Making a Mountain

“Wilkommen, bienvenue,” the CEO sang in 2011 when BIG won the architecture competition for a large waste-to-energy plant with a ski slope on top. A camera has followed the process since the tentative beginnings of what became known – from the very first sod cut – as a visionary project that combines waste management and infrastructure with spectacular architecture and a recreational urban space. But it is going to be an uphill struggle. The challenges soon pile up along with questions: How do you even combine a waste-to-energy plant with a ski slope?How far is a property developer willing to go? And how much can an architect actually push through when all is said and done?