Christopher Makoto Yogi To Direct Hawaiian Basketball Doc ‘Merv And The Miracles’ For Michel Gondry’s Partizan, RTG Features
21.09.2023 - 17:41
/ deadline.com
EXCLUSIVE: Michel Gondry’s Partizan and RTG Features have tapped Christopher Makoto Yogi (I Was a Simple Man) to direct Merv and the Miracles, a feature-length doc that explores the legendary college basketball game between Chaminade and number-one ranked Virginia in 1982.
The film, currently in the early stages of production, is being co-produced and co-financed by Partizan and RTG Features, with Julie Fong (Dave Chappelle’s Block Party), Brian Yang (Linsanity), and Justin R. Ching (Ritual) producing.
During the opening weekend of the 43rd annual Hawai’i Film Festival, Artistic Director Anderson Le will give attendees an early first look at the film during a panel conversation with Yogi, who is himself an HIFF alum. Pic will be one of two Hawaiian indies spotlighted during the 90-minute program taking place on Saturday, October 14th at Entrepreneurs Sandbox in Honolulu.
Merv and the Miracles picks up on December 23, 1982 with Coach Merv Lopes and the Hawai’i-based Chaminade Silverswords, a tiny, then-NAIA college in Honolulu with only 800 students and without their own gym or locker room. It was then that they shocked the world in defeating the nation’s top-ranked Virginia Cavaliers and future Hall of Famer Ralph Sampson. The game has become known as the “Greatest Upset Never Seen” as it was not broadcast on TV. Featuring never-before-seen archival footage along with present-day interviews and vérité, the doc centers on Coach Lopes and his players, their opponents, and those lucky enough to be in the crowd that night, retelling one of the greatest “David vs. Goliath” games in sports history.
The Maui Invitational, an annual, early-season college basketball tournament that takes place at the Lahaina Civic Center on
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