Hoop Dreams (35MM)
Director: Steve James Run Time: 174 min. Format: 35mm Film Release Year: 1994
Starring: Arthur Agee, Dick Vitale, Gene Pingatore, Steve James, William Gates
First premiered at the 1994 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Audience Award for Best Documentary, Kartemquin’s Hoop Dreams tells the powerful true story of two young men chasing the American dream. Each day, African American teenagers William Gates and Arthur Agee travel 90 minutes from inner-city Chicago to attend St. Joseph High School in Westchester, Illinois, a predominantly white suburban school renowned for its elite basketball program. With hopes of reaching the NBA, Gates and Agee, supported by their close-knit families, navigate the social and physical challenges that shape their journeys.
Directed by Steve James and filmed over five years, this acclaimed documentary offers an intimate and unforgettable portrait of ambition, opportunity, and resilience.
Free and open to the public.