By Michael Haag | Sports Writer
Director Chris Charles Scott III’s documentary “Ode to Joy” showcases a roller coaster of emotions. The film dives into the journey Baylor men’s basketball took from the murder of Patrick Dennehy to the 2021 National Championship. Directed by Scott and presented by SicEm365.com, the three-part documentary premiered Friday at Waco Hall.
Scott spoke to the audience during the film’s intermission about his decision to make it a three-part series. He said ultimately the production team knew it would have three parts once the story was put together. Everything felt right in his mind, and the story needed to be told at that length.
“We wanted to make this a feature-length documentary for us and when we shifted through footage and shifted through the story, it just kept hitting that three-hour mark,” Scott said. “But there’s no way we can hone it down from here. We decided to make it a three-part series.”
Scott, who is also a Baylor alumnus, said it meant a lot to him to be able to tell the story for the community. He said he was happy to be with the program and back at his alma mater.
“To be here and to be the one to tell the ending of this story is just so meaningful for me. It is so meaningful to be here with coach [Scott] Drew and our basketball squad,” Scott said. “We hope that we have done this story justice.”
Part one of the documentary introduced several interviewees and the context of the lowest point in Baylor basketball history. Over 20 people were interviewed, including Drew, players, Waconians, journalists, fans – even Baylor basketball superfan Chris Fuentes. Each of the unique and diverse interviewees expressed different perspectives on the journey, giving every angle imaginable.
The documentary has smooth transitions, going from the tragic murder and scandal into the era of Drew. The use of a visual timeline made it clear to follow each of the important steps along the early years for Drew. The episode showed that even Drew and the other interviewees were able to poke fun at the rough years when the program was at peak desperation. Scott and SicEm365.com’s inclusion of humor gave a light-hearted feel and caused several laughs to be found out of an atrocious situation.
The second installment of the limited series had deep emotion, pinpointed around a sense of family at Baylor. Along with a theme of family, the episode progressed to the Elite Eight runs at the end of the 2000s. The timeline remained helpful and gave useful information to appease any questions or curiosity. It was impossible not to share the bitterness Baylor fans felt when discussing the Elite Eight loss to Duke University in 2010. Scott successfully captivates his pro-Baylor audience, while also making it interesting for the potential neutral viewer.
Before Scott displayed the final part to the documentary, he gave a statement to the audience to instill some hype. He called it the “fun episode” before walking off stage.
The final fragment in “Ode to Joy” is without a doubt the highest point in the showcase: a national championship for Drew and the Bears. The relief for the program to finally get over the hump and beat the adversity of never being able to finish the job is clearly shown throughout. Scott and SicEm365.com included some untold stories of life in the bubble and how Drew maintained his faith to help get to the top.
Overall, I can’t count how many times I felt chills or let out laughs. I walked in with high expectations and can truly say they were surpassed. There was one or two instances of an audio issue with one of the interviewees that I noticed. There were also a few pixelated visual issues when it cut to different B-roll. Both of these were noticeable in the first two parts but didn’t take away from the exceptional work. Amid those small, fixable issues, Scott and SicEm365.com maintained an excellent flow and organized the story the way it was meant to be told. The Baylor family can stand tall and feel proud of how Drew and the program rose out of the darkness that plagued the program.
Be sure to check out SicEm365.com and their updated release on the next premier of “Ode to Joy.” It’s worth the watch for Baylor fans and sports fans alike.
