Dogwoof, in partnership with Violet Pictures, has today announced the 20th Anniversary restoration of Steve James, Frederick Marx and Peter Gilbert’s towering documentary masterpiece, HOOP DREAMS, which will be released to UK audiences for the first time on Blu-ray on 2nd November 2020.
For five years filmmakers Steve James, Frederick Marx, and Peter Gilbert followed William Gates and Arthur Agee, two inner-city Chicago teenagers, documenting their journey of fulfilling their dreams of making it to the NBA. Every day the boys travel 90 minutes each way from their city homes to St. Joseph High School in Westchester, Illinois, a predominately white suburban school famed for its basketball programme.
The resulting film chronicled Gates and Agee’s daily struggles with school, family, and community pressures as they attempt to reach their goal of professional basketball fame and glory. Breaking the barriers of a sports film, HOOP DREAMS addressed issues of race, class, and privilege, and provided a rare insight into the industry of professional sport.
The 20th Anniversary restoration of HOOP DREAMS features a host of special features including additional scenes, an exclusive introduction from Steve James, and a newly commissioned essay from moving image curator and writer Karen Alexander, among others.
