Down to Earth

Ernesto Gainza stands 4,000 meters above the ground in Dubai, preparing to set a Guinness world record skydiving with the smallest and fastest parachute in history. Experts say he is likely to die, but he jumps. Born in Valencia, Venezuela, Ernesto’s father died the day before he was born, leaving his mother to care for him and his sister single handedly in humble circumstances. After a difficult divorce, Ernesto gave up everything to move to Europe and took a skydiving course. His life changed forever and a career in parachute stunts quickly developed in a dream of setting a world record by April 5, 2014. DOWN TO EARTH follows Ernesto on his remarkable path towards this day. He travels back home to Venezuela for the first time in years, struggling to make sense of the dangerous life he chose and find acceptance from a father he left behind. More than a story of human resilience, this is a story of a man who must risk his life to come to terms with his past. In the end Ernesto’s will to survive is not for the world record, but to come down to earth to find his way home.