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THE POLO KID provides an intimate, behind the scenes view of a largely unknown sport by following Santi as he tries to play for his country and fights for a place on White Birch, one of America’s best polo teams. Behind the sports action is a deeply moving human story - juxtaposing Santi`s impoverished background and his father`s battle against brain tumors with the tough and glamorous world of polo. The film was shot in Argentina, Florida, New York and Mexico and features several of the worlds best polo players; Adolfo Cambiaso, Mariano Aguerre and Nacho Figueras, the face of Polo Ralph Lauren.
Polo is one of the oldest, fastest and most dangerous team sports on earth. It isseen as an exclusive, elite world drenched in luxury and privilege. From the deserts of California, a young teenager embarks on a journey to fulfill his dream of becoming a professional polo player. With no money behind him and no safety net, thirteen-year-old Santi Torres leaves home, school and family far behind, risking everything to become polo’s next superstar.
Santi’s journey takes him across North and South America, and is living proof of the American Dream – an immigrant family making a success of their life in America, despite overwhelming odds.
NATHANIEL McCULLAGH, WRITER, DIRECTOR & PRODUCER’S STATEMENT : When I first heard about Santi, I thought he was like all the other kids that play polo – rich, privileged and born with a silver spoon in his mouth. I had traveled to Florida to make a film about the American polo team competing in the Polo World Cup but when the team went out of the competition in the first stage - and when I realized how incredible Santi’s story was - the film naturally shifted focus. Polo journalist Steve Crowder sums Santi up pretty well: “He rides like an Indian and weighs as much as a feather…He can run a whole in the wind…the sawedoff shot gun answers to the name of Santi Torres”. Crowder describes Santi’s first tournament game, ‘For the first few chukkas he seemed normal, then it was as though they has turned on a switch and they never really turned it off.”
Many people were comparing Santi to the world’s number 1 polo player: Adolfo Cambiaso – polo’s equivalent of Tiger Woods. When I met Santi, I was struck by his fragility, his youth and his quietness. When I met his parents I figured out why he was like this. This family has a proud heritage and a strong work ethic. They work around the clock, sacrificing their own lives to make Santi’s career work. In him, they have spotted some raw talent and they’re doing everything they can to develop it. As I filmed on the road with Santi and Team USA, I learnt that people have many misconceptions about polo. Ranging from the understandable – ‘it’s only for rich people’ to the more shocking confusion with water polo: ‘how do you get the horses in the water?’. Many people thought you had to be invited to watch a game of polo and that it is only for the rich and famous. In contrast, I learnt that spectators are always welcome at a game, and price of entrance is rarely much more than popcorn and a coke at the cinema.
I met the people who really make up the polo world – the dedicated players, the grooms, the vets, coaches and the patrons, I saw a great team, connected by a love of horses and the game – and their nomadic lifestyle traveling through several countries each year. Few were bothered about money or social status they want to grow the sport to make it more accessible and more accountable. I also wanted to work out how much of Santi’s skill was down to nature and how much was nurture. What makes success and what sacrifices are needed to get it? I think the answer was commitment: every morning Santi gets up early and works with his horses. His family is not immune to the pressures of life: they worry about health, money, school work just like the rest of us but they keep the focus on polo. Filming began in California in 2007 and then I followed Santi and Team USA to Mexico, then with Santi to Argentina and finally New York. Along the way we were helped tirelessly by the polo community: the players, patrons, grooms, vets and photographers and this film couldn’t have been made without their help and support.
SYNOPSIS :
THE POLO KID provides a deliciously intimate behind the scenes view of a young man coming-of-age and achieving his life-goals against all the odds. It follows the fortunes of a young sporting prodigy - Santiago Torres, a 13 year old polo player from California who it is widely thought has the potential to become one of the world`s best players. The film is a deeply moving human story - juxtaposing Santi`s impoverished background and his father`s battle against cancer with the tough and glamorous world of polo. We start by meeting Santi at home in Wellington, Florida, where he is working around the clock to improve his polo playing and to help on his family`s small horse farm. In between riding and playing professionally he goes to school, but as his teacher remarks, "it`s not the life of a normal 13 year old and his grades aren’t really where they should be". Santi`s older brother Miguel has put college and his own promising polo career on hold to support the family and help keep Santi in the sport. Santi is selected to play for the US World Cup team. He and Miguel travel to Mexico to compete. Santi suffers a double blow – he is dropped from the team – who go on to lose – and shortly after, his father dies. Friends and family pull together to send Santi to Argentina – his father’s home and home of polo - to be apprentice to Mariano Gracida, one of the world`s best players. In Argentina, Santi re-discovers his cultural roots and works hard to improve his polo and overcome the loss of his father. He then is selected for America`s most successful polo team and goes on to win the East Coast Open, one of polo`s most prestigious competitions.
THE POLO KID shows how talent and perseverance can overcome all the odds.
Director and Producer - Nathaniel McCullagh is a graduate of the Peter Stark Producing Program at the University of Southern California School of Cinema-Television. He has worked as Assistant Director on various television and movie productions including "Young Indiana Jones" and "The Three Musketeers". His short film, `Looking For My Brother` won several prizes at national and international film festivals, including Sundance. He is now working on his debut feature film.
Specs:
Genre: Sports Doc/Drama
Tone: True story
Target Audience: 14 upwards
Rating: Not rated, suitable for all
Release: Online, TV, DVD (priced at $19.99) direct from website below
TRT: 62 mins (feature), 52 mins (TV). Aspect ratio 16:9. Filmed on Sony HVR
V1U HDDV. Edited on Final Cut Pro. Color English
Production Company: Little Star Films LLC
No horses were injured in the making of this film.
www.thepolokid.com
Photos : courtesy of Linda Bremner
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