Series of documentary films airing on ESPN from 2009
30 for 30
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Logo for
30 for 30
Volume I films
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Genre
| Sports documentary
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Created by
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Directed by
| various
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Original language
| English
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No.
of episodes
| 157
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Executive producer
| Marsha Cooke
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Production company
| ESPN Films
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Network
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Release
| October 6, 2009
(
2009-10-06
)
?
present
(
present
)
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30 for 30
is the title for a series of documentary films airing on
ESPN
, its sister networks, and online highlighting interesting people and events in sports history. This includes four "volumes" of 30 episodes each, a 13-episode series under the
ESPN Films Presents
title in 2011?2012, and a series of
30 for 30 Shorts
shown through the
ESPN.com
website. The series has also expanded to include
Soccer Stories
, which aired in advance of the
2014 FIFA World Cup
, and audio podcasts.
Background
[
edit
]
The idea for the series began in 2007 from
ESPN.com
columnist and
Grantland
.com founder
Bill Simmons
and
ESPN
's
Connor Schell
.
[1]
The title,
30 for 30
, derived from the series's genesis as 30 films in celebration of ESPN's 30th anniversary in 2009, with an exploration of the biggest stories from ESPN's first 30 years on-air, through a series of 30 one-hour films by 30 filmmakers.
[2]
[3]
Volume I premiered in October 2009 and ran to December 2010, chronicling 30 stories from the "ESPN era", beginning with the network's founding in 1979. Each film in Volume I details a striking sports issue or event that occurred during those three decades, including what Simmons describes as "stories that resonated at the time [they occurred] but were eventually forgotten for whatever reason."
[1]
Subsequent films, including Volume II and online-only shorts, expanded the series beyond the "ESPN era".
In September 2014, Schell said, "Even though we have been at this for five years now, there is no shortage of incredible moments from the world of sports, so that enables us to continue making
30 for 30
films we're proud of."
[4]
In 2010, John Dahl, Connor Schell and Simmons served as
30 for 30's
executive producers.
[5]
[6]
[7]
In April 2018, it was announced that the entire archive of
30 for 30
films and shorts would be available on
ESPN+
, ESPN's direct-to-consumer online platform, once the service launched on April 12, 2018.
[8]
Series overview
[
edit
]
Reception
[
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]
Critical response
[
edit
]
The A.V. Club
review for the eighth entry,
Winning Time: Reggie Miller vs. the New York Knicks
, called it "the most hotly anticipated [of the first eight]" and stated that "it more than lived up to the hype."
[9]
Special praise was given to
Brett Morgen
's
collage documentary
June 17th, 1994
as a standout episode.
[10]
[11]
The A.V. Club
has given positive and negative reviews for different episodes in the series, with notable critical reviews of the three Volume I episodes that had involvement by the media production arms of
Major League Baseball
(
Four Days in October
), the
NBA
(
Once Brothers
) and
NASCAR
(
Tim Richmond: To the Limit
).
[12]
[13]
[14]
Ratings
[
edit
]
The series had a slow beginning. The first film,
Peter Berg
's
Kings Ransom
, a chronicle of
Wayne Gretzky
's trade from the
Edmonton Oilers
to the
Los Angeles Kings
, premiered on October 6, 2009, to poor ratings.
[15]
[16]
Kings Ransom
drew a 0.5 national rating and a total viewership of 645,000.
[15]
[16]
As awareness and critical acclaim grew, the viewing audience also grew. By the seventh episode,
The U
, the audience had grown to a 1.8 rating and well over 2 million viewers.
[17]
[18]
Accolades
[
edit
]
Cadillac
and
Levi's
are the presenting sponsors of the series. The Cadillac name appears on the 30 for 30 logo. The Levi's "go forth" slogan appears on the bottom corner of the screen during the directors interstitial comments, which appear for 45 seconds at the beginning of each film and 30 seconds at the end. Commercials for both companies were shown during every intermission during the original air dates, with Levi's guaranteed a 60-second commercial slot at the beginning of the third act.
Cadillac replaced
Honda
as a primary sponsor. During its time as a contributor, Honda aired parts of its "Dream the Impossible" documentary series in the first commercial break. During broadcasts in the UK on
BT Sport
, these sponsorship logos are blurred out due to compliance regulations.
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
"Bill Simmons on 30 for 30"
.
ESPN
. Archived from
the original
on September 8, 2009
. Retrieved
September 4,
2009
.
- ^
Craggs, Tommy (September 29, 2009).
"Donald Trump Goes All Bitchcakes On A "Third-Rate" ESPN Filmmaker"
.
Deadspin.com
.
Gawker Media
. Retrieved
September 26,
2016
.
For its 30th birthday, ESPN commissioned a series of documentaries, called 30 for 30.
- ^
Schwartz, Bruce (July 29, 2009).
"30 stories for 30 years of ESPN"
.
USAToday.com
.
USA Today
. Retrieved
September 26,
2016
.
To celebrate its 30th birthday, the network is launching 30 for 30, a series of 30 one-hour films by 30 filmmakers covering the biggest sports stories over the network's first 30 years.
- ^
Cingari, Jennifer (September 15, 2014).
"Fall Slate Announced for ESPN Films' 30 for 30 as Fifth Anniversary of Series Approaches"
. ESPN MediaZone
. Retrieved
September 22,
2014
.
- ^
"John Dahl"
. ESPN MediaZone. Archived from
the original
on March 4, 2014
. Retrieved
March 4,
2014
.
- ^
"Connor Schell"
. ESPN MediaZone. Archived from
the original
on March 4, 2014
. Retrieved
March 4,
2014
.
- ^
"Bill Simmons Biography"
.
TVGuide.com
. August 13, 2010.
Archived
from the original on September 29, 2010
. Retrieved
August 22,
2010
.
- ^
Christie, Jennifer Cingari (April 3, 2018).
"ESPN+ to Launch with Exclusive 30 for 30 Documentary "The Last Days of Knight" and Full 30 for 30 Library"
. ESPN MediaZone
. Retrieved
April 3,
2018
.
- ^
Tobias, Scott (March 15, 2010).
"30 For 30 ? "Winning Time: Reggie Miller vs. the New York Knicks"
"
.
The A.V. Club
.
Archived
from the original on May 15, 2010
. Retrieved
May 9,
2010
.
- ^
The 30 Best '30 for 30' Films: The Fab Five, Reggie and 'The U' ? Rolling Stone
- ^
30 For 30: "June 17, 1994"-A.V. Club
- ^
Tobias, Scott (October 5, 2010).
"
30 for 30
? "Four Days in October"
"
.
The A.V. Club
. Retrieved
March 27,
2011
.
- ^
Tobias, Scott (October 12, 2010).
"
30 for 30
? "Once Brothers"
"
.
The A.V. Club
. Retrieved
March 27,
2011
.
- ^
Tobias, Scott (October 19, 2010).
"
30 for 30
? "Tim Richmond: To The Limit"
"
.
The A.V. Club
. Retrieved
March 27,
2011
.
- ^
a
b
Best, Neil (October 9, 2009).
"Watchdog ? Giants' TV ratings jump is third best in NFL to this point"
.
Newsday
.
Archived
from the original on October 17, 2009
. Retrieved
October 12,
2009
.
- ^
a
b
"SportsBusiness Daily Morning Buzz ? October 8, 2009"
.
SportsBusiness Daily
. October 8, 2009. Archived from
the original
on September 27, 2009
. Retrieved
October 8,
2009
.
- ^
Jackson, Barry (March 19, 2010).
"
"The U" sequel on UM rebirth"
.
The Miami Herald
. Archived from
the original
on March 20, 2010
. Retrieved
March 22,
2010
.
- ^
a
b
Seidman, Robert (December 15, 2010).
"Critically Acclaimed '30 for 30' Wraps up with Pony Exce$$ ? ESPN's Most-Watched Documentary"
. TV by the Numbers. Archived from
the original
on October 9, 2012
. Retrieved
October 5,
2011
.
- ^
70th Annual Peabody Awards
, May 2011.
- ^
Cingari, Jessica (August 18, 2014).
"ESPN Films' 30 for 30 Shorts Celebrates First Primetime Emmy Win"
. ESPN MediaZone
. Retrieved
September 22,
2014
.
- ^
Oscar Winners 2017
, February 2017.
- ^
"O.J.: Made in America" wins Best Documentary Feature-Oscars on YouTube
- ^
O.J.: Made in America ? Caroline Waterlow & Ezra Edelman ? 2016 Peabody Award Acceptance on Peabody Awards' official Vimeo channel
- ^
13th, O.J.: Made In America top this year’s Peabody documentary winners|AV Club
- ^
Spirit Awards: 'O.J.: Made in America' Wins Best Documentary|Hollywood Reporter
- ^
"Discover the Winners of Adweek's 2019 Podcast of the Year Awards"
. December 9, 2019
. Retrieved
December 9,
2022
.
- ^
Verhoeven, Beatrice (July 7, 2022).
"
'This Is Us,' 'Succession,' 'Severance' Lead 2022 HCA TV Nominations"
.
The Hollywood Reporter
. Retrieved
July 8,
2022
.
- ^
Tinoco, Armando (November 14, 2022).
"Critics Choice Documentary Awards: Amazon's 'Good Night Oppy' Tops Winners List"
.
Deadline
. Retrieved
March 13,
2023
.
External links
[
edit
]
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Volume I (2009?10)
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ESPN Films Presents
(2011?12)
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Volume II (2012?15)
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Soccer Stories
(2014)
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Volume III (2015?19)
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Volume IV (2019?present)
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Related
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Awards for
30 for 30
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Overall
| Streamer of the Year‡
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Short Form
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- the cheeky boyos
(2021)
- Sheena Melwani (2022)
- Chris Olsen
(2023)
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International†
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Individual
| Breakout Creator
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Breakout Streamer
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First Person
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Just Chatting
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- xQc
(2022)
- Quackity (2023)
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Variety
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VTuber
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Show
| Podcast
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Scripted Series
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Unscripted Series
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Subject
| Animated
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Beauty
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Comedy
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Commentary
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Competitive Gamer
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Fashion and Style‡
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Food‡
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Gamer‡
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Health and Wellness
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Kids and Family
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Learning or Education‡
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Lifestyle
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News‡
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Science and Engineering
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Sports
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Technology
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† = category was merged from others
‡ = category was renamed
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Scheduled shows
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Pregame and postgame
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Former programming
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