EXCLUSIVE: American rugby union goes below the doc collection highlight.
The sport’s North American skilled league, Major League Rugby (MLR), has struck a cope with indie movie financier and producer Goldfinch to supply an all-access, multi-year collection that’s been billed as an “unprecedented ten-year commitment.” This will chronicle the game’s progress and growth within the U.S.
Filming on the primary season, Stars, Stripes and Scrums: The American Rugby Journey (working title) is underway and can concentrate on the Chicago Hounds group, whereas additionally exploring the game in any respect ranges throughout the States.
All-access sports activities group docs have been one of many large developments in unscripted over latest years, with worldwide rugby union featured in Netflix’s Six Nations: Full Contact final 12 months and the English league the topic of Prime Video’s Mud, Sweat and Tears: Premiership Rugby in October.
In the U.S., the place American soccer is king, rugby union is at a pivotal stage of its growth, with the nation slated to host the 2031 Men’s and 2033 Women’s Rugby World Cups. The MLR, which is run by CEO Nic Benson, has grown from seven groups competing its inaugural 2018 season to 12 in 2024.
The Hounds, which is owned by Peter Bernick, is in its second season, with new golf equipment from Miami, LA and Charlotte, North Carolina becoming a member of, and extra groups are anticipated to be fashioned within the run as much as the world cups.
“The trajectory of rugby in America is at an historic inflection point that we will never see again,” stated Phil McKenzie at Goldfinch. “Our vision is to capture every layer of the sport, using the Hounds and MLR as a lens to view these through, across a time horizon peaking at the 2031 and 2033 Rugby World Cups.”
McKenzie and Kirsty Bell might be producing for Goldfinch alongside Julian Oliver, with Mike D Ware and Seth Savoy producing stateside for the docu-series. Post-production might be managed by Periscope.
“Peter, Matt [Satchwell, chairman of the Hounds] and Nic have been perfect partners in putting this deal together and understand that in granting us ‘access-all-areas’ they are giving us the opportunity to show the audience behind the scenes of the most exciting sport in the world as it takes off in the most exciting sports market of the world, the USA,” added McKenzie, Goldfinch’s co-owner and COO.
“The series, is an unprecedented ten-year commitment to the journey of young athletes at the forefront of making American sporting history,” stated producer Oliver. “There exists already a proud narrative within Chicago, the Hounds, the fans and the filmmakers sharing this passionate identity, special moments in film originate from rare opportunities like this.”
“We are excited to have helped put this deal together and to have the Chicago Hounds be at the forefront of the story for season one,” stated Bernick, the Hounds proprietor.
“We believe as an organization that we have the players, coaching, and management to compete for a championship in a very exciting MLR this year. We feel telling the story of rugby in America, the Hounds and MLR will grow the game and its audience, and bring fans old and new a behind-the-scenes look at what we love so much about the game of rugby and its characters.”