Project Detail

Midnight Madness

Synopsis

Midnight Madness is Europe's first basketball film.

The film follows Nhamo Shire, the founder of the Midnight Madness tournament, and two players, Mike Martin and Pierre Henry-Fontaine, as they battle through the summer to make it as one of the top 10 basketball players who will go to Los Angeles to train and compete against their American counterparts.

Nhamo recollects how in 1999 he launched the first Midnight Madness in Harlesden as a means of deterring teenagers from gangs and crime when they are most vulnerable: night time. 9 years on we follow him as this extreme basketball tournament rages in twelve cities across the UK. Midnight Madness culminates at Crystal Palace where 5,000 screaming fans attend the finals.

We also follow Mike Martin who lost his mum a couple of months before the summer and wants to win the tournament as a tribute to her memory and Pierre Henry-Fontaine who's dream of making the big time in the United States ended prematurely. He now sees the opportunity of playing against the Americans in their own backyard as a means of proving to himself he can play and compete with the best.

Far from the violent picture painted in the media of inner city life we discover through Midnight Madness passionate, hardworking and touching individuals trying to make a difference.