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A local trio is filming a movie in West St. Paul, Good Sport, that spoofs youth sports. The $150,000 production will be filmed in the gym at Heritage E-STEM Magnet School, among other locations in West St. Paul.
What’s it about: “It’ll be an R-rated movie. It takes place over one [basketball] game and it’s a satire on youth sports, or how parents act in youth sports, especially when the kids are about 12. We’re definitely making fun of that, but it will have some heart, as well,” Dillon Orth said in a recent Star Tribune story.
Based in real life: “In high school, I went back to ref that same league I played in and plenty of parents were getting quite upset—at a third- or fourth-grade basketball game,” Orth said.
Who: The trio behind the film is Orth, Andrew Zuckerman, and John Cronin. Orth and Zuckerman co-wrote the movie, Zuckerman is directing, and all three are producing. The three graduated from Henry Sibley High School (now Two Rivers) and grew up playing youth sports in the West St. Paul/Mendota Heights area. Orth used to play basketball in the gym where they’ll be filming.
Prior work: The three collaborated on the 2022 movie Undergrads, which they filmed during the pandemic. Undergrads is available for rent on Amazon and Apple TV or viewed for free on Tubi.
Grateful: “We are thankful for the generosity of ISD 197 and the City of West St Paul to our production,” said Cronin. “We couldn’t do it without them! As alumni, it’s a great feeling knowing that ISD 197 still has our back even post-graduation.”
What’s next: The trio plans to finish Good Sport this summer and then submit it to festivals and hopefully land a distribution deal.
April 4, 2024 Update
Here’s an additional story from Fox 9, which includes this great quote:
“We’re very intentional about shooting here because we believe in this community and the crew and creatives here in town. So we want to kind of help put Minnesota on the map and get more here.”
Producer John Cronin
All photos courtesy of John Cronin.
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