Lower Merion High School and A Better Chance Lower Merion (ABC-LM) welcome world-renowned DJ, writer, director and Lower Merion alumnus Bobbito Garcia ‘84 for a screening of his acclaimed film, DOIN’ IT IN THE PARK: PICK-UP BASKETBALL, NYC in the LMHS auditorium on Sunday, June 9 at 7 PM. All proceeds benefit ABC-LM. A special Q & A with Garcia and co-director Kevin Couliau will follow the screening.
DOIN’ IT IN THE PARK explores the history, culture and social impact of New York’s summer “b-ball” scene, also known as “pick-up ball” and “playground basketball.” Garcia and Couliau visited 180 courts throughout NYC’s five boroughs—within 75 hot summer days—to create their debut documentary. The filmmakers traveled to a majority of the locations by bicycle, carrying cameras and a ball in their backpacks.
The film’s title refers as much to the subject matter as it does to the method of filmmaking, providing an unprecedented perspective on America’s most popular and accessible free recreation, which has influenced an international lifestyle. DOIN’ IT IN THE PARK lovingly uncovers this movement through the voices of playground legends, NBA athletes, and most importantly the common man and woman, including those incarcerated and handicapped, who loyally look forward to experiencing the raw energy of the game at their local outdoor court.
DOIN’ IT IN THE PARK has garnered numerous awards at national and international film festivals and has been named “one of the greatest sports documentaries of all-time” by Complex Magazine. The film is in select US theaters and available online at www.doinitinthepark.com now and will be part of a world tour, presented by Nike, with theatrical and outdoor screenings across five continents.
The screening at Lower Merion represents a unique high school homecoming for Garcia, and benefits a cause that is close to the filmmaker’s heart. Garcia came to Lower Merion from New York as an ABC student in the early 1980’s. ABC is a college preparatory program that offers educational opportunities to academically-talented, economically-disadvantaged minority students at highly-ranked suburban high schools. ABC-LM, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, is an all-male boarding program, with a house in Ardmore that accommodates up to nine students each year. Garcia excelled in the classroom and on the court as an ABC student at Lower Merion, where he was a member of the varsity basketball team and went on to attend Wesleyan University.
He also spent countless hours honing his pick-up skills on the courts at the Ardmore Playground, located directly across from the ABC-LM house.
A critically-acclaimed author of “Where’d You Get Those? NYC’s Sneaker Culture: 1960-1987” (Testify Books), Garcia has served as sideline reporter for the New York Knicks on MSG Network, voiced NBA 2K video games, and has hosted ESPN’s “It’s the Shoes” series. Currently, he is the play-by-play announcer for the Elite 24 Game on ESPNU and the Red Bull King of the Rock Championship, and tours the world spinning records at events for Red Bull, Nike, and Fania Records, among others. A self-proclaimed “pick-up basketball activist,” Bobbito has played in 35 countries throughout five continents, and has acted as an ambassador for the sport, giving clinics and donating sneakers in multiple developing areas.
Frenchman Kevin Couliau is widely recognized as the most prolific outdoor basketball photographer of the last decade. As a videographer, his work has been seen on the Canal + (France) “New Explorers” documentary series, Jordan Brand’s annual Quai 54 TV/DVD series, the New York Knicks “Battle of the Boroughs” videos, and Nike’s “Basketball Never Stops” campaign. In 2010, he directed a music video titled “Heart & Soul Of New York City,” which has accumulated 1,000,000+ views online and counting.
DOIN’ IT IN THE PARK Official Links:
Website: www.doinitinthepark.com
Trailer: https://vimeo.com/65081192
Twitter: www.twitter.com/doinitinthepark
Facebook: www.facebook.com/doinitinthepark
ABC-LM: http://www.abclowermerion.org/
Lower Merion High School: http://www.lmsd.org/lower-merion/index.aspx
