# Stein Retzlaff

> Stein Retzlaff is an entrepreneur and explorer, and the founder and CEO of LINX. In the last ten years he has been on more than 150 expeditions across all seven continents, over 50 of them to the Arctic and Antarctic. He grew up in the mountains of Lake Tahoe, and at 22 led his first Arctic expedition, in Svalbard, for one of Leonardo DiCaprio's documentaries. He has made first ski descents in the Arctic, skied Denali from its 6,190 m summit while guiding and filming its first adaptive ski descent, and crossed the Arctic Ocean with Mike Horn and Børge Ousland. Through LINX and his production company, Stein Studios, he brings people into the moments that change them, and turns those moments into stories that last.

Updated 27 October 2026.

From Lake Tahoe, California. CEO of Stein Productions LLC, which runs Stein Studios. LINX and Stein Studios are separate companies.

## Profiles

- https://www.instagram.com/steinretzlaff/
- https://www.linkedin.com/in/stein-retzlaff-b94996b7/
- https://www.youtube.com/@steinretzlaff
- https://vimeo.com/user101645955
- https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12112952/

## Companies

- LINX Experience Inc. (LINX): Founder. Infrastructure for luxury travel, incorporated on 28 January 2026. https://linxexperience.com
- Stein Studios: founded 2021; CEO of Stein Productions LLC, which runs Stein Studios. https://steinretzlaff.com/work
- Intrepid Adventure Film Festival: Co-Founder. https://steinretzlaff.com/story/intrepid-adventure-film-festival

## The record

- [The full record](https://steinretzlaff.com/record): 58 of his expeditions and productions documented with place, date, role, partners, work and press (a part of his 150+ expeditions, not the total).
- [Press](https://steinretzlaff.com/press): Work featured in Hulu, HBO, National Geographic, Red Bull, Vogue, Outside TV, Warren Miller and SeaLegacy.
- [My Work](https://steinretzlaff.com/work)
- [LINX](https://steinretzlaff.com/linx)
- [Work with Stein](https://steinretzlaff.com/collaborate)
- [Write to Stein](https://steinretzlaff.com/contact)

## Partnerships

- HBO: https://www.hbo.com/
- Hulu: https://www.hulu.com/
- National Geographic: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/
- Outside TV: https://www.outsidetv.com/
- Warren Miller: https://www.warrenmiller.com/
- Horn Media
- NRK: https://www.nrk.no/
- Vogue: https://www.vogue.com/
- Red Bull
- Tree Media
- Intrepid Productions
- Mosaic Studios
- SeaLegacy: https://www.sealegacy.org/
- Do Good Shit: https://www.dogoodshit.org/
- Waves for Water: https://www.wavesforwater.org/
- EYOS Expeditions: https://www.eyos-expeditions.com/
- Ice Axe Expeditions: https://www.iceaxe.tv/
- Intrepid Adventure Film Festival
- 10 Barrel Brewing: https://www.10barrel.com/
- Pamella Roland
- Expedition Terra: https://www.expeditionterra.co/
- Tahoe Adventure Film Festival
- Stept Studios: https://www.steptstudios.com/
- Revo: https://www.revo.com/
- Zodiac Watches: https://www.zodiacwatches.com/
- Mammut: https://www.mammut.com/
- KAILAS: https://www.kailas.com/
- Taiga Motors: https://www.taigamotors.com/
- Mustang Survival: https://www.mustangsurvival.com/
- HempFusion
- Snapchat: https://www.snap.com/
- N4A
- Outside Inc.: https://www.outsideinc.com/
- Lakeshirts: https://www.lakeshirts.com/
- MDV
- BOAT International: https://www.boatinternational.com/
- Omaze: https://www.omaze.com/
- Protect Our Winters: https://protectourwinters.org/
- Fjällräven: https://www.fjallraven.com/
- Global Green: https://www.globalgreen.org/
- SnowBrains: https://snowbrains.com/
- Every Man Jack: https://www.everymanjack.com/

## My Work

- [Pamella Roland · FW26 Antarctica](https://vimeo.com/1192442109/320d95fc40): Director · Cinematographer, 2026
- [M/Y Solace · The Eastern Caribbean](https://vimeo.com/1172993215/c35dc2211e): Director · Producer, 2026
- [Solace x EYOS · Dominica](https://vimeo.com/1173043551): Director · Producer, 2026
- [Pamella Roland · SS27](https://vimeo.com/1234502705/d15696360e): Director, 2026
- [Forged by Nature](https://vimeo.com/1094129891/434d39f6d9): Director, 2025
- [Kenya x Expedition Terra](https://vimeo.com/1058420124/dfe3bc1c42): Director · Cinematographer, 2025
- [Greenland Ski & Sail · Highlight](https://vimeo.com/1068336523/f1972f58bf): Director, 2025
- [Ring of Fire · Episode 1: Volcano Sufferfest](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbQGAszo-WE): Athlete · Producer, 2025
- [Ring of Fire · Episode 2: 1,000 Miles, 12 Volcanoes](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtQZZtksrro): Athlete · Producer, 2025
- [Ring of Fire · Episode 3: The Oregon Cascades](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_5OVCnlqK0): Athlete · Producer, 2025
- [Ring of Fire · Episode 4: Rainier, Adams and the Finale](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcxttOQSMFM): Athlete · Producer, 2025
- [Greenland Ski & Sail · Teaser](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8-94FzZIcs): Director, 2025
- [Exploring the Amazon](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LqKJcS-uOE): Producer · Director, 2024
- [Mosaic Studios Reel](https://vimeo.com/877995635/63ab84ce73): Co-Founder, 2023
- [Life Below Zero · Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6OH6svuf44A): Cinematographer (series), 2022
- [Waves for Water: Hurricane Iota Response, Guatemala](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7sCDeCbGECs): Cinematographer · Editor, 2020
- [Riding Remote: Antarctica · Meet the Guides](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hh8an8AH2v4): Executive Producer, 2019
- [Full Circle](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tL8_sewSFHE): Starring, 2019
- [Area 11](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1fsVH6qAgE): Director · Expedition Leader · Executive Producer · Cinematographer, 2019

## Expeditions and productions documented on the record

A part of his 150+ expeditions: the 58 documented here so far.

- [Family and Brothers](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/lake-tahoe): 1994 to 2012, Lake Tahoe, California. My family is my heart and soul. I grew up in the mountains of Lake Tahoe with my two brothers, without a TV or a phone, building forts in the woods.
- [Lewis & Clark](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/lewis-clark): 2012 to 2016, Portland, Oregon. At Lewis & Clark I met Erich Roepke. In 2016 I graduated with a BA in Economics, and the two of us taught ourselves how to use cameras.
- [The Chairlift](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/whistler-chairlift): 2016, Whistler, British Columbia, Skier. 16 January 2016, a chairlift at Whistler Blackcomb with Erich Roepke and a seat next to the polar explorer Doug Stoup, the mentor who sent me north.
- [Intrepid Productions](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/intrepid-98): 2016, Lake Tahoe, California, Co-Founder · Managing Director. Erich Roepke, Doug Stoup and I formed Intrepid Productions at Lake Tahoe in 2016 to adventure with purpose, and its first expedition was the Amazon.
- [Brazilian Amazon](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/brazilian-amazon): 2016, Rio Negro, Brazil, Producer · Expedition Cameraman. Our first actual expedition, down the Rio Negro by paddleboard and dugout with Erich Roepke and Doug Stoup, for Ice Axe Expeditions.
- [Ice on Fire](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/ice-on-fire): 2017, Svalbard, Norway, Expedition Leader · Polar Guide. At 22 I led my first Arctic expedition with a compass and a map: twenty-seven days in Svalbard for Leonardo DiCaprio's film Ice on Fire, on HBO.
- [SeaLegacy and National Geographic](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/sealegacy-consulting): 2017 to 2019, Northern fjords, Svalbard, Social Media · Expedition Producer. Erich Roepke and I went to work telling stories for SeaLegacy and National Geographic, as social media and expedition producers on its voyages.
- [Pyramiden](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/pyramiden): 2017, Pyramiden, Svalbard. In 2017 I crossed by snowmobile from Longyearbyen to Pyramiden, the abandoned Soviet mining town in the frozen interior of Svalbard.
- [SeaLegacy x National Geographic](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/sealegacy-national-geographic): 2017, Somerset Island, Nunavut, Strategist · Social Media Producer. I supported SeaLegacy on the starving polar bear, the most viral conservation campaign in the world in 2017. It was sad to see, but that was the point.
- [Antarctica](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/antarctica-first-season): 2017, Antarctic Peninsula. From 28 October to 16 November 2017, shooting and skiing on the Antarctic Peninsula with Ice Axe Expeditions. My first season, and I kept going back.
- [Cordillera Blanca](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/cordillera-blanca): 2018, Cordillera Blanca, Peru. Two peaks turned me back in the Cordillera Blanca. Then the summit and a ski descent of Pisco, and the summits of Ishinca and Urus above Huaraz.
- [Do Good Shit](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/do-good-shit): 2018, Everest region, Nepal, Co-Founder. In 2018 I co-founded Do Good Shit, a non-profit, with Erich Roepke, my brother Thor and another friend. That November we took it to the Everest region.
- [Atomfjella First Descents](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/atomfjella-first-descents): 2019, Atomfjella, Svalbard, Expedition Leader · Ski Guide · Director. Six first ski descents in fourteen days in Atomfjella, as expedition leader and ski guide, on Svalbard peaks so remote they have no names.
- [Area 11](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/area-11): 2019, Svalbard, Norway, Director · Expedition Leader · Executive Producer · Cinematographer. Area 11 is the story of the 2019 Atomfjella expedition in Svalbard, which I led, made for Intrepid Productions and Outside TV.
- [Svalbard Ski & Sail](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/svalbard-ski-sail-2019): 2019, West coast, Svalbard, Expedition Leader · Ski Guide · Producer. Twenty-eight days sailing and skiing the west coast of Svalbard with Ice Axe Expeditions, as expedition leader, ski guide and producer.
- [Svalbard Polar Training](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/svalbard-polar-training): 2019 to 2023, Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Expedition Leader · Guide. I led seven-day polar training courses outside Longyearbyen in 2019 and again in 2023, 140 kilometers each, as expedition leader and guide.
- [North Pole Crossing](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/north-pole-crossing): 2019, Arctic Ocean, Producer · Sailing Crew. On the Arctic Ocean, an explorer gave me the line I still live by. Thirty-one days aboard Pangaea, from Nome, Alaska, through the Northeast Passage.
- [Riding Remote](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/riding-remote): 2019, Antarctic Peninsula, Executive Producer. Doug Stoup and I took four snowboarders to ride the Antarctic Peninsula. Two years after my first season, Antarctica had become a place I worked.
- [Full Circle](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/full-circle): 2019, Volcán Corcovado, Chile, Starring. The most epic all-around adventure of my life, a ski expedition to Volcán Corcovado in Chilean Patagonia with Erich Roepke and my brother Thor.
- [Legend · HAST in Antarctica](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/antarctica-legend-hast): 2020, King George Island, Antarctica, Skier · Cameraman. Aboard Legend in Antarctica: the first permitted heli-assisted ski touring from a yacht. That was the beginning of my EYOS Antarctica career.
- [EYOS Expeditions](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/eyos-expeditions): 2020, Antarctic Peninsula, Storytelling Partner. A storytelling partnership with EYOS Expeditions, the private expedition company, on yachts from Antarctica to Greenland and the South Pacific.
- [Ring of Fire](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/ring-of-fire): 2020, Cascade volcanoes, Pacific Northwest, Athlete · Producer. A casual bike ride to ski some volcanoes turned into thirty days of sufferfest: more than 1,000 miles by bike between the Cascade volcanoes.
- [Mosaic Studios](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/mosaic-studios): Lake Tahoe, California, Co-Founder · Co-CEO. Co-founder and co-CEO of Mosaic Studios, a Lake Tahoe production company built around remote production. Work made with it carries its credit.
- [Waves for Water](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/waves-for-water): 2020, Guatemala, Cinematographer · Editor. Hurricane Iota tore through Central America in 2020. Erich Roepke and I went to Guatemala with Waves for Water, and I shot and edited the story.
- [HMHS Britannic](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/britannic): 2021, Kea Channel, Aegean Sea, Producer · Cameraman. Down to the Britannic on the floor of the Aegean, for a science project. In 2021 I was producer and cameraman, off Greece, in the Kea Channel.
- [Dominican Republic](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/dominican-republic): 2021, Dominican Republic. A kiteboarding project on the north coast of the Dominican Republic in 2021. Wind and warm water instead of snow, a long way from the ice.
- [Denali · Winter Starts Now](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/denali): 2021, Denali, Alaska, Producer · Cinematographer. I skied Denali from the summit while guiding and shooting its first adaptive ski descent: two adaptive athletes, the West Rib, 20,310 feet.
- [Intrepid Adventure Film Festival](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/intrepid-adventure-film-festival): Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, Co-Founder. I co-founded the Intrepid Adventure Film Festival in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota: adventure stories, live music and the outdoor community.
- [Antarctica Discoveries](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/antarctica-discoveries-2022): 2021 to 2022, Antarctic Peninsula, Producer · Photographer · Filmmaker. Over the New Year of 2022, back on the Antarctic Peninsula aboard Legend with EYOS Expeditions and a helicopter, on a new route of islands.
- [Iceland Ski & Sail](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/iceland-ski-sail): 2022, Iceland, Director · Producer · Expedition Cameraman · Ski Guide. Ten days of sailing and skiing in Iceland with Ice Axe Expeditions, as expedition cameraman and ski guide. Another Ski & Sail, after Svalbard.
- [Greenland Heli Ski](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/greenland-heli-ski-2022): 2022, Disko Island, Greenland, Director · Producer · Expedition Cameraman · Ski Guide. Heli-skiing from a yacht around Disko Island, Greenland, with EYOS Expeditions, as producer, expedition cameraman and ski guide.
- [Life Below Zero](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/life-below-zero): 2022, Huslia, Alaska, Cinematographer. In 2022 I was a cinematographer on Life Below Zero in Huslia, Alaska, for the BBC and National Geographic. Life in Huslia, as it is lived.
- [The Crux](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/the-crux): 2022, Lake Tahoe, California, Director · Executive Producer · Cinematographer · Drone. Back home in Lake Tahoe to make The Crux in 2022, as executive producer, cinematographer and drone operator. A story on my own mountains.
- [French Polynesia](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/french-polynesia): 2022, French Polynesia, Producer · Expedition and Underwater Cameraman. The camera went underwater in French Polynesia, aboard M/Y Hanse Explorer with EYOS Expeditions. Vogue ran it as Expedition Yachting.
- [Antarctica aboard M/Y Octopus](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/antarctica-octopus): 2023, Antarctic Peninsula, Director · Cinematographer. February 2023, Antarctica from the deck of the 126-meter expedition yacht M/Y Octopus with EYOS Expeditions. Helicopters off the foredeck.
- [Svalbard Ski & Sail](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/svalbard-ski-sail-2023): 2023, Northwest coast, Svalbard, Ski Guide. Back on the Svalbard coast in 2023 as a ski guide, twelve days of sailing and skiing with Ice Axe Expeditions. Svalbard keeps pulling me back.
- [Greenland Ski & Sail](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/greenland-ski-sail-2023): 2023, Southwest fjords, Greenland, Expedition Cameraman. In 2023, three weeks of Ski & Sail in the southwest fjords of Greenland as expedition cameraman. Greenland from the water this time.
- [Northwest Passage, Again](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/northwest-passage): 2023, Northwest Passage, Nunavut, Expedition Cameraman. Back through the Northwest Passage six years later, among polar bears and belugas: 20 days along one of the most remote sea routes on Earth.
- [Costa Rica and Cocos Island](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/costa-rica-cocos): 2023, Cocos Island, Costa Rica, Producer · Expedition and Underwater Cameraman. Underwater with the hammerheads of Cocos Island. In 2023 I was producer, expedition and underwater cameraman in Costa Rica and Panama.
- [Brazilian Amazon, Again](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/brazilian-amazon-2023): 2023, Brazilian Amazon, Producer · Expedition Cameraman. Seven years later, back on the Rio Negro. Paddleboard and dugout again, piranhas and peacock bass on a hand line, a riverboat home each night.
- [Raja Ampat](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/raja-ampat): 2023 to 2024, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, Producer · Expedition and Underwater Cameraman. Among the richest reefs on the planet, aboard S/Y Lamima with EYOS Expeditions. One season was not enough, so I went back in March 2024.
- [The South Pole by Truck](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/south-pole): 2024, The South Pole, Support. I supported a first crossing of Antarctica, Union Glacier to the Leverett Glacier via the South Pole, in Hilux trucks. In trucks, not on skis.
- [Hokkaido](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/hokkaido): 2024, Hokkaido, Japan, Skier. Powder in Hokkaido in 2024 with Leia Buard, a French Olympic mogul skier and a good friend. No production and no client. Just skiing.
- [Greenland Ski & Sail](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/greenland-ski-sail): 2024, Nuuk, Greenland, Director. Eight summits from Nuuk in April 2024, each one skied back down to the water, on four weeks aboard SkyDancer with Ice Axe Expeditions.
- [Kenya · Laikipia](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/kenya-laikipia): 2024, Laikipia, Kenya, Director · Cinematographer. Elephant, rhino and lion, tracked on horseback across Laikipia in 2024, in the Borana Conservancy and at Manda Bay with Expedition Terra.
- [Got to Get Out](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/got-to-get-out): 2024 to 2025, King Township, Ontario, Contestant · Season 1 Co-winner. "The craziest thing I have ever done in my life." Hulu's psychological escape game, Season 1, and I finished as one of its two winners.
- [Monaco](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/monaco): 2024 to 2025, Port Hercule, Monaco, Director · Cinematographer. Monaco: the Yacht Show with EYOS Expeditions in September 2024, the largest explorer yachts afloat in Port Hercule, then the Grand Prix in 2025.
- [Antarctica · Octopus and Legend](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/antarctica-octopus-legend-2024): 2024 to 2025, Antarctic Peninsula, Director · Cinematographer. A second Antarctic voyage on Octopus, December 2024 to January 2025, this time with Legend alongside. My fourth Antarctic voyage with EYOS.
- [Norway and Svalbard by Yacht](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/norway-2025): 2025, Lofoten, Norway, Director · Cinematographer. Skiing Lofoten from a yacht in 2025, in mountains that run straight down into the sea, then north to Svalbard, eight years after Ice on Fire.
- [M/Y Solace](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/solace): 2026, Antigua and Barbuda, Director · Producer. Three days aboard Solace in the Eastern Caribbean. Natural light only, five to ten seconds a shot, and the camera as witness, not performer.
- [LINX Experience Inc.](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/linx-experience-inc): 2026, Truckee, Lake Tahoe, Founder. On 28 January 2026 we started LINX. Every trip before this one depended on who recommended it, and those people were never part of it.
- [Pamella Roland](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/pamella-roland): 2026, New York City, Director · Cinematographer. The New York runway, with the same rule I use on the ice. In 2026 I made the story of Pamella Roland's launch at New York Fashion Week.
- [Monaco Grand Prix](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/monaco-grand-prix-2026): 2026, Monaco, Producer. Filmed the Grand Prix in Monaco in June 2026, with a Stein Studios crew in Port Hercule. A project for a private client.
- [Back to Svalbard](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/svalbard-return-2026): 2026, Svalbard, Norway, Stein Studios. Back in the Svalbard waters where my Arctic story began, this time with my own studio. Stein Studios aboard an expedition yacht, in 2026.
- [Vanuatu](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/vanuatu-2026): 2026, Vanuatu, Director · Director of Photography. Filmed a voyage through the islands of Vanuatu in the South Pacific with EYOS Expeditions in 2026. A project for a private client.
- [Kilimanjaro](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/kilimanjaro): 2026, Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, Director · Director of Photography. Opened a new route on Kilimanjaro, in Tanzania, in 2026, and filmed the climb with Stein Studios. A project for a private client.
- [Pamella Roland · Spring 2027](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/pamella-roland-spring-2027): 2026, New York City, Producer. Pamella Roland's Spring 2027 show in New York on 11 September 2026, made by Stein Studios with a crew in the room while I was on an expedition.
- [Present Day](https://steinretzlaff.com/story/present-day): 2026, Monaco, Founder · CEO. Founder of LINX and CEO of Stein Productions LLC, which runs Stein Studios. On 28 January 2026 I incorporated LINX Experience Inc.