Legendary video and arcade game NBA Jam will be the focus of a new documentary, according to . BestCrosses Studio, the production arm of the basketball-themed social media platform of the same name, has optioned author from publisher Boss Fight Books.
Documentary director Sean Menard (The Carter Effect, UFC 25 Years in Short) will develop and direct the film building off the work Ali did to research and write the book. Given that NBA Jam first came out in 1993, the game has enjoyed an impressively long tail of success through to this upcoming movie.
“When NBA Jam hit the arcade, I was barely tall enough to reach the joystick and view the screen at the same time,” says Menard (via Variety). “But while literally standing on my toes, I was completely immersed in a game that allowed me the creative freedom to perform out-of-this world feats of athleticism. This was during a tipping point for the NBA as the league was bursting with excitement and culture that was appealing to a younger fan base.”
Menard also indicated to Variety that the film is “more than just an original story about the most successful sports game of all time.” The director also intends to dig into “various subplots that detail how gaming was transitioning from arcades to home entertainment and how it would eventually lead to the demise of Midway.”
Another documentary, the recently released from director Josh Tsui, tells this story about Midway from another perspective. Tsui, whose likeness was used for Liu Kang, interviews past Midway team members including Eugene Jarvis (Robotron: 2084), Mark Turmell (SmashTV), John Tobias (co-creator of the Mortal Kombat series), George Petro (NARC) and many others.
In related Midway news, the first images .
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