Strike

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TYPE: Narrative Short
GENRE: Comedy
STATUS: Pre-Production

LOGLINE

Bad bets, lost shoes, and a dogmatic cult send a weary bowling team spiraling as two of its members create more trouble for everyone.

SYNOPSIS

On a Wednesday night at a faded bowling alley, David tries to hold his team together while Rob spirals over a betting loss and Lars declares war on the shoe clerk. Teetering on the edge of cult recruitment and financial ruin, any chance of the group’s league play is evaporating.

ARTISTIC STATEMENT

In a 2023 study, the NCAA found that nearly 60% of college age students had bet on sports. Of this group, 16% self-identified as displaying the behavior of a risky gambler. Of those risky gamblers, 7% thought they could win their money back if they continued to place bets. The story of "Strike" first came to me in the form of characters. For the last few years I've found myself deep in the weeds of modern college culture in the SEC (Southeastern Conference). Tradition runs deep here, but so does a culture of not asking too many questions. I remember the first time one of my friends won money off a sports bet. He was absolutely stoked and immediately doubled down on a new parlay. Over the next few months, every dollar he earned that didn't go to rent or food, he dropped into his betting app. One day when I asked him why he kept betting; he offered that it made watching sports more exciting and that it "kept him engaged." The NCAA's study found that sports betting was "pervasive" amongst young people. With the sports betting industry now worth over $100 billion dollars, it's hard to escape its influence. TV commercials and in-game ads beg for our engagement. "Strike" is about what can happen when we become so "engaged" in our habits that we lose track of their effects.

KEY CREW

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