Jock Docs: Wintersports

POP STAR ON ICE

dir. David Barbra and James Pellerito, 2009, 85 minutes

POP STAR ON ICE is an unprecedented behind-the-scenes portrait of outspoken Olympian and three-time US Figure Skating National Champion Johnny Weir. When Johnny fails to win a medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics, the media turns on him and he feels the backlash. Love him or hate him, Johnny is one of the most talented skaters of all time, but talent alone does not make a champion.

Johnny’s complicated relationship with his longtime coach Priscilla Hill and his struggle to reach the top of the sport takes us from small town Delaware – his training home – to competitions, shopping sprees, fashion shows and personal appearances around the world. The inspiration for Jon Heder’s character in the box office smash BLADES OF GLORY, Johnny seeks to balance his larger-than-life persona with the constraints of his sport. POP STAR ON ICE uncovers the graceful, athletic, cut-throat and melodramatic sport of figure skating through the prism of its most controversial athlete as he tries to fulfill his potential on the world stage.