Filmmaker Travon Free Teams With Blink49 Creator Studios and 1Community for Documentary on New York Knicks Championship

Filmmaker Travon Free has teamed with Blink49 Creator Studios and 1Community to produce a documentary that examines how everyday New Yorkers responded to the New York Knicks‘ underdog victory in the NBA Finals last month.

The untitled project will be produced through Free’s The Unreasnble production banner in partnership with Outerboro Films. The film will follow four New Yorkers in four different boroughs on June 13 as the team moved to their first NBA Finals win since 1973. The long-struggling team’s come-from-behind victory captured the imagination of casual sports fans across the five boroughs and well beyond.

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“This is a story about everyday New Yorkers – the bodega owner, the door man, the cab driver, die hard Knicks fans who know what it means to love and belong to one of the greatest cities on earth,” said Free, who won the Oscar in 2021 for best live-action short for “Two Distant Strangers.” “This is about the woman who’s been going to games with her mom since she was five and grandfather on a Brooklyn stoop who still talks about Willis Reed playing on one leg. It’s so much bigger than basketball.”

The project will be supported by filmmaker Scott Budnick‘s 1Community banner, which is a production company focused on projects to drive social impact.

“The Knicks grabbed the attention of the nation at a time when we truly needed something joyous to rally around,” said Budnick, who is founder and CEO of 1Community. “This project is a testament to and love letter for the people of New York City and all die-hard fans who never let hope die and showed the world the tremendous power of coming together.”

The untitled doc will also be produced by Daniel Lombroso (“Manhood”), Kerry Mack (“Manhood”), and Frank Chi (“38 at the Garden”).

“Blink49 was built to back creators telling stories that matter, and this is exactly that; a piece of New York history captured as it happens,” said Mickey Meyer, president of Blink49 Creator Studios. “Partnering with Outerboro and 1Community to move at the speed this moment demands is what independent filmmaking should look like.”

Free’s other credits include working as a writer for “The Daily Show” and “Full Frontal With Samantha Bee.”

(Pictured: Travon Free, Mickey Meyer and Scott Budnick)