ESPN announces new sports film initiative
ESPN made an announcement today that should lead to the production of more sports movies, which could/should be a good thing.
It is difficult to produce serious, scripted sports flicks these days, and ESPN has the resources to make it happen.
So we'll keep an eye on this.
Click below for the news release.
ESPN Films, a new initiative announced today by Keith Clinkscales, ESPN senior vice president, content development and enterprises, will present quality scripted and documentary film projects for television and theatrical release, including "30/30," a celebration of the last three decades of sports timed with ESPN's 30th anniversary in September 2009.
The announcement also marks a new collaboration with The Walt Disney Studios on scripted sports films. The new unit will be part of the ESPN Content Development group.
For the “30/30” initiative, ESPN will invite 30 filmmakers to each tell a sports-themed story. The one-hour films will begin airing Tuesday nights on ESPN in September 2009 and be televised through 2010. The filmmaker roster will be announced in the coming weeks and will include industry veterans as well as celebrities who share a passion for sports.
In the area of feature films, ESPN Films will work with The Walt Disney Studios when exploring opportunities to develop, produce and distribute sports-themed theatrical films.
Clinkscales said, “We’ve spent the past several years testing the waters for sports-themed films with positive results. ESPN Films is the culmination of our efforts to get great content in the hands of sports fans, and hopefully, spur the creation of additional projects. With the guidance and partnership of Disney, we can accomplish both of these goals efficiently.”
“Every sports event is storytelling in real time,” said Dick Cook, chairman of The Walt Disney Studios. “There’s drama in every encounter, as millions witnessed so vividly during this year’s Super Bowl. So, it’s no surprise that sports lend themselves especially well to the stories we tell on the screen, in such hit films as The Mighty Ducks, Remember the Titans and The Rookie. I’m thrilled that sports-themed films will now have their own label at Disney and ESPN. We believe this represents a big score for sports fans and moviegoers alike.”
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Comments (2)
Lets hope its better than "The Bronx is Burning"I watched every episode but came away very disappointed in the end. It would have been good if it was a college film product but after all it was ESPN, the bar should have been set higher one would think.
I think the problems with ESPN films can be easily solved:
-Better makeup. Tom Berenger looked like burn victim as Bear Bryant.
-Better editing and effects. The Bronx Is Burning scenes at Yankee Stadium looked like something cooked up on Youtube. Horrific.
-Have Barry Pepper play all the leads. Seriously this guy can embody all the roles he plays. Next up: Brett Favre!