How I Created an Award-Winning Bike Film (Without Experience)
Despite it being his first attempt at filmmaking, Pak Eugene’s “Riding Han” resoundingly won our 2024 Bikepacking Award for Best Film. In this behind-the-scenes piece, Pak reveals his journey toward becoming a filmmaker and the economic realities of releasing the project. He offers insightful lessons, hard truths, and actionable advice for anyone interested in following suit. See it here…
PUBLISHED Jan 24, 2025
Going into the project, I didn’t know how to use a camera. I didn’t know anyone in the film industry. I didn’t go to film school. I didn’t know anything about filmmaking. I knew nothing. The one thing I did know was that there was a story I really wanted to tell.

During Q&A sessions at screenings of Riding Han (한), people would often ask me for advice on how to get started in filmmaking. This is what I wanted to tell them and what I did to make it: I finally got off my ass and tried this filmmaking thing. Doing so involved a pandemic, quitting school, losing a job, cycles of depression, and buying equipment that I didn’t know how to use. Luckily, I had a trip on the Great Divide coming up that I had planned many years prior.
STEP ONE: The Pitch
From the very beginning, I had always planned on self-financing this film. After all, who would support a filmmaker who didn’t know how to use a camera? The only time I made a “film” was over 15 years ago as a high school student using a camcorder.
So, I turned to the internet to learn the fundamentals of using a camera (thanks, reddit). I spent my free time learning the fundamentals of photography, taking pictures/video around town and diving through the settings. It was hours and hours of trial and error.
Most importantly, I spent months trying to figure out what kind of story I wanted to tell. Here were my truths: I knew a lot of the outdoor content wasn’t resonating with me. I knew people were burnt out on outdoor films that just had people doing cool shit, trying hard or achieving something extraordinary. I knew there was a demand for depth and story in outdoor films.
So, I started with creating a pitch deck, basically an visual elevator pitch, something I’d never done before. Here are some pictures of my first attempt at a pitch deck:

Yeah, brutal. I used PowerPoint and a compilation of photos I’d taken on my phone over the years. But it gave me direction of what my film was going to be about. Although with documentaries, there’s no telling where it will go.

A pitch deck is crucial for trying to fund a film, obtaining partnerships, and getting your story out there for potential collaborators. As you can see, mine was very barebones and amateur. But it’s one of the most important things when creating a film, conveying its structure and essence. All I knew was that I had a pretty unique idea for a bikepacking film, and I created a pitch deck to convince others to support me.
Lesson #1: Find your story and target audience.
Step Two: Funding, False Promises, Failure, and Success
Here’s a breakdown of what I raised for Riding Han (한). Hard numbers, no bullshit.
Source | Promised | Actual |
Corporation #1 (2021) | $6,000 + gear (no contract) | $3,000 + gear |
Corporation #2 (2021) | Funding + Post production support + gear (no contract) | $400 worth of gear + being ghosted |
Nonprofit #1 (2023) | $5,000 (contract) | $5,000 |
Nonprofit #2 (2021-22) | $4,000 (no contract) | $4,000 |
Film Grant(s) (2022) | $1,500 (contract) | $1,500 |
Film shoot on the Divide (2021) | $5,000 (contract) | $5,000 |
TOTAL: | ~$21,500 | $18,500 |
So, how the hell did I get this money? It started with a lot of failure. I sent my super amateur pitch deck to so many companies and heard either “no” or absolutely nothing. A couple of things that helped:
Make the best of opportunities.
Months prior to leaving for our bike trip, an opportunity came out of nowhere. I signed up for a raffle with a non-profit that was collecting information on bikepackers. The grand prize was a $7,000 e-bike. I received a call that I won the bike. On that same call, I made a last-minute decision to pitch my film to the founder of the non-profit, asking if he knew anyone or any company that would be interested in my film idea. That’s how I got connected with Corporation #1. I sold the e-bike a week later to fund the trip for my little brother. Weeks later, I had a meeting with Corporation #1, who was looking for someone like me—a bikepacker with a film idea who wanted to film it themselves.
Lesson #2: Shoot your shot. You never know where it may lead.
Say yes.
A film producer reached out to me via Instagram asking us if we wanted to be part of a production while we were on the Divide. I honestly thought it was a scam but said yes anyways. When someone offers to help, please take them up on it! This unexpected opportunity ended up accounting for a significant portion of the film’s overall budget.
In terms of opportunities, I firmly believe in the law of detachment. Might be woo-woo to some, but, “It’s the ability to release the attachment to what we desire, to allow our minds and the universe to manifest what it is we truly desire.” Once I decided to just stop obsessing over trying to find money for this film, that’s when it all started coming together.
Lesson #3: Make a contract if you want to get paid or want support. Otherwise, it’s possible you won’t. Example: Corporation #1 & #2.

Step Three: Find your people
What I wish I knew earlier when I started this three-year film journey was that filmmaking is a collaborative process. Yes, I could have made this film by myself, but it would have sucked.

I tapped into my small network of friends, acquaintances and to some extent, social media. I asked my childhood best friend to go on this journey with us as the primary videographer. I had others give me feedback on my rough drafts of the film. I used social media (with around 1,800 followers at the time, nothing massive) to ask for connections for funding, which is how I obtained funding from Non-Profit #2. I also reached out to friends while on our journey for help and hosting.
Lesson #4: Ask anyone and everyone for help. You just never know (I suck at asking for help).
Step Four: Grit, Give Up, and Try Again
Here’s my timeline from beginning to end of the Riding Han (한) film:
- February 2020: Film inception, pre-production
- February 2021: Bought camera, gear, and drone
- June 2021: Departed for Great Divide trip, production
- September 2021: Finished Great Divide trip
- October 2021 to 2023: Learn how to edit, post-production
- May 2023: Finished the film
- May 2023 to December 2024: Film festivals, screenings, etc.
- December 2024: Never think about the film ever again!
From October 2021 to May 2023, there was about a year and a half of post-production (editing). The reason why it took so long was because I edited it myself without knowing what I was doing.

This process involved going through all the footage, taking documentary courses, giving up for a few months, and trying again. During this time, I also: learned two editing software programs (as I wanted to become an editor), sent my film drafts to 3-4 different people for feedback, tried going to school for visual media (and quit), made 15+ rough drafts, edited two trailers (official and unofficial), took a film distribution and adventure filmmaker course, established a production company, tried to go full-time freelance (and failed), and moved cross country.
Honestly, the list is just endless of what happened to me during 2023. It was one of the most difficult years in recent memory with multiple injuries, mental health, relationships, long-COVID, and finances. It took grit and grit again to complete this damn thing.
I’m so glad to be done with this project, as it consumed my life and identity. It was an anchor during a really dark time of my life in the best and worst ways. It took all of my energy to the point that I came out of the other side not caring that much about it anymore. I had so many other things that were going on in my life. But, I knew I had to finish. Otherwise, I’d regret it and it was definitely worth it. If I can do it, I believe you can too.
Lesson #5: “Go Slow to Go Fast.”
You can find more of Pak’s work at PakEugene.com and on Instagram.
Further Reading
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