Michael Jordan: Larger Than Life
The idea of quitting your job to produce and direct a film starring Michael Jordan sounds like a fantasy. However, it took only three years for Don Kempf, 33, and his 29-year-old brother Steve to turn this dream into reality.
The inspiration struck Don while he was sitting in the back row of a giant screen movie about Niagara Falls at Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry. IMAX theaters' giant screens fill viewers' peripheral vision, immersing them in a setting. He decided to use the massive IMAX screen for something other than a nature film. He wanted the world to have an eight-story movie about one of his heroes: Michael Jordan.
The brothers formed a company called Giant Screen Sports, based in the Toronto suburbs; by 1999, the company posted record profits and revenue of $203 million.
The first ever IMAX film to feature an athlete or individual opens in IMAX theaters around the country this weekend. Titled Michael Jordan to the Max, the effect puts the audience on the basketball court with 20,000 fans clamoring around. Slow motion footage gives the viewers a sense of Jordan's artistry and time to examine beads of sweat on his body and the pained expressions on his opponents' faces. "I don't think there's any other way that Michael Jordan should be shown," Don said.
With non-IMAX archival footage and narration by actor Laurence Fishburne, the film also slows down to recount Jordan's life story, from his initial failure to make his high school team, through his father's murder and his short-lived baseball career to his finals winning shot in 1998. "I just hope this film adds to his incredible legacy -- and I am certain it will inspire children of all ages," Steve said.
Capturing fast-paced sports footage courtside presented some new challenges for IMAX filmmakers. IMAX cameras weigh about 100 pounds, can handle only three minutes of film at a time and take four minutes to change rolls. "It's like bringing a huge lawn mower on the side of an NBA court and trying to maneuver it," Steve explained. Filmmakers were forced to roll spare cameras at all times, so as not to miss any action.
The makers of Michael Jordan to the Max believe they have hit on a winning formula, since it cost just $7.2 million to make. IMAX chief executive Rich Gelford will be closely monitoring the success of the Jordan movie. "IMAX might even be able to show live sports events someday," Gelford said. The future looks bright for Don and Steve Kempf: they have already started on future IMAX projects, including films about Wayne Gretzky and World Cup soccer.
By Zoy Avgerinos