Free Screening Presented by South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center November 12th and 15th
by Howard Campbell
[MIAMI] – Reggae Boyz, film-maker Till Schauder’s documentary about the Jamaican soccer team’s unsuccessful qualification bid for the 2014 World Cup, will be shown in South Florida for the first time this week.
Virtual screenings will be at the South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center on November 12 and 15 as part of its Indie Flicks series. The film had a world premier two years ago at the Krakow Film Festival in Poland, and made its American debut in 2019 at the Brooklyn Film Festival in New York.
Schauder got involved with the project through investors who were impressed by The Iran Job, his 2012 documentary about United States Virgin Islands basketballer Kevin Sheppard’s experience playing in war-torn Iran.
Like that project, Reggae Boyz transcends sports.
“It’s also about a country trying to keep its population together; fighting social issues such as gun violence and racism. There is a story beneath the soccer story,” Schauder explained.
He arrived in Jamaica circa early 2013, when enthusiasm for the Reggae Boyz qualifying for the World Cup for a second time was high in the Caribbean country. Schauder traveled with the team to games in Mexico, Nicaragua, the United States and Panama.
When it was clear qualification was no longer possible, the Jamaica Football Federation fired head coach Theodore Whitmore, a star of the historic 1998 campaign, and hired German coach Winfried Schafer.
Schauder says the initial investors also lost interest in Reggae Boyz when they realized qualification was a lost cause. He completed the film with his own funds.
Inevitably, Reggae Boyz has a musical component. During his time in Jamaica, Schauder was struck by its frenetic dancehall energy.
“It’s steeped in the country. Everybody seems to have some performative talent,” he said.
Till Schauder was born in Seattle, Washington to German parents who were teachers there. He was raised in the City of Gottingen in northwestern Germany and studied film in the US and Germany.
In addition to The Iran Job, his credits include the 2017 documentary When God Sleeps, which also focuses on life in Iran.
Virtual Q&A with Director
After the screenings, there will be a virtual Q&A with Director, Writer, Producer, and Co-Director of Photography Till Schauder.
The event is free and open to the public on Thursday, November 12 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, November 15 at 4 p.m.
Registration is required. To register and view the trailer: CLICK HERE
