"It started with batting average, home runs and RBIs. Then sabermetrics came along and introduced a new set of results-driven statistics. But results only tell half the story, and the new revolution in baseball analytics goes one step deeper to measure the actual physicality of the players – exit velocity off the bat, spin rate on a pitcher's curveball, efficiency of an outfielder's route to a fly ball, and a ton more. "FUTURE OF THE GAME is a new series exploring the cutting edge in sports technology, co-produced with our pals at VICE's tech channel Motherboard. In this inaugural episode we meet the architects of MLB Statcast, a new initiative using the same technology that tracks debris during the launch of space shuttles to change the way we watch baseball on TV and give overlooked talent a second change to stick in the Major Leagues" (Vice Sports).
"It started with batting average, home runs and RBIs. Then sabermetrics came along and introduced a new set of results-driven statistics. But results only tell half the story, and the new revolution in baseball analytics goes one step deeper to measure the actual physicality of the players – exit velocity off the bat, spin rate on a pitcher's curveball, efficiency of an outfielder's route to a fly ball, and a ton more. "FUTURE OF THE GAME is a new series exploring the cutting edge in sports technology, co-produced with our pals at VICE's tech channel Motherboard. In this inaugural episode we meet the architects of MLB Statcast, a new initiative using the same technology that tracks debris during the launch of space shuttles to change the way we watch baseball on TV and give overlooked talent a second change to stick in the Major Leagues" (Vice Sports).
2015-09-25
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7.2Since 1912, baseball has been a game obsessed with statistics and speed. Thrown at upwards of 100 miles per hour, a fastball moves too quickly for human cognition and accelerates into the realm of intuition. Fastball is a look at how the game at its highest levels of achievement transcends logic and even skill, becoming the primal struggle for man to control the uncontrollable.
7.1The background and career of Tony Parker, whose determination led him to become arguably the greatest French basketball player.
7.2An inside look at one of the most anticipated movie sequels ever with James Cameron and cast.
7.0Explore the evolution of Buzz Lightyear from toy to human in the making of Pixar’s Lightyear. Dive into the origin and cultural impact of everyone’s favorite Space Ranger, the art of designing a new “human Buzz,” and the challenges faced by the Lightyear crew along the way.
6.4“Showrunners” is the first ever feature length documentary film to explore the fascinating world of US television showrunners and the creative forces aligned around them. These are the people responsible for creating, writing and overseeing every element of production on one of the United State’s biggest exports – television drama and comedy series. Often described as the most complex job in the entertainment business, a showrunner is the chief writer / producer on a TV series and, in most instances, the show’s creator. Battling daily between art and commerce, showrunners manage every aspect of a TV show’s development and production: creative, financial and logistical.
8.0Take the Ball, Pass the Ball is the definitive story of the greatest football team ever assembled. For four explosive years, Pep Guardiola's Barça produced the greatest football in history, seducing fans around the world. In this exclusive, first-hand account of events between 2008 and 2012, the players themselves reveal the tension of the bitter Guardiola-Mourinho rivalry, the emotion of Abidal's fight back from cancer to lift the European Cup and how Messi, the best footballer the world's ever seen, was almost rejected by Barça as a 13-year-old.
7.5The remarkable coming-of-age story of Stephen Curry—one of the most influential, dynamic, and unexpected players in basketball history—and his rise from an undersized college player to a four-time NBA champion.
7.7Behind the scenes look at fight choreography and action training.
7.1Join the likes of Jeremy Renner, Hailee Steinfeld, Florence Pugh, and Vincent D’Onofrio as they reveal how Marvel Studios’ “Hawkeye” was conceived and created. Witness firsthand what it took to pull off the show’s pulse-pounding action set pieces, and discover how iconic characters from the pages of Marvel Comics such as Kate Bishop were adapted and brought to life for the six-episode series.
7.5A documentary focused on plastic pollution in the world's oceans.
6.8Al Pacino's deeply-felt rumination on Shakespeare's significance and relevance to the modern world through interviews and an in-depth analysis of "Richard III."
6.9Follow the evolution of the 'Halloween' movies over the past twenty-five years. It examines why the films are so popular and revisits many of the original locations used in the films - seeing the effects on the local community. For the first time, cast, crew, critics and fans join together in the ultimate 'Halloween' retrospective.
6.2SEDUCED AND ABANDONED combines acting legend Alec Baldwin with director James Toback as they lead us on a troublesome and often hilarious journey of raising financing for their next feature film. Moving from director to financier to star actor, the two players provide us with a unique look behind the curtain at the world's biggest and most glamourous film festival, shining a light on the bitter-sweet relationship filmmakers have with Cannes and the film business. Featuring insights from directors Martin Scorsese, 'Bernando Bertolucci' and Roman Polanski; actors Ryan Gosling and Jessica Chastain and a host of film distribution luminaries.
7.3Alex Gibney explores the phenomenon of Stuxnet, a self-replicating computer virus discovered in 2010 by international IT experts. Evidently commissioned by the US and Israeli governments, this malware was designed to specifically sabotage Iran’s nuclear programme. However, the complex computer worm ended up not only infecting its intended target but also spreading uncontrollably.
6.8Former special forces operative Danny is forced back onto a remote island when a violent, secretive community takes revenge by abducting his daughter Alex, launching a relentless hunt against enemies prepared for his every move.
7.4Hollywood veteran Bing Russell creates the only independent baseball team in the country—alarming the baseball establishment and sparking the meteoric rise of the 1970s Portland Mavericks.
7.3A vivid journey into the mysterious subterranean world of mycelium and its fruit— the mushroom. A story that begins 3.5 billion years ago, fungi makes the soil that supports life, connecting vast systems of roots from plants and trees all over the planet, like an underground Internet. Through the eyes of renowned mycologist Paul Stamets, professor of forest ecology Suzanne Simard, best selling author Michael Pollan, food naturalist Eugenia Bone and others, we experience the power, beauty and complexity of the fungi kingdom.
6.7Following his infamous championship as part of a marketing stunt for the film Ready to Rumble, David Arquette is widely known as the most hated man in pro-wrestling worldwide. Nearly 20 years after he "won" the initial title, through ups and downs in his career, with his family, and with his struggles with addiction, David Arquette seeks redemption by returning to the ring...for real this time.
7.4The life and career of an actor, artist, and icon. His own journey through his own camera.
6.5Interviews with leading authors, philosophers and scientists, with an in-depth discussion of the Law of Attraction. The audience is shown how they can learn and use 'The Secret' in their everyday lives.
0.0Chronicling Latin baseball players in the minor leagues as they experience the ups and downs of pursuing the dream of playing in the Major Leagues.
9.3Star-studded group featuring Barry Bonds, Randy Johnson, Chipper Jones, Tom Glavine and John Smoltz to bring viewers inside Maddux’s legendary career;
The Toronto Blue Jays — the defending champions — sleek, corporate, efficient — featuring an offensive arsenal that hit a collective 0.311 in the six-game series. The Philadelphia Phillies — a last-to-first success story — with their long hair, beards, and blue-collar work ethic — a softball team in pinstripes. This was a World Series that won't soon be forgotten. A six-game slugfest that sent pitchers scurrying to the showers. The heroes were named Dykstra, Molitor, Schilling and Alomar. The games were unforgettable. The sheer drama of Game Four — with its runs, hits, and duration — all records. The surgical precision of Curt Schilling's shutout in Game Five. And Joe Carter's incredible three-run blast to win Game Six — just the second time in history a home run has ended a World Series.
0.0"On the Fourth of July, Sikhs in Fresno came together to host the California city’s annual minor league baseball game and fireworks show to create awareness about their religion and demonstrate their love for America" (Vice News).
9.0Records the highs and lows of a season that came close to winning the championship. Chronicles the 40-year love affair between a struggling blue-collar city and a perfectly matched blue-collar team.
0.0Chronicling the Mariners' memorable run to their first-ever AL West title in 1995, when a team led by Ken Griffey Jr. and Randy Johnson helped keep baseball in the Pacific Northwest and punctuated the season with a stirring ALDS win over the Yankees.
0.0Since Little League Baseball was founded in 1939, about 40 million kids have played the sport. The list includes future Hall of Famers like Carl Yastrzemski, Tom Seaver and Nolan Ryan, and hundreds of other future Major Leaguers. But of all the kids who ever played Little League, the best of the best was a boy you’ve probably never heard of: Art “Pinky” Deras. In the summer of 1959, he led the team from Hamtramck, Mich., to the Little League World Series title, and in the process, he put together a Little League season the likes of which we might never see again. His amazing story comes to life in “The Legend of Pinky Deras: The Greatest Little-Leaguer There Ever Was,” a new film from Blue Hammer Films. Pinky received a ton of national publicity back in 1959, but then he fell off the map. In the half-century since he lit the Little League world on fire, there have been no films about him, no magazine stories, not even a single newspaper article.
0.0In a time when America was on the brink of modernization, Carson "Skeeter" Bigbee emerged from rural Oregon to become an embodiment of national transformation. Born to working parents in 1895, Bigbee’s life as a multi-sport athlete, a baseball star with the Pittsburgh Pirates, a World War I enlistee, and a World Series hero, intersected with America's Progressive Era, the electrification of society, the First World War, and the onset of the Great Depression. His story, from hitting the decisive run in the 1925 World Series to managing in the American Girls Professional Baseball League, is a poignant reflection of ambition, patriotism, and the resilient spirit of an ever-changing nation in the early 20th Century.
5.6In this short film, two starstruck movie fans hire a tour guide and see a plethora of Hollywood stars.
8.0A serial of short instructional films using footage of Babe Ruth to explain the fundamentals of playing baseball.
0.0"City of Baseball" is a documentary that explores both the past and the present of the Italian baseball league in the seaside resort of Nettuno near Rome. Through league pioneers, current players, fans, and local historians, "City of Baseball" captures the story of how the 1944 Allied invasion of Nettuno brought the American pastime to a town which embraced the sport with a passion that continues today.
9.0Jeff Santo explores the life and career of his father, Chicago Cub great Ron Santo.
9.0Actor William Petersen narrates this documentary about Chicago's venerable baseball stadium, Wrigley Field, focusing on a variety of quirky fans who've spent so much time there that they've become part of the stadium experience. These colorful Cubs enthusiasts tell their stories and discuss how both baseball and Wrigley Field have become an integral part of their lives. A bonus feature on Comiskey Park -- home of the rival White Sox -- is included.
10.0A documentary about the 2001 World Series.
7.5"Michael Jordan Above and Beyond" provides a much-needed look at Michael Jordan's fantastic return from retirement in 1995. The first 20 minutes or so recap his retirement, attempt at minor league baseball, and his dealing with his father's murder. It picks up when it starts looking at the huge frenzy that was his return to the NBA in the Spring of 1995. It covers his mediocre first game back against the Pacers, his Friday night Chicago return against the Magic, and his subsequent return to form with a game-winning shot against Atlanta, and a career night dropping 55 on the Knicks.
9.5Red Sox Nation rejoiced as its beloved team reached the World Series in dramatic fashion, having just overcome a three-games-to-one deficit in the ALCS by outscoring the Cleveland Indians 30-5 in the final three contests. There they met the sizzling Colorado Rockies -victors in 21 of their last 22 games and just the second team ever to win their first seven in the postseason. But while both teams came into the World Series on fire, only one continued that torrid pace. The Red Sox briskly swept the Rockies aside to capture their second title of the decade and their second straight Fall Classic sweep.
6.3Professor Hans Rosling shares his excitement with statistics, and shows how researchers are handling the modern data deluge.
0.0The Indians and Yankees, both in a tight race with the White Sox, met at the Polo Grounds on August 16th, 1920. In the fifth inning, Carl Mays threw one of his "submarine" pitches that hit Ray Chapman in the head. Chapman collapsed at the plate. He was rushed to the hospital and died the next day, the only Major League Baseball player ever to be killed in a game. Grief tore through Cleveland and the pivotal moment led to an explosion on and off the field. The Indians, sparked by the addition of young shortstop Joe Sewell, recovered in time to win their first World Series Title. What resulted was a rivalry that would last 100 years.
Told with humor in the face of heartache, this acclaimed documentary, about the curse of Babe Ruth on the Boston Red Sox, combines archival footage with contemporary interviews and focuses not on the Red Sox players that have come and gone, but on the diehard fans who live their entire lives lamenting what some have come to call The Curse of the Bambino.
0.0Born in 1918 in San Diego, Williams was a latchkey child from a broken home, raised by a mother more dedicated to the Salvation Army than to her two sons, and by a father who spent more time away from home than in it. Williams found salvation by doing the one thing he loved most: hitting baseballs. In his rookie season with the Red Sox, where he would spend his entire career as a player, Williams batted .327, socked 31 homers and led the league with 145 RBI. Over the next 21 years, despite losing five seasons of his prime to active service as a U.S. Marine Corps pilot, Williams hit 521 home runs, twice captured the Triple Crown, and became the oldest man ever to win a batting title. He finished his career with a .344 lifetime batting average, was the last man to hit over .400 in a full season, batting .406 in 1941, and was a first-ballot inductee into the Baseball Hall of Fame.