The Grit & the Glory: Homeless World Cup 2009

** UPDATE: The Grit & the Glory is accepted to the In the Bin: Board Shorts festival in Australia **

A few months ago, Buzz Films pitched for and won the opportunity to make a film for Nike and the Homeless World Cup team. We crammed a steadicam, jimmy jib, six cameras and five people into a van, and drove 800 miles from London to Milan, where we spent the following ten days covering the grit and the glory of the football tournament.

Documenting this experience through our presenter Buddy, we met some inspirational characters, heard some remarkable stories, and throughout the week we produced and uploaded daily videos for the wider world, as well as for the players to view at the tournament. We experienced some of the colour and culture of the 500 individuals, through Buddy’s attempts to play for Australia, to the accommodation, and even a short piece on the Brazil team‘s skills in the heart of the city.

Two months later we’re proud to release our final installment to our Homeless World Cup experience. It has been an inspiring journey, that reinforces a belief that positive impacts to social issues like addiction and homelessness, can arise through acknowledgement, engagement and a belief that change really is possible. The event itself represents the tip of the iceberg, with many programmes around the world working with disadvantaged people throughout the year, and it has been proven that over 70% of those that participate go on to make positive changes in their lives – many of them returning as a mentor for others, or in some sort of coaching capacity.

This film will sit on the Nike GameChangers site, and be used by the Homeless World Cup team as a promotional tool. For more information on the charity and the good work it is doing, please do visit the site and engage in their programme.

Spread the word.

Thanks for following our adventures.

The Grit & the Glory: Homeless World Cup 2009 from Jan-Paul Bednarz on Vimeo.