Pakistan native Asim Khan Yousafzai is more than a freerunner: he is a teacher, a fighter, and above all, a survivor. As a child, he lived through the 2005 Kashmir earthquake. Freerunner Asim Khan explains how he rose above limited resources to become a hero.

Directed by Ali Imran Ch

Executive Producer: Albert Crane

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Review by Julie Sheppard:

This exhilarating short film Asim Khan “AK” | Parkour inspires the viewer to embrace dreams against all odds. Asim Khan allows us to see his path from being exposed to the horrors of the tragic Pakistan earthquake of 2005 (with heartbreaking video footage of the quake and the resulting carnage), to displaying his repeated acrobatic attempts and failures, to recounting his wildly successful career as a freerunner. 

The swift, inquisitive eye of the camera catches Asim’s intense athleticism as he jumps, twists, and flips — extreme close ups allow us to see his determined facial expressions and his agile limbs doing the work. It is thrilling to hear his underdog story about how he moved from enduring ridicule from others at the start of his pursuit, to being highly respected and honoured for his gravity-defying craft. The rapid-fire shots of him (and his equally determined teammates) running through the streets and scaling cement buildings were particularly electrifying. 

It would be remiss not to mention the film’s soundtrack — moving from gloomy ominous refrains during the earthquake footage, to powerful rhythmic sounds during the dizzying parkour/freerunning scenes. Despite his painful struggles in the aftermath of the earthquake, the film proves that Asim is still able to fulfill his dream to literally “fly on earth”.