Former NBAer
KOBE BRYANT long said he would explore the "storytelling realm" upon his retirement, and on Sunday unveiled a "10-minute video presentation titled 'Canvas City: Musecage,' which aired during ABC's 'NBA Countdown' pregame show," according to Baxter Holmes of ESPN.com. The piece was the "second of six that Bryant agreed to direct, write and create for ESPN as part of his 'Canvas' series, with each focused on an on-court topic." The first, titled "Guarding the Greats," "aired on Christmas Day and ran for 5 minutes and 45 seconds." But in the days and weeks that followed, Bryant "quickly became certain that his next piece would require nearly twice that length, a bold request for a 30-minute show." Ultimately, Bryant convinced ESPN VP/Original Content
KEVIN WILDES to "visit his office in Newport Beach." By that point, Bryant's video was "still in draft form, but he showed Wildes segments of the animation they had created and passionately explained his vision." Referencing the group that he also worked with on his '15 documentary "
MUSE," Bryant said, "Everybody that worked on it, it's like, 'Well, why wouldn't we?' You have an idea and then you go with it and then, (it's like), 'Oh, we think we can make it better.'" Wildes said of Bryant's latest project, "It's an inspiring project that has a strong point of view. It's unlike anything that we've seen in the basketball space." Bryant said, "If you're sitting there and you're saying, 'OK, Kobe Bryant is writing and directing something.' It's kind of like 'wink wink.' But everybody -- the folks at ESPN, ABC -- took a leap of faith." The video culminates with a beneath-the-surface breakdown of MVP candidates Rockets G
JAMES HARDEN and Thunder G
RUSSELL WESTBROOK. Expanding the conversation beyond basketball "became a focal point, especially with teaching lessons through sport to a younger audience" (
ESPN.com, 3/26).
SOMETHING DIFFERENT: Bryant said of the project, "I wanted something where the mother, father, and children could all sit together on a couch and watch a program where they are digesting basketball content that enables them to be better, but it’s content that the kids can enjoy as well. ... How can I break down the game in a way that is entertaining and easily digestible?" Bryant added, "[I] enjoyed the process of story telling but when it came to doing the ‘Muse’ film, that is when I really fell in love with it. I started to fall in love with the process of actually writing out the chapters, structuring things visually and so forth, and then to see the reaction that we received from people from the film ("First Take," ESPN, 3/27).
ALL ABOUT THE DOUGH: In S.F., Ron Leuty noted Warriors F DRAYMOND GREEN and LRMR Management Founder MAVERICK CARTER recently "teamed up for the inaugural episode of 'KNEADING DOUGH,'" an Internet series about money management on Uninterrupted.com. The series is "sponsored by Chase Bank," the sponsor of the Warriors' under-construction arena in S.F. The series also "features episodes with LEBRON JAMES and SERENA WILLIAMS. Green: "When most people are not making a lot of money, they are learning how to manage money. We don't necessarily get that." The goal is "better money management for all -- athletes and non-athletes alike" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 3/24).
