Still from Balls! -- a volleyball in hat and glassesThree UWindsor grads entered their biopic of a ball in what is billed as the world’s largest short film competition.

Alumni trio seeking support in million-dollar contest

Three UWindsor grads are hoping to find audience support for their entry in what is billed as the world’s largest short film competition.

Writer and director Jakob Skrzypa (BA 2016), producer and composer Alex Forman (BA 2016), and producer and cinematographer Milos Savic (BA 2016, MFA 2018) collaborated on Balls! a Pixar-inspired short that follows the purported life of a soccer ball.

They have entered it in the My Rode Reel contest, which offers a total of $1 million in prize money, including a $30,000 audience choice award. Voting in that category will close Oct. 22.

“The film was a massive undertaking, as it opens in 1939 and ends in 1970,” says Skrzypa. “We needed cars, costumes, locations, and drew heavily upon Windsor-Essex residents for these things.”

The film involved more than 40 cast and crew members, but Savic notes that one proved particularly challenging.

“You know they say don’t work with animals, don’t work with kids? I put balls on that list,” he says.

View the film, watch a behind-the-scenes reel, and vote on the contest website.