Oh! Show Productions

Film Review for "Time In The Minors" from ReelTalk Movie Reviews

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Sat, 08 Sep 2012 17:56:00 +0000

“Play ball!” is shouted to begin each game. But love of baseball won’t guarantee fame...

ReelTalk Movie Review

"Time In The Minors" Released on DVD in the UK!

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 23:15:00 +0000

"Time In The Minors" released June 20, 2011 on DVD in the UK, by Quantum Leap.

Quantum Leap

NBCSports.com "Hardball Talk" Reviews "Time In The Minors"...

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 18:18:00 +0000

I got a chance to see a great documentary recently: Time in the Minors, by Tony Okun. While the film has been around for a little while, it became available on DVD just last fall and, either way, its subject matter is timeless and compelling. I loved it, I want to tell you about it and, hopefully, you’ll want to see it.

Time in the Minors follows two players: Tony Schrager and John Drennen. Schrager was a college boy. He began at Yale and then transferred to Stanford before becoming a sixth round pick of the Chicago Cubs in 1998. Drennan was drafted out of high school by the Indians, a supplemental first round pick by virtue of Omar Vizquel leaving via free agency following the 2004 season. Schrager is a cerebral middle infielder who got an $80,000 bonus and seems wise beyond his years. Drennan, an outfielder, is a seemingly laid back California kid who got a million bucks. They have one thing in common, however, which trumps all of those differences. It’s a common enemy: the minor leagues.

And I don’t think it’s putting it too strongly to call the minor leagues an enemy. Indeed, the minors and, more broadly, baseball itself is the film’s primary antagonist. How can it not be when it’s a system that, by design, ends the dreams of 90% of those who enter it? When it turns something which has always been a fun game into a tough business? When it relegates the actual playing of that game into an almost secondary concern and elevates other far less exciting things like training and time management and — above all else — failure management to the utmost importance? Indeed, it’s a game altogether different than that which amateurs are used to, and the adjustments it takes in order to survive are things that very few young men are well prepared for.

Not that Schrager and Drennen complain about any of this. Indeed, both of them seem very clear-eyed about the nature of the minor leagues even as they struggle against it, and at no time does either of them seem to feel sorry for themselves when faced with misfortune or struggle.

For example, at one point Schrager has his best shot at making the majors — he’s starting at AAA when two of the Dodgers’ infielders are injured – coincide directly with what is easily the worst slump of his career, leading the team to find replacements in the Mexican League rather than give him the call. Likewise, just as Drennen is starting to make a splash in the Sally League, he injures his hand while trying to stretch a single into a double and, in the process, he learns that the one thing that defined him as a high school star — his insane amount of energy — often works against him over the course of what is a very long professional baseball season.

Schrager and Drennen deal with this stuff. They deal with the fact that timing can be everything. They deal with the fact that, to be a success in baseball, you have to pull off the neat trick of both pacing yourself and playing with intensity. They deal with the fact that they’ve gone from being something very special — their parents are interviewed in trophy-strewn rec rooms and their amateur coaches talk about how unique they were — to being relatively small fish in a very big pond. They deal with the fact that yesterday’s triumph — Drennen’s biggest claim to fame yet was that he hit a home run off Roger Clemens when the latter was pitching in the minors while making his comeback — means almost nothing the very next day. Mostly they deal with a system that, perhaps unexpectedly, requires far more than hitting and catching a baseball well. It’s about being in the right place at the right time. Getting lucky when it counts. Prevailing over boredom and frustration and doubt more than prevailing over opposing pitchers.

But if all this film had going for it was Schrager and Drennen, we might get a little lost or bogged down in the emotion of it all (and if I have one complaint it’s that the tone, often via the background music, is a bit more of a downer than the subject demands). Thankfully, there are interviews with players, coaches, scouts and a sports psychologist who help provide a frame of reference to it all.

Cody Ross appears in the movie as one of Schrager’s training partners. While he doesn’t provide any grand insight himself, his mere presence reminds us that even a relatively ordinary player like Ross had to have been extraordinary to make it through the battles which Schrager and Drennen may not survive. We also hear from the Cubs’ scout who signed Schrager who reminds us that, for as bad as Schrager’s journey through the minors may have gone, he has actually met or even exceeded the expectations of your average 6th rounder. We also hear from Drennan’s A-ball manager Lee May, Jr., who has seen ‘em come and seen ‘em go, and reminds us that these two aren’t unique subjects. That their stories are common, and thus the film itself is instructive of the process and not merely a voyeuristic glance into the lives of Schrager and Drennen.

I think about baseball more than almost anyone, but I don’t know that I’ve really thought about the nature of the minor leagues in the way they’re presented in Time in the Minors. Like a lot of people, I think about them through the humorous and mannered filter of Bull Durham. Or I think of them as a playground where fast-track prospects romp before getting their early callup. Or I think of them as some sort of pastoral and even romantic backdrop for feel-good stories in which long-term grinders finally get their chance.

What I don’t think about — but now always will — are guys like Schrager who never make it or Drennen who, while he’s still plugging away in the Indians’ system, may not. And, more significantly, about a system that, by its very nature, must work thwart their dreams lest it fail to serve its purpose.

Review by Craig Calcaterra

Link to Review Here

Time In The Minors Film Review

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 05:49:00 +0000

-Review from The Baseball Journeyman

I have watched a lot of documentaries on baseball. My favorite ones deal with what minor leaguers do in order to reach the major leagues, and Time In The Minors delivers.

Time in the Minors is a film by Tony Okun that follows two minor league players in their quest to reach the major leagues through the 2006 season. The best part of this film is that it follows two players in different times of their career. The first was a 6th round pick out of one of the best college baseball programs in the country in Stanford named Tony Schrager. By this time, Schrager had been in the minor leagues for 8 years and had reached the AAA level, but had not reached the majors. The other player followed is a high school player drafted in the 1st round by the Cleveland Indians in John Drennen. With a million dollar bonus, Drennen heades to low A ball as he starts his professional career...

...To read the full review CLICK HERE.

"Time In The Minors" Film Press

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Sun, 09 Jan 2011 18:29:00 +0000

Read an article in the Omaha World Herald
OMAHA WORLD HERALD

By Jonathon Braden
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Looking for a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the grind of minor league baseball with an added twist of Omaha intrigue?

Well, even if you aren't, there is a film out there showing just that. It's a documentary done by an Omahan that follows an Omahan with some Omaha scenes. Now if people in Omaha — or elsewhere — are interested in seeing it, well, that would be just fine with the documentarian.

He is Tony Okun, a UNL journalism grad, and the player is Tony Schrager, a former Omaha Westside star who spent nine years bouncing around pro ball. It's all chronicled in Okun's documentary released in October, “Time In The Minors,” a testament to dogged determination in following a dream. After seven years of minor league baseball, Schrager's big break had arrived. In spring 2005, he had been told he was one of five players in Class AAA who could be called up to the Los Angeles Dodgers later that season. Then it happened: Not one, but two Dodgers infielders got hurt, presumably clearing roster space for a Class AAA call-up. Would Schrager get the call?

That spring and all of Schrager's pro career are chronicled in the documentary. The film also juxtaposes Schrager's career with that of John Drennen, a pimple-faced high school All-American entering the minor leagues as Schrager's career nears its end. Okun uses game footage and interviews with the players and family members to document the ups and downs of the minor leagues, where players can toil for years — cozying up on a bus for 20 hours, waking up at 4:30 a.m. to catch a plane and living on the road for five to six months out of the year — all in the name of reaching their childhood dreams of the bright lights and passionate crowds of the majors.

The film finds its conflict in the dramatically different paths that Schrager and Drennen took to pro ball. Schrager: The Stanford-educated dark-haired married man who speaks eloquently, turned pro after his junior year of college and was picked in the sixth round of the 1998 draft.

Drennen: The high school educated blonde-haired single dude who talks slowly, turned pro after his senior year of high school and was selected in the first round of the 2005 draft. But on the field, their stories slide together. Schrager struggles to have consistent success in the minors. He slowly ascends through the Chicago Cubs organization, then gets traded and even plays on an Independent League team in spring 2006 until the Florida Marlins sign him to their Class AA affiliate.

Drennen faces similar challenges. The film drives home the point that it's how players deal with the inevitable disappointments and failures that determine their ultimate success.Okun, who narrates the film, sees this as an important point.

The mental part of the game, he says, hindered his own prep career, which ended unceremoniously after his sophomore year at Westside when he didn't make the team. “I was a great practice player,” Okun remembers. “Come game time if I messed up, I couldn't let it go.”

As sports psychologist Kenneth Ravizza says in Okun's film, “You don't play against the opponent, you play against the game.”

It's a hard lesson to learn. Most never do.

In 2006, Schrager did well, hitting .302 with three teams.

“I had a few good years,” he said. “But it would always be, I'd have a good year then follow it up with a not so good year.”

While Drennen also has his struggles, Okun shows him facing different challenges than those of Schrager, including adjusting to the professional schedule and trying to meet the high expectations of a first-round pick. At times while making the film, Okun said he felt like a minor league filmmaker. After shooting and collecting about 250 hours of footage for his first feature film, he whittled it down to 85 minutes in fall 2008. He started working on the documentary in November 2005, edited it himself and shipped it off to film festivals.

But the festivals, including Omaha's, largely rejected his work. So Okun deleted about 12 minutes of footage, re-cut some parts and finally found a company to distribute it after he compiled a stack of rejections. It's now out on DVD through Landmark Media. The film aired in Japan a few times over the summer. Okun is now trying to find a U.S. broadcast opportunity.

His career also has been like that of a minor leaguer at times. A long-time fan of sports biographies and NFL Films, Okun moved to Los Angeles when he was 24 to work in the film industry. After two stints in San Diego around a 10-year stay in L.A., Okun moved to Boise in 2007 with his now wife.

He runs Oh! Show Productions, his documentary film company that he started in 2003.

Schrager, 33, has moved on as well. He lives in Atlanta and develops apartment complexes with his cousins. Drennen, 24, batted .300 last season in Class AA, his best season yet. He continues to play professionally. The film has other Omaha connections. Long-time Westside baseball coach Bob Greco makes an appearance. And Okun included footage of Schrager playing at Rosenblatt Stadium during the College World Series and while in AAA ball.

But it's not Omaha that Okun wants you to remember; it's the journey, the trek those we cheer for have gone through to continue playing.

“My goal of the film was to show the process,” he said.

He had a personal interest in the film's topic. His dad has played cards with Harley Schrager, Tony's father, every Monday night for years. And Okun has been following Tony Schrager's career since Schrager was drafted.

Buy the DVD!

Official Film Page

Tony Schrager Speech (2008)

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 22:16:00 +0000

Tony Schrager returns to Omaha, Nebraska in 2008 to speak about his career in professional baseball. The speech was taped at a high school scholar athletes awards banquet in Omaha. Tony is one of the two main subjects in the documentary, "Time In The Minors".

Time In The Minors Film Screening

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 02:58:00 +0000

Time In The Minors will screen as a part of fundraiser for the "Friends Of Baseball", on Thursday March 10, 2011 @ 7pm at the West End Theater in Portland, Oregon.

EVENT INFORMATION

FRIENDS OF BASEBALL

Time In The Minors - Radio Interviews

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 04:52:00 +0000

Interview on NY Baseball Digest

Interview on I-70 Baseball Radio

Interview on the Extra Point 1250AM

(click on link to listen)

Time In The Minors Now on DVD!

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 03:02:00 +0000

CLICK HERE!

Time In The Minors Film Press

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 02:52:00 +0000

"Baseball fans will love this film!"
-Chuck Murr (Editor, Indians Ink Magazine)

"The first baseball movie I've ever seen to accurately portray the "real" stories of professional baseball."
-Taylor Zarzour (The Fan 610AM Sports Radio)

"Tony Okun does a wonderful job of personifying the struggle in this documentary."
-James Baily (Baseball America)

"Good food for thought for young ballplayers anticipating a pro career."
-Anthony Castrovince (MLB.com)

click on links to read full story...

"TIME IN THE MINORS" International broadcast premiere in Japan!

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 21:44:00 +0000

TIME IN THE MINORS documentary film will make its international Television broadcast premiere this spring on NKH BS1 in Japan.

The Television Syndication Company Acquires TIME IN THE MINORS

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 21:57:00 +0000

We are pleased to announce that The Television Syndication Company has acquired the exclusive distribution rights for TIME IN THE MINORS.

Capturing the Essense of Boise Hawks Baseball

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 04:17:00 +0000

Oh! Show Productions featured article from the Boise Hawks

Time in the Minors Film Trailer

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 04:05:00 +0000

Time in the Minors

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 03:54:00 +0000

Time in the Minors premiered at the ALL SPORTS LOS ANGELES FILM FESTIVAL, JULY 11, 2009. *2nd place, best documentary feature.

Time in the Minors will screen at the upcoming IDAHO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL, September 25, 2009

Poster design by: Steve Czarnecki
Poster photo by: Patrick Ahearne

New Film: "Time in the Minors"

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 15:39:00 +0000

Oh! Show Productions has completed production on a new feature-length documentary film, "Time in the Minors". The compelling story of two professional baseball players (veteran & rookie) on the their formidable journey in trying to reach the major leagues.

Poster Design by: Steve Czarnecki
Photo by: Patrick Ahearne

The film will be screening at film festivals in 2009.

"The Park" for rent at NETFLIX AND BLOCKBUSTER Video

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 00:17:00 +0000

"The Park" Documentary film is now available for rent online at NETFLIX, AND BLOCKBUSTER VIDEO.

Click on the links to view "The Park" pages as listed on Netflix, and Blockbuster Video.

Purchase "The Park" on DVD!

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 03:39:00 +0000

"The Park" Documentary Film is available for purchase on DVD at the Oh! Show Productions company website.

"The Park" Documentary Film Trailer

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 14:53:00 +0000

Produced by: Oh! Show Productions

"Caretaker at The Park" airing on Moviola The Short Film Channel

noreply@blogger.com (Oh! Show Productions) — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 14:50:00 +0000

Richard Davis: Caretaker at the park, the documentary short film produced by Oh! Show Productions has been acquired for broadcast on "Movieola The Short Film Channel" in Canada.