Thank you, New York, for supporting another amazing K+S festival

You did it, New York. You raised the bar again (!) with your passion for the game -- in all its manifestations -- and with your steadfast support for the Kicking + Screening Soccer Film Festival in New York.

It was a week full of topnotch features, outstanding shorts, captivating panels, and world-class fun. All in all, three out of four nights were sold out, and every night was a blast.

A few highlights from last week's #KSFilmFest:

Night 1: The humor and humility of world champion foosballers Tony Spredeman (pictured below), Rob Mares, and Todd Loffredo after the screening of Joe Heslinga's Foosballers. They were genuinely thrilled to be there, and happily attended the late-night foosball tournament at Fat Cat. Rumor is it went til 5AM!

Night 2: If you're not a fan of Eintracht Frankfurt after seeing The Return of the Cup and the Q+A with board member Axel Hellmann (pictured below, second from left), then we don't know what to say. His excitement about the future of Eintracht was infectious.

Night 3: The emotional rollercoaster of an evening dedicated to strong, amazing women and stories about breaking down barriers. It was capped off by the rousing panel featuring Tracy Hamm (star of Coach), Mandy Freeman(Sky Blue FC player), and Eglantina Zingg (founder of Goleadoras).

Freeman's comments pretty much summed it up. "Greatness has no gender, has no race, has no sexual orientation. It’s just, if you’re a great player, you’re a great player & that’s all that should matter.” Well said.

Night 4: Bagpipes led a procession of the Kearny, NJ, soccer community up Park Ave. Yes, bagpipes. And that set the tone for a raucous, fun world premiere of Soccertown USA and the Closing Night Party presented by the New York Red Bulls. A fitting way to end.

How’s this for a procession to see the premier of “Soccertown USA” at the @KSFilmFest in NYC - hail to Kearny, NJ! @TMeola1 @johnharkes6 @RamosTab @TomMcCabe5 pic.twitter.com/GNREFAW0cb

— Glenn Crooks (@GlennCrooks) June 7, 2019

The end. It's the worst part of the festival even if Night 4 is always fun. We have to thank all of the filmmakers, the partners and friends, our incredible volunteers -- shoutout to Jessie and Barbara! -- everyone at Scandinavia House, and, most important, you, the passionate soccer community that brought our 11th festival in NY to life in such a fantastic way.

We can't wait for year 12. See you then!

P.S. Check out who won the Golden Whistle for the best film at K+S New York 2019.

P.P.S. Check out who won our new audience honor, the Player Pass Award.

Foosballers wins Golden Whistle as best film at K+S New York 2019

Every year, K+S awards the Golden Whistle for the best film, as decided by the K+S film panel. It was a tough decision, but one film stood out.

This year's winner of the K+S Golden Whistle is Foosballers, directed by Joe Heslinga.

“Within the film’s first 45 seconds and first glimpse of Tony Spredeman, I was riveted—and so was our audience,” says Rachel Markus, co-founder of K+S. “The Golden Whistle celebrates the feature film which captivates and takes us on a journey like the best soccer match—not risking averting our eyes and compelled to watch until the final whistle, still wanting more. Director Joe Heslinga allowed us to share in the fascinating world of pro foosball and the heroes of the table. Impossible to look at a foosball table the same, again.”

And the new Player Pass Award goes to...

For our 11th annual K+S in NY,  we launched a new honor: the Player Pass Award, which is determined by a vote by K+S Player Pass (our full-festival ticket package) attendees unaffiliated with any of the films. The inaugural Player Pass Award winner is Soccertown USA, directed by Robert Penzel.

Congratulations to both films and filmmakers!

"Soccertown USA" wins inaugural Player Pass Award at K+S New York 2019

For our 11th annual K+S in NY,  we launched a new honor: the Player Pass Award. This new award is determined by a vote by attendees who purchased the K+S Player Pass — our full-festival ticket package. (Note: Only Player Pass attendees unaffiliated with any of the films were eligible to vote.)

The inaugural Player Pass Award winner is Soccertown USA, directed by Robert Penzel.

Soccertown USA, which received its world premiere at K+S New York 2019, tells the story of Kearny, NJ, hometown of US World Cup stars Tony Meola, Tab Ramos, and John Harkes. It is, in many ways, ground zero for the modern soccer movement in America.

Let's Do This! K+S Soccer Film Festival New York 2019 Kicks Off on Tuesday

It's festival week! Woohoo!

The 11th annual Kicking + Screening Soccer Film Festival in New York kicks off on Tuesday and runs through Friday.

We are so excited to welcome everyone to Scandinavia House in midtown Manhattan for a week of soccer films, soccer discussions, and soccer community. And foosball!

This year, K+S is supporting the soccer nonprofit Goleadoras, which works to empower girls through mentoring and coaching. To support their efforts, we will have a cash bar this year ($5 beer), with the proceeds being donated to Goleadoras.

Nights 1 + 4 are sold out. (Sorry, not sorry!) But you don't need a ticket for the annual K+S Closing Night Party presented by the New York Red Bulls, so don't be shy. Come join us to help us celebrate the amazing New York soccer community.

And there are a still a few tickets available for Nights 2 + 3. Get them before they're gone!

Can't wait to see everyone this week.

Yours in soccer,
K+S

Kicking + Screening supports girl-empowerment organization Goleadoras during K+S New York 2019

To us, soccer is not just a game in which a group of people kick a ball and try to score a goal. It’s a thread in the fabric of our lives. As such, it has a role and a responsibility in connecting us, energizing us, empowering us.

We take this very seriously. And strive to work with people and organizations that do, too.

Which is why we are thrilled to announce Goleadoras, a nonprofit that uses soccer to empower and support girls, as our charitable partner for 2019. We absolutely love their tagline #GirlsWithBalls, which truly embodies the message we will amplify throughout the 11th annual Kicking + Screening Soccer Film Festival New York, taking place from June 4 to June 7.

“Goleadoras embodies everything that is powerful about the game and the people who love it,” says Rachel Markus, K+S co-founder and co-organizer. “Their work to help girls achieve greater fitness, self-confidence and leadership skills through the teamwork and perseverance demanded by the beautiful game is compelling.”

"As a believer and full-on advocate of the power of sports, specifically soccer, and how that power could be used for social change, we are honored to have Goleadoras be a part of Kicking + Screening and raise awareness in our New York community," says Goleadoras founder Eglantina Zingg (pictured below). "K+S and the films and filmmakers they champion prove that the art of storytelling can truly make an impact. We can’t wait to seize this experience!"

Through the partnership, K+S will showcase Goleadoras and their projects during the K+S New York and throughout 2019. We will donate a portion of the proceeds from the festival to Goleadoras and encourage all festival-goers to support their efforts.

Goleadoras will support the festival through promotion and on-site activation, with a focus on Night 3, Thursday, June 6, when the film lineup emphasizes women in soccer and champions the theme “Against the Odds.” (See below for film lineup.)

As part of the partnership, Zingg will participate in the K+S speaker series on Night 3 and will sit on the film festival jury to determine the Golden Whistle Award winner, presented to the top feature film at K+S Soccer Film Festival New York.

---

NIGHT 3: Thursday, June 6

Coach 

26 mins | USA + UK | 2019 | Directed by Matthew Ellison + Jordan Axelrod.

Coach follows Tracy Hamm, who currently leads the women’s soccer team at San Francisco State, in her quest to earn the internationally renowned UEFA A coaching license. Hamm turned to Europe after her efforts to pursue a top license from U.S. Soccer were obstructed by requirements that candidates seeking waivers to bypass lower certification levels must have played three years of professional soccer. When she graduated from college in 2006, no professional women’s league existed in the United States.

Coach is a Growth Through Sport production.

PLUS: 
Yasmina
Short | US Premiere | Fifteen-year-old Yasmina passionately loves football and practices at the Saint-Étienne football club. But she is also a Moroccan who is in France without a visa, with her father and his French girlfriend. After she watches her father get arrested right as she returns from training one evening, she will have to make a decision that tests her love of the game. Directed by Claire Cahen & Ali Esmili.
 
Aim High
Short | US Premiere | Having consistently beaten the other girls’ teams, Lleida’s AEM girls’ football club decided to play with the boys. This documentary tells the story of what happened next. Directed by Rojo Rosenvinge + Sandra Bauera.

---

About Goleadoras

About Goleadoras

Goleadoras is a purpose-driven social enterprise leveraging the power of fútbol to transform the self-confidence, sense of solidarity, ambition, perseverance, and well-being of girls and women. The Goleadoras Project grows out of a ten-year-old US-based not-for-profit foundation Proyecto Paz, an organization dedicated to bringing soccer to underprivileged communities with the support of donors such as Corporacion Andina de Fomento, Direct TV, Tag Heuer, MTV and allies like the United Nations, Unidos en Red, Peace One Day.

For more information, visit Goleadoras.org.