Richie McCaw Documentary 'Chasing Great' To Debut Across USA
Chasing Great, a documentary that chronicles New Zealand Rugby legend Richie McCaw, will have a premiere showing in the United States on February 28th at Cineopolis Chelsea in New York City in advance of its national rollout. Abramorama, an industry leader in film distribution, marketing and promotion, will release the feature documentary across the United States and Canada with national support from Augusto, Oktane Media and Falco Ink.
Through the theatrical and subsequent digital release, fans and moviegoers will have ample opportunity to watch this intimate portrait of the New Zealand hero.
Chasing Great follows Richie McCaw through his final season as he attempts the goal of captaining the All Blacks to the first ever-back-to back Rugby World Cup Wins. Woven through that final season the film tells the story of Richie's life. With unprecedented access to Richie and a remarkable family video archive Chasing Great is the story of how a shy farm boy went on to be one of the greatest rugby players of all time. Until now Richie McCaw's achievements have been well documented, but little is known about the man himself. Chasing Great takes the audience inside his world. What emerges is a very personal insight into high level international sport and a psychological profile of the mind of a champion.<
A full schedule of locations across the USA, as well as screening dates will be available at chasingreatfilm.com.
SPECIAL SCREENINGS FOR RUGBY CLUBS AND TEAMS
US based rugby clubs and teams can schedule screenings of the Chasing Great in local theaters, an event which can raise visibility for the team and be used as a fundraising event. Interested teams should contact John Broker at johnbroker@oktane.net for more details on this opportunity.
Abramorama Acquires Chasing Great, Film About One Of The Greatest Athletes Of All Time
Abramorama and Augusto announced Abramorama’s acquisition of all North American rights to Michelle Walshe and Justin Pemberton’s Chasing Great, a documentary about New Zealand All Blacks rugby superstar Richie McCaw.
The film is the top-grossing documentary in New Zealand of all time and had the 3rd highest opening weekend in Australia. McCaw is regarded as one of the greatest athletes of all time, a captain of the All Blacks, the "winning-est rugby team of all time". With a win rate of 89% and spending 14 years at the top of his sport in one of the most brutal field positions in the game, McCaw has honed a mental capacity for success that is nothing short of remarkable.
Michelle Walshe, Film Director and CEO of Augusto stated, ”Chasing Great is a character study that delves into what it takes to succeed at the highest level. It’s about what you can become, not what you were born with. Our audiences have ranged from entire sports teams and budding athletes, to CEO’s and three generations all seeing the film together. The response has been phenomenal. People have been truly moved by what Richie shares in the film, giving some, life-changing insights into the mental side of high performance. There are tens of millions of rugby fans in the USA and we are really excited to be working with Abramorama to bring the film to them.”
With this acquisition, Abramorama already known as the go to distributor for music driven documentaries, further expands its footprint in the sports film arena. The company recently collaborated with Pearl Jam on Let’s Play Two which melds the band’s love of baseball and the Chicago Cubs with their sold out concerts shot at famed Wrigley Field, and announced they will distribute Coodie and Chike’s The First To Do It, about Earl Lloyd, the first African American NBA basketball player early next year. Abramorama previously released Mr. Chibbs, The Search For Freedom, Chasing Niagra, and Senna: No Fear. No Limit. No Equal.
Abramorama plans a national theatrical roll out for Chasing Great in February 2018.
Abramorama’s CCO & EVP Karol Martesko-Fenster and West Coast Head of Acquisitions & Business Development Evan Saxon added, “The timing to bring this film out is perfect as the 6 Nations Championship will be in mid swing and the Las Vegas and Vancouver, and World Cup Sevens will be about to start. The sport continues to build a passionate and dedicated fanbase worldwide and we will be partnering with Rugby Clubs and college teams to have screening events across the country attracting fans of every nationality. Working closely with Augusto, we’ve structured a unique hybrid theatrical and ancillary distribution rollout to spotlight this powerful film.“
Chasing Great is an insightful portrayal that weaves Richie McCaw’s life story into his final season as an All Black, revealing the determination and mental toughness of an international sporting legend who still sees himself as an ‘ordinary guy’ from small town New Zealand.
Karol Martesko-Fenster, Evan Saxon and Robert Marcus, Esq. on behalf of Abramorama, and Cass Avery of Augusto and Tim White of Southern Light Films, alongside Tim Riley of Dominion Law on behalf of the filmmakers, negotiated the deal.
For more information on Chasing Great please visit www.chasinggreatfilm.com.
About Abramorama
Abramorama is the preeminent theatrical distributor of music films today and is recognized for the consistent high quality of its work on award winning feature films. An innovator in the focused, personalized form of film distribution and event cinema, Abramorama provides invaluable alternatives to filmmakers and content owners. An industry leader in marketing, promotion, and rights management, Abramorama continues to trail-blaze exciting new pathways for filmmakers to find their audience.
Over the course of more than 15 years, Abramorama has successfully distributed and marketed hundreds of films.
Abramorama is a founding partner of The Seventh Art Stand program, an act of cinematic solidarity against Islamophobia that ran in more than 50 theaters across the United States in May of 2017. For more information visit www.abramorama.com.
About Augusto
Augusto are one of the new breed of production companies who work across entertainment in film and television as well as creating branded content and advertising. Augusto has a long and unique relationship to the sport of rugby and the company works commercially with all the sponsors of rugby in New Zealand including adidas, and AIG as well as for the country’s governing body New Zealand Rugby.
For more information visit augusto.co.nz.
