Emily Childs

REVELSTOKE, BRITISH COLUMBIA
 

“We lived at the ski hill and I would have to take a 45-minute bus to school, which made it very easy to stay home, especially if it snowed a bunch. It was like, well, they just ski instead of taking the sketchy bus for 45 minutes to get to school.”

Emily Childs grew up in the mountains of northern British Columbia at Troll Resort. The small ski hill was started by her grandfather, a Norwegian immigrant, logger and builder. When her mother took over the family business after his passing, she moved Emily and her two siblings to live right at the base of the lifts. With four T-bars and endless snow, Troll became both playground and classroom for the three children–the long bus ride was often skipped in favor of powder days and mountain lessons. Skiing wasn’t a sport for Emily; it was just what her family did.

“We were all learning together, and at the same time, we were very competitive. It's almost like the F1 drivers; the person that’s on your team is who you’re the most competitive with. And that was kind of the same for us. The feeling was that if [my sister] could do it, then I could definitely do it, too.”

After high school, Emily made several attempts at university, but skiing always drew her back. She worked a variety of jobs—firefighting, tree planting, cleaning—to support her ski dreams, chasing winters wherever they took her. Eventually, she drove her van to Revelstoke, British Columbia, where she met two like-minded skiers, Janelle Yip and Tonje Kvivik. Together they founded The Blondes, one of the first all-female backcountry ski crews. Their self-shot films celebrated friendship and boldness as much as skiing itself. After winning the People’s Choice Award at a Whistler Film Festival, they caught the attention of Matchstick Productions. Emily went on to appear in Huck Yeah, Stomping Grounds, Anywhere From Here and Blank Collective’s Feel Real, each project reflecting her growing skillset and unrelenting attitude to just keep trying. 

“There are more similarities between flying and skiing than differences. Both offer perspective, require focus, and offer me so much freedom.”

Her style blends boldness with introspection. She is unafraid to launch off cliffs or chase big-mountain lines, yet her skiing carries a soulful awareness of when to surrender. Now based in Squamish, British Columbia, Emily has found a second passion: Flying helicopters. Since earning her commercial pilot’s license in 2019, she has flown for a local company, trading skis for rotors when the snow melts. In both flight and skiing, she is drawn to the same horizon—the search for movement and perspective. For Emily, it has never been just about the descent. It’s all about what we learn from the view from above.

Career Highlights

●    Video Part, How Did We Get Here, The North Face and CK9 Studios (2024)
●    Video Part Calm Beneath Castles, Matchstick Productions (2024)
●    Video Part, Land of Giants, Matchstick Productions (2023)
●    Video Part, Feel Real, Blank Collective (2022)
●    Video Part, Anywhere From Here, Matchstick Productions (2022)
●    Video Part, Stomping Grounds, Matchstick Productions (2021)
●    Video Part, Huck Yeah, Matchstick Productions (2020)
●    People’s Choice Award, Whistler Intersection Film Festival (2018)
●    1st Place, Wrangle the Chute, Kicking Horse Mountain, Canada (2013)

https://www.instagram.com/emilyxchilds/