“Rise” Press Conference Brings Stars, Filmmakers Together to Talk About Inspirational Disney+ Movie
Hi everyone!
I was invited to the press conference for the inspirational Disney+ film “Rise”. Participants were Giannis Antetokounmpo; Thanasis Antetokounmpo; Veronica Antetokounmpo; Alex Antetokounmpo; Kostas Antetokounmpo; Uche Agada (as Giannis Antetokounmpo); Ral Agada (as Thanasis Antetokounmpo); Yetide Badaki (as the mother Veronica Antetokounmpo); Dayo Okeniyi (as the father Charles Antetokounmpo); director Akin Omotoso; producer Bernie Goldman and writer Arash Amel. The host was Kelly Carter, senior entertainment reporter for ESPN’s Andscape.
Carter started with a question for Giannis, about why this was the right time to tell their story. He answered, “… Disney approached us around 2018, giving us the opportunity to share our story with the world….we decided that it was something that we wanted to do. I think our story is very inspiring. A lot of people are going to learn things about us that they’ve never heard before”. He continued that everyone always talks about the brothers, but not about their parents. “We knew that one day we’re going to tell them who the real heroes of this story is, of this journey is.”
Director Akin Omotoso is a basketball fanatic, and was “very fascinated” with African players in the NBA. “So, in 2013, when Giannis was drafted, every year I’ll look at the draft and I’ll pick out who the African players are drafted. And when Giannis was drafted, I remember reading up a story and I was like, ‘If ever I was to make a film about basketball and life, it’ll be this gentleman’s story.'”
Uche has an interesting story on how he was chosen for “Rise”. “It’s a weird story, honestly. It’s crazy. I was just laying in bed one day and I was going on Instagram. And I see a screenshot of a tweet that Giannis put out saying that Disney’s making a movie about his life and his family’s life and they’re looking for someone to play him and his brothers.” Uche wasn’t an actor. He continued, “So, I just clicked on a link and I just send a video, just talking about myself. And then I sent in a self-take. A few months later, I got a call back. And for me, I was never an actor prior to this, so this was very weird for me.” He kept getting callbacks and then the part. And then, a couple weeks later, he was asked if he had any siblings.
Ral picked up from here. “So, my little brother Uche calls me up one day. I mean, at this point, I know he’s in the movie and everybody’s just so happy that he’s in it. I’m so proud of him. So, when he calls me up saying, ‘Hey, you wanna try out for the older brother?’ I’m like, “What? That doesn’t make any sense.’” He continued, “So, then they say, ‘Oh, we need some basketball clips from you.’ I’m like, ‘Okay, well, I know how to do that.'”. He sent in the basketball clips and Randy Hillard told him that he and his brother were going to Greece to film a movie.
Kostas came up with the name “Rise” for the film. Giannis explained it. “Like we started from nothing. And together, you know, we rise as a family. And we’re gonna keep on rising together.”
“Rise” is a very inspirational film. Here is information on the movie from Disney+:
Audiences have never seen a story like that of the Antetokounmpos. After emigrating from Nigeria to Greece, Charles and Vera Antetokounmpo (Dayo Okeniyi and Yetide Badaki, respectively) struggled to survive and provide for their five children, while living under the daily threat of deportation. With their oldest son still in Nigeria with relatives, the couple were desperate to obtain Greek citizenship but found themselves undermined by a system that blocked them at every turn.
When they weren’t selling items to tourists on the streets of Athens with the rest of the family, the brothers– Giannis (Uche Agada) and Thanasis (Ral Agada)–would play basketball with a local youth team. Latecomers to the sport, they discovered their great abilities on the basketball court and worked hard to become world class athletes, along with brother, Kostas (Jaden Osimuwa). With the help of an agent, Giannis entered the NBA Draft in 2013 in a long shot prospect that would change not only his life but the life of his entire family. And last season, Giannis and Thanasis helped bring the Milwaukee Bucks their first championship ring in 50 years, while Kostas played for the previous season champs, the Los Angeles Lakers.
Audiences have never seen a story like that of the Antetokounmpos.>After emigrating from Nigeria to Greece, Charles and Vera Antetokounmpo (Dayo Okeniyi and Yetide Badaki, respectively) struggled to survive and provide for their five children, while living under the daily threat of deportation. With their oldest son still in Nigeria with relatives, the couple were desperate to obtain Greek citizenship but found themselves undermined by a system that blocked them at every turn. When they weren’t selling items to tourists on the streets of Athens with the rest of the family, the brothers– Giannis (Uche Agada) and Thanasis (Ral Agada)–would play basketball with a local youth team. Latecomers to the sport, they discovered their great abilities on the basketball court and worked hard to become world class athletes, along with brother, Kostas (Jaden Osimuwa). With the help of an agent, Giannis entered the NBA Draft in 2013 in a long shot prospect that would change not only his life but the life of his entire family. And last season, Giannis and Thanasis helped bring the Milwaukee Bucks their first championship ring in 50 years, while Kostas played for the previous season champs, the Los Angeles Lakers.
“Rise” stars Dayo Okeniyi, Yetide Badaki, Manish Dayal, Taylor Nichols, introducing Ral Agada and introducing Uche Agada. The film was directed by Akin Omotoso (“Vaya”), written by Arash Amel (“A Private War”) and produced by Bernie Goldmann (“300”). Giannis Antetokounmpo and Douglas S. Jones served as the executive producers.