Showing posts with label Oscars. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Oscars. Show all posts

Sunday, March 02, 2014

And the Oscar goes to....Undefeated

by Jeff Fisher
Follow @HSFBamerica

The February 23, 2012 High School Football America radio show was fun for me. I was joined by Dan Lindsay and TJ Martin, the directors of the then Oscar-nominated Undefeated in the category of Best Documentary.

Both guys were extremely excited about walking the red carpet and I was equally as excited to hear them tell the story of how they went from an idea of following the Manassas (Memphis, Tennessee) High School football team during the 2009 high school football season to Hollywood celebs in 2012.  It was even more fun to see their energy on stage holding their golden statues.

In honor of tonight's Oscars, I'm re-posting that fun interview with Dan and TJ that took place three days before becoming the toast of Tinseltown.


To round-out the Cinderella story, I brought the star of the show, Manassas head coach Bill Courtney on the show in January to discuss how his life had changed since Undefeated won the Oscar.  Coach Bill, who retired after the 2009, was just as enjoyable to talk with and you can listen to that interview below.


I'm also looking forward to talking with Coach Courtney later this spring when his first book called Against the Grain is released in May.  

This is how the book is described on Amazon: In Against the Grain, Bill Courtney shares his convictions on the fundamental tenets of character, commitment, service, leadership, civility, and others that, in his decades of success as an entrepreneur and educator, have proven to be the keys to a winning and meaningful life and career. Each chapter tells the story of one of these tenets through compelling anecdotes of the colorful characters in Bill’s life, leading to a deeper understand of the meaning of each and how to employee these fundamentals in all aspects of one’s life. Against the Grain intertwines inspiring and thought-provoking anecdotes, lessons, and amazing real life examples. Bill’s passion for us all to reconsider our own approach to life and constantly improve upon it comes across on every page.

How far has the humble Coach Bill come from 2009?  Phil Jackson, the Zen master himself, wrote the forward.
 

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Directors of Academy Award-nominated "Undefeated" join Jeff Fisher on High School Football America

by Jeff Fisher
High School Football America

If the Super Bowl is football's pinnacle, then the Academy Awards are the Super Bowl of movies.

On Sunday in Hollywood, directors Dan Lindsay and T.J. Martin will be trying to win the Super Bowl that comes with a golden statue known as Oscar.

Back in 2009, Lindsay and Martin shot more than 500 hours worth of video while covering the Manassas High School football team that was trying to win the school's first-ever playoff game in the 110-year history of the Memphis, Tennessee school.

The result was more than just a football documentary called Undefeated.  It's what critics are calling a real life Blindside, and as a result, Undefeated is now nominated in the category of Best Documentary at Sunday night's Oscars.

Tonight at 7pm Eastern Time, Lindsay and Martin will be my guests on High School Football America to talk about catching lightning in a bottle all the way to the red carpet.

Former Manassas head coach Bill Courtney is at the center of this piece of football history that I can't wait to see next week.

From the moment I watched the first seconds of the trailer (below), I was hooked and ready to see the entire 113 minutes.  Undefeated is currently showing in LA and NYC and will be opening in additional cities on March 2nd.

Click here to listen to this evening's show at 7pm EST.