From the 50 Yard Line

i am a member of a high school marching band, and this movie portrays EXACTLY how i feel towards the concept of marching band. they are very helpful in aiding you raise money for your school marching band by allowing you to use their movie as a screening fund raiser. you get to keep half the profit you make. i love this movie, and i think it's destined to be shown in schools across America. i love it and i give it a 10/10. if you ever have the chance to see this movie, do it!!! you will never feel the same about marching band after you see it. and if you see it and then ever hear someone say that marching band is easy, i hope you tell them otherwise, because i know first hand that it isn't, and i am grateful to this movie for showing the world that.

As a former film maker and band parent this film is a great representation of the high school band experience for high school students and parents. You don't have to love band music to to be touched the emotion that is captured throughout this season of BOA performances. It's an experience of working hard for a team and succeeding together. It's about the fellowship of life and learning values and dedication at that age. And this film captures the experience of kids working together, playing music together and sharing feelings together. It's great if you win but its the process you'll never forget. Wonderful movie.

Director, Doug Lantz, provides an insightful glimpse into the world of competitive marching bands. The film offers the personal stories of how marching band literally changes lives in an affluent suburb in Ohio as well as in an inner city school in California. Powerful, inspiring and revealing, this film will change the way you think about marching band. I was in marching band, myself, and it changed my own perspective on the subject! The students in the featured bands tell their own stories and it is clear that for some, it is a lifeline. Watching the students grow and mature throughout the season is a real treat. In my book, From the 50 Yardline scores big! Looking for hope in America's future? Check the band room!

For everyone who has played football or any other sport and thinks they work hard, they should spend a week in band camp! Our high school is one of the few in our area that takes marching band to the serious level of competitions. During band camp our students are rehearsing from 9am to 9pm. How many football teams or other sports teams practice that long? In the heat of summer? On blacktop? I have a daughter that has just finished high school and a daughter who is about to begin high school, so it is certainly a time of great reflection as a parent as we experience this transition. One of the greatest gifts we have given our daughters in life is the gift of music. We are so blessed to be in an area that supports music in the schools. However, we still fight the stereotypical garbage that sports are the almighty activity. How I wish every one of these athletes could go through a season of marching band and see what it REALLY feels like to memorize the music, memorize the marching drill, and then repeat over and over and over again until every horn pops at the right angle, every step is clean, and every flag is in perfect alignment. I believe they would begin to understand what true commitment, hard work and time management are really all about.

The film really hits on many of the things that both students and parents already believe...that marching band is the hardest, most grueling job you will ever have in high school, and that it gives some of the best life lessons you will ever learn. I applaud the directors in every high school marching program for the many thankless hours of extra work beyond the school day, and for the many small and large triumphs that your programs experience in your JOURNEY. This film should be shown to all students, athletes and parents who complain that they have to walk a little further so that the marching band can practice in the parking lot! Kudos for a great film!

The Columbus International Film Festival is taking place this week. Somehow, I've never made it to the festival before; so this year I made every effort to get there. It probably helped that I have a personal interest in one of the screening films, a documentary called From the 50 Yard Line.

From the 50 Yard Line is a documentary on marching band. Primarily, it follows The Centerville Jazz Band (the marching band for Centerville High School in Centerville, OH) through their competitive season. Because, I grew up in Columbus and was very involved in marching band (and its big brother Drum Corps), I actually marched with/was instructed by several of the subjects of the film. That being said, I could go on and on about it, but I'll try to be brief and objective.

First time director Doug Lantz, himself an alumnus of the Centerville Band program, was on hand to introduce the film. The film began with the marching band auditions at Easter and followed the band all the way through their culminating performance at the Bands of America Grand National Championships. The primary intent was to expose the often unrecognized impact of instrumental music education on the development of American high school students.

Stand out segments included deliberately understated interviews with politicians and academics on the unintended effects of "No Child Left Behind" on education, and a recurring man-on-the-street segment called "Bandology 101" which tested average people on their knowledge of marching band lingo. In what seemed like an attempt to even out the piece, the filmmakers spent some time with the Fairfax High School Marching Band (Hollywood, CA) which was restarted this year from an anonymous donation after an 18-year hiatus from instrumental music at the school. Perhaps analogous to the disparities in the programs' budgets and community support, Centerville dominated the screen time 10:1.

During the Q&A following the film, Lantz acknowledged that "there is drama that happens in high school…but we made the decision that we really wanted to focus on the band experience." By choosing to include several students (rather than following the more personal stories of one or two members) the film really does emphasize the communal experience. However, at some points these efforts were taken to the extreme: scenes from the "share session" at the end of band camp (in which each band member was given an opportunity to address the entire group) felt more like a lengthy emotional montage than an image of a group united by their goals. However, the film is still being edited giving it a chance to work out some of the "thematic sticking points".

Most of all, I was impressed by the progress you could see in individuals. A rookie tuba player was featured at the beginning and end of the film with not only a noticeable improvement in his marching and playing skills, but a real transformation from an insecure high school freshman to a confident and coordinated young adult.

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