At the time of his reign as World Heavyweight Champion (a title he would win thrice throughout his career), Muhammad Ali’s legend seemed to be greater than anything at the time—so great that it even foreshadowed the man himself. Who was the man who became Ali? And what was his journey to get there like? A new documentary on the Smithsonian Channel by Two Rivers Media called Cassius X: Becoming Ali dares to explore the boxer’s journey—from his humble beginnings as Cassius Clay all the way through to his transition into the Muhammad Ali persona.
Stepping out of the sidelines and into the ring was Atlantic–with that eye of the tiger, the edge. We coordinated almost all of the logistics during production of the documentary at its Atlanta, Brooklyn, Louisville, Chapel Hill, and Washington D.C. shoots. We organized location scouts and booked locations; supplied local gaffers, grips, sound recordists, PAs, COVID compliance officers, and G&E equipment; booked all flights, hotels, and transport for traveling crew, which included a producer, director, DP, and AC from Two Rivers; managed on-site COVID testing for crew members; and provided 24/7 support over the duration of the shoot and dealt with weekend technical issues. All in all, Atlantic worked with Two Rivers on the project from August until October 2021, back when COVID was still very much a concern.
The documentary premiered on the Smithsonian Channel on February 20th, and shortly after its release, the documentary screened at the Glasgow Film Festival through two sold out showings on March 9th and 10th. You can watch the full documentary on the Smithsonian Channel’s website.
(And yes – we prepare for all of our productions in the most American way possible.)
