: nearly three thousand feet of climbing without any ropes or safety equipment. But was the climb made even riskier by the filmmakers who accompanied him?

What if He Falls?

2018

Touba poster
NR

With unprecedented access and dynamic 16mm cinematography, Touba reveals a different face of Islam by chronicling Sufi Muslims’ annual pilgrimage to the city of Touba.

Touba

2013

A Normal Life poster
8.0

Follows 7 young friends over 3 years after the war in Kosovo.

A Normal Life

2003

A Normal Life poster
8.0

Follows 7 young friends over 3 years after the war in Kosovo.

A Normal Life

2003

A Normal Life poster
8.0

Follows 7 young friends over 3 years after the war in Kosovo.

A Normal Life

2003