Gilbert, James Named Arledge Award Recipients

WINSTON-SALEM, NORTH CAROLINA (April 18, 2024) – Peter Gilbert and Steve James, two of the creative forces behind the seminal 1994 sports documentary Hoop Dreams, have been named the recipients of the National Sports Media Association’s Roone Arledge Award for Innovation. Gilbert will accept the Arledge Award, then participate in a conversation about Hoop Dreams and sports documentary filmmaking, as part of NSMA’s Legacy Night celebration on June 30, 2024, at Grandover Resort, a Wyndham Grand Hotel, in Greensboro, N.C.

Celebrating its 30^th anniversary, Hoop Dreams follows Chicago high schoolers Arthur Agee and William Gates, as they navigate their path toward becoming professional basketball players. The film, which earned numerous awards, spawned an entire genre of long-form sports stories that have enriched all of sports media.

Gilbert, the cinematographer and one of the producers of Hoop Dreams, currently teaches in Wake Forest University’s graduate documentary film program. He has been nominated for Best Director three times (with one win) by the Directors Guild of America. He has also been nominated for ten Emmys (one win).

James, who has been nominated for two Academy Awards, is a Chicago-based filmmaker, whose other sports-themed works include No Crossover: The Trial of Allen Iverson and The Luckiest Guy in the World, which IndieWire named one of the best documentaries of 2023. Both films were produced for ESPN’s Peabody Award-winning series, “30 for 30.”

The 64th NSMA Awards Banquet and national convention are set for Grandover Resort – a Wyndham Grand Hotel in Greensboro, N.C. for the first time June 30 - July 1, 2024. Tickets to the NSMA awards weekend and national convention are available here: https://bit.ly/3T4BMX5.

For additional information, please visit www.nationalsportsmedia.org.