broadcast outcast

Thus far, it hasn’t seemed like a lot was going on within CPS and Simeon to get us working with them.

But I guess it’s more like an anthill than I would have thought.

Last week’s game versus Lincoln Park didn’t offer much in terms of a game. It was a huge mismatch, and was already out of reach by the time five minutes had passed in the first quarter. But while the games themselves leave something to be desired, we have to look at them as just a part of our project. I now see gameday as a chance to network.

Case in point: we chatted with a Tribune reporter who covers high school football. He could be something of a talking head, but we might interview him at some point. If nothing else, he was very helpful and offered to give us contact info of coaches and athletic directors. He also provided insight on how good Simeon is and where they might rank historically. That gave us greater confidence we’d picked the right team to follow.

We also schmoozed with Elliott Ivory, the guy making a doc/highlight reels for Simeon. He runs the highlight reel business and got hooked up with Simeon through his sister, who knows the head coach. He is a terribly friendly guy, gregarious and ambitious. I like him a lot. He’s looking to build this highlight reel business into his full-time job. I am totally cool helping him out, especially since he offered to introduce us to the Simeon coaches and to get us in with players. He’s the lynch pin we needed.

Now, we can’t count our chickens quite yet. We were hoping to meet Elliott on Monday, but he couldn’t attend practice. So we’d set a date for Wednesday–only his car was stolen on Monday and he came an hour and a half late. Sitting in CJ’s car, watching the high schoolers practice and not knowing if we had anything to work with was unsettling. Not so much for that specific assignment, but in the bigger picture as well. Thankfully, Elliott showed, we got our interview, and we got to speak with Coach Dante. He’s great. Not sure if he’d work as our central character, as I feel he’s not quite charismatic enough. But he’s certainly going to be a prominent character. We are on the same page about what we want to do with a documentary: he wants to show people how much this team does with the little it has. Players trade jerseys, in-game. There’s no athletic trainers at the games. On and on. And for a lot of these guys, it’s not even about the game, but teaching young men to have discipline. Eight players already have Divison I athletic scholarships; by the time this season is out, that number could be 10 to 12.

Bottom line, speaking with Coach Dante was great. He and the athletic director like this idea and think it could help their team. It’s just about convincing the CPS legal people of the same thing. We thought that the phone calls and discussion had stopped once we hung up the phone, but that wasn’t the case. In fact, it was the opposite.

Whitney and I headed to the game immediately after class on Thursday, as it was the homecoming game for Simeon at Gately Stadium. We got there part way through the first quarter, due to traffic, and it took some wrangling to get press credentials. The guy in charge of such matters already knew we were coming, but didn’t seem to know our status with CPS legal. We said we’d do things right so as to not get anybody in any trouble. He seemed alright with our position.

Whitney and I took a little time to get set up, but then we recorded for about a quarter. Unfortunately, Simeon’s principal was also in attendance and was unaware of any deal worked out between us and Coach Dante. Come halftime, we were asked to stop recording by the guy who gave us press credentials. He was just covering his ass, and told us that we couldn’t use the footage for anything. We agreed. No one had signed any paperwork.

It broke my heart to not get footage of the halftime program for homecoming. It’s a big deal for football players. Their families are there and a larger fan turnout creates a great atmosphere. Simeon was no exception. While we didn’t get to film any of it, really, I did take the opportunity to speak with Chris Bryant’s dad. He is charismatic, friendly and liked what we were trying to do. He said all the things I was hoping a parent would about the football team and what it means to the students and community. He was also instrumental in building more support for the team, in the form of sweatshirts and t-shirts with players names on them. He gladly gave us his contact info and said we could definitely interview him. That was a victory, even as we were getting the boot from the game.

It’s a sizable hurdle, but all that stands in our way from having a great story is CPS legal. I think if we sit down with them, face to face, and talk about what this project is, they will give us the OK. This team is about more than just winning football games. That’s the real story. I think I can convey that, even to a lawyer. He might get paid to be dispassionate, but there’s enough at stake here, for us and for the team, that I know I can walk out of that room getting what we want. But that’s another entry, for sure, and another thousand words to come.

I didn’t want to work on a sports documentary for this class. I hate to think that it might somehow pigeonhole me into a place I don’t want to be.

But it makes sense, given the parameters of this class and the time schedule we’re working on.

My struggles in other classes, namely Chicago Broadcast, came from a fundamental difference of personality. A class like CB requires mechanical storytelling: Person A, Person B, standup, Person B, export, never talk to sources again. I detested the superficiality of the format. For that class, a mediocre story that can be shot within a safe radius of the newsroom was preferred to some out-of-the-way area where something more significant went on. I just couldn’t swallow that pill. Being labeled a malcontent isn’t something anyone should aspire toward, but at the same time, the local news reporter and the documentarian aren’t the same person. It wasn’t right for me.

More than anything, I want to feel like my work matters. Delving deeply into issues, to me, is the way to go about that. Living and breathing work is the only way I know. Journalism school is far too expensive to approach it any other way.

And here I am, working on a topic I don’t consider ideal.

My preference would be to take a social issue head-on. In a way, sports is a workable compromise–sort of hiding the vitamins in the ice cream. Before the class even started, I was torn: I trusted Whitney’s level of work and professionalism, but knew that she would want to work solely on sports. She and I are headed in different directions; she wants to be a sideline reporter, or at least working local sports news, whereas I am after the best stories I can get, no matter what subject area. I admire her singular focus.

Whatever trepidations I may have had, trust trumped. I trust her. She will work hard and produce quality video. Not to mention, there would be no way, even if completely honest, to not hurt her feelings by saying that perhaps we should work on different subjects. But I digress.

High school football provides an abundance of quality stories. Sure, the subject has already been covered extensively in other formats, but every good story has already been told in some manner. Here in Chicago, sports can save kids lives. They can be a way out of a dead-end future. They offer a vehicle to getting a college education. On and on.

Thus far, we’ve looked into a number of area schools. The most compelling stories are likely to come from schools with smaller budgets; that eliminates a number of the high-end, private powerhouses one finds in an area like this.

Through our research, we’ve whittled down a couple of city schools. Simeon is the real target. Last quarter, the most successful documentaries were those with a definite event: an MMA fight, an immigration rally and a food critic visiting a well-known restaurant. For us, the high school season will end during this quarter. In cinema verite, we have a natural climax. No drama needs to be written.

If there’s a bullseye within our target, it’s a kid named Chris Bryant. Bryant is from the South Side. He’s 6 feet 5 inches, 330 pounds. He bench presses 395 pounds. He runs a 5.3 time in the 40, but most important: He’s got a 3.6 GPA and a 21 ACT score. These aren’t landmark scores, but all combined, we’re talking about a special kid.

Now, we’ve not yet talked to Bryant; he could be boring as all get-out. But he’s being recruited by some major college football programs and he’ll have his pick. Right now, we want more than anything to talk with this kid. Maybe he isn’t a compelling character. But maybe he’s exactly what we’re looking for.

I played phone tag with the athletic director at Simeon last week. We talked on Thursday and he said that he’d forward my story on to the head football coach. We’re hoping to just chat and let them know what we’re after. Even if Bryant turns out to not be a compelling story, the team itself should be. It’s ranked No. 5 in the state, the highest of any of the CPS teams. That’s a big deal. Last week, they thumped a worthy opponent by 40 points. Ideally, we’d follow Simeon: They’re high-achieving, have a couple of standout prospects, and expectation just bubbles with stories. If they succeed, we win. If they fall short, we still win. There’s a lot to like about this.

We’ve spoken with Lane Tech, and they’re open to having us. Lane is good within the Chicago, but expectations don’t extend beyond city limits. We could do fine work with Lane, but I’d be afraid of not having enough sprawl or weight with them. Again, it’s all about finding the right story. Maybe a kid comes from a rough background and football is his haven. Maybe there’s some exceptional circumstance we have no idea about. Hard to say right now.

But I’m more than alright with working on this story. There’s no lack of confidence for us getting solid video and editing it well. Now it’s just about finding the right story within the genre. Therein lies the rub.

We’ll see what comes up in the next few days. Tonight, we’ll be attending Simeon’s game to get a feel for what the atmosphere is like, and to see them in-person for the first time. Should be fun.

I’m looking forward to it.