Doubters

When 3MM, the Chicago Three Minute Movie film collective, announced its February theme of Release, Univore immediately recognized not only an opportunity to create yet more video and music, but a chance to do our friend Marco a great service. Obviously, basketball is at the center of our short film, specifically the notion of the hands' release of the ball in such a way that improves the chances of success when attempting a field goal. Well, this particular bit of mechanics has weighed heavily on Marco's mind for over thirty years now, and Univore gave him a chance to revisit it on film.

In 1979, Marco interrupted his love affair with soccer and ping pong to try his hand at the American game of basketball. His decision and subsequent training coincided with a coaching change for the Italian national basketball team. Out was the defensive-minded Giancarlo Primo, whose team finished fourth at the 1972 Summer Olympics after losing by only one point to Cuba, and in was Sandro Gamba. With this change, Marco saw this as an opportunity to show off his recently developed skills in a tryout for the national team as it prepared for the 1980 Summer Olympics. The tryout lasted only a matter of moments. Gamba saw too many flaws in Marco's release. The Italians under Gamba won the silver at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow and a bronze at the EuroBasket 1985 in Stuttgart. Devastated, Marco deflated his basketball and never picked up again until 2012, when we swept the snow from a court on Chicago's west side and let Marco show the world that his skills have suffered no diminishment.

With all due respect, Mr. Gamba, after watching this in your advancing age, you may well come to realize what Univore already has: with Marco Casale, you would have won gold in 1980.