I’ll Knock a Homer For You

Image of a Babe Ruth signed baseball for Johnny Sylvester

I'll Knock a Homer for You: The Timeless Story of Johnny Sylvester and Babe Ruth

Video Editing / Print

"I'll Knock a Homer for You: The Timeless Story of Johnny Sylvester and Babe Ruth" is a feature length documentary about the relationship between a little boy and one of the most famous baseball players of all time. Andrew Lilley, owner of Loose Gravel Films and the great nephew of Johnny Sylvester, approached me, needing someone to edit and finish his film. A lot of work, besides editing, was still left to do. Music needed to be laid in, audio needed to be adjusted, and images were to be animated to add to the already-interesting story.

The initial meeting with Andrew was about what I could do to bring his film to the next level. All of the footage had already been shot and he was at the point where his rough cut needed to be polished, music needed to be added, and the narration needed to be dropped in. Historical photos were even brought to life. After several rounds of revisions, the film was complete and entered in festivals around the country. Among its selections, it went on to win "Best Home-grown Feature Length Documentary" at the 2013 Garden State Film Festival in Asbury Park, New Jersey. The film was then authored for DVDs and Blu-ray for sale to the public. It has also appeared on New York PBS broadcast television stations a few times.

The blu-rays looked great last night.

Once the documentary was in the can, Andrew began sending the film to television stations, museums, and anyone else he thought might have an interest in it. To promote the film, Andrew traveled up and down the east cost showing the film at museums, libraries, and organizations. If someone specific showed interest in the film a unique and catchy (see what I did there?) way of getting attention was needed. For that, I designed a round postcard with imagery that displayed the iconic baseball. An area for affixing a mailing label was left on the back. As with any good film, a movie poster was needed. I was thrilled to be asked to design that too. Throughout the print material, the iconic photo of the baseball made a great focal point.

The film poster ... looks great and should be showcased