LOS ANGELES, CA – May 7, 2014 – Take Action Hollywood!, in association with Coasting Films, is proud to announce the digital release of the new documentary film Losing LeBron on May 20, 2014 through Devolver Digital Films. Losing LeBron, directed by Nicole Prowell Hart and Allyson Sherlock, examines the impact of NBA star LeBron James’ decision to leave the city of Cleveland. Told through the eyes of the fans he left behind, the feature-length film explores why sports are so important to the struggling city. Losing LeBron will be available to rent/own on digital VOD (Video On Demand) via iTunes, Amazon Prime, Google Play, Xbox, PlayStation, Vimeo on Demand, VuDu, VHX, Distrify, and others. Pre-orders on iTunes are available now. The film’s cable VOD release is scheduled for August 5, 2014 (check local listings). For additional information, please see the film’s site at www.losinglebron.com and www.devolverdigital.com/films/view/losing-lebron.

“The film takes a lot of people by surprise, getting into some big issues beyond basketball,” says Co-Director Allyson Sherlock, “It explores the connection between civic pride and personal self-worth… the tension between success and failure, leaving and staying, fathers and sons.”

Losing LeBron

Synopsis –
Losing LeBron (2014, 59 min.) is a feature-length documentary that chronicles the impact of NBA superstar LeBron James’ decision to sign with the Miami Heat on the city of Cleveland, while exploring the complicated relationship that many Cleveland residents have with their hometown. Losing LeBron takes an intimate look at several individuals over the course of the 2010-2011 NBA season to examine how LeBron James, one of the most famous figures in sports, served as a symbolic representation of hope for a city struggling to redefine its economy and its national image.

Told directly through the eyes of the fans he left behind, Losing LeBron follows three families during their first NBA season without LeBron James playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers. The film explores how residents have been affected by this move, why sports are so important to their city, and how this wounded community is working to redefine itself in light of the loss. Starring Scott Rabb, senior writer for Esquire Magazine and author of The Whore of Akron, comedian Mike Polk, Tyrone Shavers, Zachary Shavers, Mike Brenkus, and Candice Vlcek.

“We set out to answer the question: ‘Why did LeBron’s departure matter so much to Cleveland?’” says Co-Director Nicole Hart, “We ended up discovering an amazing city, full of pride and dedication, but also full of questions about its identity and self-worth…. ultimately, the film is a portrait of Cleveland, in the context of these complex issues.”

Credits –
Directors: Nicole Prowell Hart & Allyson Sherlock
Producers: Nicole Prowell Hart & Allyson Sherlock
Executive Producers: Maria Menounos (Extra host, Chasing Maria Menounos on Oxygen), Keven Undergaro, & Take Action Hollywood!
Associate Producers: Kirsten Brownrigg & Liz Jones
Editor: Allyson Sherlock
Production Companies: Take Action Hollywood! & Coasting Films

Festivals –
2013 All Sports LA Film Festival – Hollywood, CA
2013 Ohio Independent Film Festival – Euclid, OH
2013 New Hampshire Film Festival – Portsmouth, MA
2013 Roxbury International Film Festival – Boston, MA
2013 Pittsburgh Independent Film Festival – McKees Rocks, PA
2013 Athens International Film and Video Festival – Athens, Ohio
2013 Atlanta Film Festival – Atlanta, GA
2013 It’s All True Emerson College Documentary Showcase – Boston, MA; Winner: Best Editing

Nicole Prowell Hart, Co-Director & Co-Producer –
Nicole Prowell Hart is a Boston-based documentary filmmaker who works with both traditional narrative and experimental idioms. Her films include Black Box, an experimental, hand-processed film shot on 16mm, which premiered at the 2014 Athens International Film and Video Festival, and Happy Hunting, which premiered at the 2009 New Hampshire Film Festival. Losing LeBron is her first feature-length documentary. She received an MFA in Visual & Media Arts from Emerson College. She also holds a production certificate from FAMU/Prague.

Hart’s educational and non-profit clients include the Jacob Burns Film Center, MIT, Emerson College, Harvard University, and filmmakers Ross McElwee and Sarah Jane Lapp. Her educational projects have screened at the Smithsonian Institution’s Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum in New York. Hart has served on the board of Women in Film & Video/New England, and is a member of both Connect the Docs and the University Film and Video Association. She currently is a Teaching Fellow at Harvard University and teaches media production at Cambridge Rindge & Latin School in Cambridge, MA.

Allyson Sherlock, Co-Director, Co-Producer & Editor –
Allyson Sherlock is a Boston-based documentary filmmaker and editor. Her work is dedicated to creating films that explore the essence of community and how individuals come to define themselves in relation to others. Her films have screened in both festivals and on television. Losing LeBron is her first feature-length documentary. She received an MFA in Visual & Media Arts from Emerson College.

Sherlock is co-founder of a production company that specializes in socially conscious media projects and her clients have included several of the leading non-profit organizations in the country. Additionally, she teaches a wide variety of production and postproduction courses at Emerson College and Harvard University Extension School. In 2011, she received the Petra T. Shattuck Award for Excellence in Teaching.

Devolver Digital “Farm Fresh Indie Films”

Devolver Digital –
Based in Austin,Texas, Devolver Digital distributes independent video games and guides indie filmmakers through digital distribution and film promotion. Devolver Digital’s outspoken passion for independent games, developers, and fans has earned the company no minor measure of game industry notoriety. With its expansion into film, which was announced at South by Southwest 2013, the company applies that same fiercely creative devotion and digital content expertise to support and celebrate indie filmmakers and projects. Co­-Founder and Partner Mike Wilson says his own experience as a filmmaker seeking distribution led him and his partners to expand Devolver Digital into film. That experience has guided the company’s focus on “hand-crafted” strategic partnership and personal attention in distributing the titles on the label to a full range of digital and cable VOD platforms.

Links –
• Film’s Devolver Page – www.devolverdigital.com/films/view/losing-lebron
• Official Site – www.losinglebron.com
• Trailer – vimeo.com/losinglebron/losinglebrontrailer
• IMDB – www.imdb.com/title/tt2361518
• Facebook – www.facebook.com/LosingLeBron
• Twitter – @LosingLeBronDoc

For more information, photos, a screener, or to schedule an interview, please contact Green Galactic’s Lynn Tejada at 213-840-1201, lynn@greengalactic.com.