[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Review & Photo by Taylor Kokas Olympic Dreams is a sports romantic comedy directed by Jeremy Teicher that was shot during the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea. The film centers around Penelope (played by Teicher’s wife; Alexi Pappas) a 22 year old cross country skier who is trying to make the most out of her dream of being at the olympics, despite not making it onto the podium. Along the way she meets 37 year old volunteer dentist Ezra (played by television comedian Nick Kroll) who is eager to meet people and make the most out of his own Olympic experience. After Ezra introduces himself to Penelope in the Olympic dining hall while she is prepping for her race, the two continue to run into each other and begin to form a bond, sharing an experience at the games neither one ever expected they would have.
It’s worth knowing that throughout the majority of production the films crew only consisted of the director/camera op Jeremy and the two lead actors. All their dialogue is improvised, as well as majority of the scenes where locations, props, and actors weren’t always guaranteed. Because on the surface the acting can come off amateurish in comparison to what one usually expects from a film. But I think it’s very fitting for this story to have been told in this way, it’s emotionally raw and awkward which life can very much be. Plus what you see on screen is the actors performing in a completely natural environment, not a soundstage in sight. Jeremy Teicher went into this film knowing what story he wanted to tell. What is the olympians and volunteers daily life behind the scenes at the olympics? What is social life like? What’s going through their mind before their event? What does the olympics mean for them? It’s clear throughout the actual people these characters represent are all there sharing the same dream, each hoping their experience is what they imagined in their own way. They meet strangers, make friends, romantic flings that may or may not continue once they leave to go back to their daily lives. For fans of the rom-com genre this is a breath of fresh air.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”5079″ img_size=”large”][vc_column_text]
Alexi Pappas (Left), Nick Kroll (Right)
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