Meet Jon Glassberg | Professional Rock Climber, Filmmaker and Photographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jon Glassberg and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jon, maybe we can start at the very start – the idea – how did you come up with the idea for your business?
I came up with the idea for my business – “Louder Than 11” after realizing there was a huge gap in the climbing space and a hunger for quick, simple climbing media that was available for free for everyone. YouTube and smartphones were not ubiquitous in the 2000s so the moment that DSLR cameras became affordable and easy to shoot with, I grabbed one and started documenting every climb I did or my pro climber friends were doing. At the time there was DVD sales of climbing films and even some VHS videos floating around but everything high end came with a price tag that limited how much exposure was possible from a climbing film. I saw the space for low production value, quick turn video content that was authentic and simple for climbers that wanted to watch climbing. I was creating a couple YouTube/Vimeo videos a week of boulders that we were climbing, editing them, posting them to the web and getting tons of traffic before there was free climbing content really available online. My company was at the forefront of what would become instagram, facebook, youtube, and TikTok for the climbing space, making quick content available for the masses and getting our professional climbing names out there while also building up the skills as filmmakers and photographers in the space. Ultimately we made tons of connections with pro climbers and industry professionals and those relationships turned into more professional commercial opportunities as our skills developed and we got better at business.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Through my company Louder Than 11, I try my best to bring a commercial look and feel to climbing, adventure and expeditions while maintaining authenticity and core climbing appeal. Being able to document rare moments in climbing sport is my passion and following remarkable climbers on their personal journey really inspires me. I like to work with climbers in impossible locations high on walls or in remote parts of the world that most people cant access.

I learned early on that the outdoor industry sees through the BS really easily and knows when someone is authentic and true. I strived for authenticity in everything I did from climbing media to commercial work in the outdoor space as I developed my career. I really believe that you need to pay your dues and it takes time to prove yourself in the media business and you cannot fake it till you make it in the outdoor community. If you are always willing to learn, experimenting all the time, and practicing your craft as often as you can, you get better and you learn from mistakes and eventually it all works out.

It’s not easy and there were tons of down moments in my professional career but I stuck with it throughout the bad times knowing that I wanted to be in the outdoor community as a creator and climber so having a “lifer” mentality really helped.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
When friends come to visit me in Boulder, CO I usually take them up the first flatiron for a quick solo mission to get up high, feel the exposure and get a little scared. I often take climber friends up to Rocky Mountain National Park into Chaos Canyon for some alpine bouldering in the right season or to the summit of Mt. Evans for ridiculous views of the mountains. We might hit Luciles Creole Cafe for a brunch, Black Belly or Chez Thuy for dinner and then a rooftop drink at Corrida or a late night dive at the Sundown Saloon.

I pretty much hang out with climbers so we are always looking for the right conditions and locations to go bouldering around Colorado. I am most inspired to get out and have a climbing day in the mountains with friends when they come to visit.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My shout out goes to my mom and dad who allowed me to follow my dreams of becoming a pro climber at a young age and let me out of the house at 11 years old to travel with older mentors and fall in love with climbing. My family allowed me to have the freedom to explore the world at a young age then supported me through the ups and downs of early adulthood which really just let me experiment with what I was passionate about. Eventually through climbing and the opportunities they provided for me, I found photo and video and was able to combine my two passions into a proper career.

Website: www.lt11.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jonglassberg

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/jonglassberg

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jonglassberg

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jon.glassberg

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/louderthan11

Image Credits
Jessica Glassberg Francois Lebeau