Tennis
Video - Anna's Army
DVD
Price: $24.99 
Comments
from the documentary's producer:
Synopsis: This cultural documentary takes a behind-the-scenes
look at the reasons for Russia's stunning overnight conquest
of women's tennis. Maria Sharapova sparked worldwide attention
last summer when she became the first Russian to win Wimbledon
at just seventeen years of age.
And yet Sharapova is just one of many fiercely
competitive, talented and beautiful Russians suddenly sweeping
the women's tour.
In 2002, only one Russian woman was ranked
among the World's Top-30 players. By 2004, they constituted
half of the Top-10. In the process, these youngsters won
every major event of the summer: Wimbledon, the French and
U.S. Open.
So why is this cash-strapped, snow-covered
nation now producing waves of femme-fatale tennis phenoms?
In October of 2003, we traveled to the most
remote parts of Russia to find out why so many young women
were suddenly reaching the top ranks of the pro tour. What
we uncovered was astonishing. The Russian's success is not
based on a well-funded, Olympic-style program or even a
centralized training system.
Instead, the vast majority of the country's
best-known players were developed by a small coterie of
coaches, parents, and former players at Spartk, a small
club outside Moscow -- with only 130 students.
In fact, Anna Kournikova, 2004 French Open champ Anastasia
Myskina, and French and U.S. Open finalist Elena Dementieva
-- all grew up competing against one another in the same
age group at Spartak. There, they were trained by the mother
of Australian and U.S. Open winner Marat Safin. Our piece
shows how this "Mecca" of talent makes do with
only one poorly heated, dilapidated indoor court -- in a
land where snow blankets the ground eight months of the
year.
Rare Footage: Our piece features much hard-to-obtain
footage, including Tsar Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra
playing tennis, today's top Russian pros training together
on the same court at age 5 or 6, and footage of a highly
amusing Boris Yeltsin playing tennis and hugging his girls
on court after their matches.
Interviews: We have filmed and interviewed
virtually all of Russia's top players (past and present),
including 2004 Wimbledon champ Maria Sharapova; 2004 French
Open winner Anastasia Myskina; pioneer and former Top-Ten
player Anna Kournikova; Anna Dmitrieva, the first Soviet
woman to compete abroad and Olga Morozova, a 1974 Wimbledon
finalist and coach of Elena Dementieva. The program features
our interviews on this topic with the game's leading figures:
Martina Navratilova, Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Bud
Collins, Justine Henin-Hardene, Nick Bollettieri, Robert
Lansdorp, and Eugene L. Scott among others.
Our Team: Executive Producer Philip Johnston
is a former Chief Sports Editor for The Moscow Times and
former Moscow correspondent for United Press International.
He holds an M.A. from Johns Hopkins University (SAIS) in
Russian studies and a J.D. from Columbia Law School. Executive
Producer Peter Geisler is our video editor and cameraman.
He holds a B.S. in Economics from Vanderbilt University
and an M.B.A. in Finance from Emory University. Laura Anthony,
an advisor on the project, is a former producer at Bloomberg
Television.
The
author, David W. Britt, is a former collegiate tennis standout
at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and former
pro player.
Tennis
Video - Anna's Army
DVD
Price: $24.99
Review's
of Anna's Army
“[T]he film probes much deeper that the usual cultural
examinations of the ‘Russian Revolution’. But
the real winners are in the... footage.”
- L. Jon Wertheim, Sports Illustrated
“People
will see Anna in a whole new way... A fascinating look at
their leap from harsh Soviet origins to their glamorous,
globe-trotting lifestyle.”
- Dan Weil, writer for Tennis Magazine and Fox Sports
“Looking
for one good reason to watch professional tennis? How about
six: Myskina, Demetieva, Kuznetsova, Petrova, Zvonareva
and Sharapova.”
- Diane Hill, Maxim Magazine
