Award-winning director Spike Lee has, for years, wanted to do a documentary about the sport he loves so much — NBA basketball. One day watching a game on ESPN, the idea finally came to him.
How about taking a fan inside the game in a way never before seen and have it star one of the sport’s biggest names?
He got on the phone and called Kobe Bryant and asked if he would star in his movie.
The result is “Kobe Doin’ Work” — perhaps the most comprehensive look at one player in one game ever produced.
I spoke to Lee about his film and working with Kobe.
JW » Tell about the film and how it came together?
Lee » Well, I told Kobe that this was going to be a movie about basketball. I wanted to show the fans every aspect of game day: from the moment he got up to the time the buzzer sounded. The focus, of course, would be the game — with the interaction of the players and the coaches, the players and the fans and the intensity of the play on the court.
JW » How was it to work with the ESPN crew?
Lee » It was great. We used the entire technical crew, as well as their broadcast team of Mike Breen, Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy. I had my own film crews that I hired from NFL Films, but the game footage from ESPN/ABC was very important to the film.
JW » How much access did you have to Kobe and the Lakers?
Lee » More than I ever expected or could have ever hoped for. We were allowed in the locker room with Coach [Phil] Jackson going over his game plan. We were able to wire a number of players so that fans could really feel that they were inside the game — getting a feel for how intense the action was on the court. What we have is a film that is perfect for teaching the game, as a fan of the game myself I learned so much more about the details of the game.
Jim Williams is a seven-time Emmy Award-winning TV producer, director and writer. Check out his blog, Watch this! on washingtonexaminer.com.
