Feature documentary about the lives of Louis Brunke and Vladimir Fissenko who rode on horseback from the southern tip of Argentina to Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. It took them five years to cross 14 countries -- and they filmed it all.
In the heat of the Arizona sun, at a field normally used by Major League Baseball prospects, a group of players who speak not a word of English do their best to comprehend the basics of the most American of games.
They are Chinese - gifted natural athletes who know more about gymnastics and table tennis than double plays and sacrifice flies. Their coaches are American - retired from the Majors, looking to help bring together the world's most disconnected cultures through the international language of baseball.
Their goal is to make a good showing in the Beijing 2008 Olympics. To make it, they must overcome seemingly insurmountable cultural and language barriers that go far beyond learning what it means when "the bags are juiced."
Welcome to Out of Left Field - a rollicking documentary that follows the stories of the Chinese Olympic Baseball Team, their American coaches and their journey to make sports history. China has never had an Olympic baseball team, but in 2008 it's guaranteed - the host nation does not have to qualify its teams to participate in a sport.
Out of Left Field is a remarkable glimpse into this world - a first-of-its-kind opportunity to see the emergence of a sport in a nation that once considered baseball "cultural pollution." Jim Lefebvre, former player and coach with the Los Angeles Dodgers, is in charge of turning Chinese players with limited skills into Olympic-caliber athletes. Along with a handful of other retired pros - and with the cooperation of Major League Baseball - they are helping to bring America's game to a nation with one-fifth of the world's population.
When a Mayday call goes out across the nation’s waterways, most people believe the U.S. Coast Guard drops everything and is first to arrive on the scene to save the day.
Most people are wrong.
Welcome to the world of Sea Dogs - sailors who serve as a privatized Coast Guard to save people and boats when the water gets rough. They're known as marine salvagers and they respond to emergencies at sea whether the vessels are above the waves or below them.
Though they patrol harbors and coastlines throughout the world, we've chosen to follow the lives of the Sea Dogs in one of the most exotic and congested waterways anywhere - South Florida. Every week, from Ft. Lauderdale to Key West, we see what happens when the Sea Dogs respond to distress calls.
From pulling yachts off the bottom of the Atlantic to rescuing fisherman stranded on the rocks of the Florida Keys at night, our Sea Dogs risk their necks to help make the world a bit safer. But don't think they do this for free. Though our Sea Dogs will save your life for no charge, you'll pay if you want your boat back - and it's not cheap.
Our Sea Dog characters run the gamut of experience, but all have that powerful combination of charisma and love of the sea. There's Larry "The Pro", who's seen more than his share of multi-million dollar yachts on the ocean floor. There's Chris, "The Kid", who talks with reverence about what it means to pull someone out of the water. Barrie, known as the "Ballerina of the Sea", loves to laugh about how many times she's saved the Coast Guard. And there's Reef, "The Old Salt", who has escaped death more times than he can remember.
Tom Jennings Productions is a full-service entertainment company based in Los Angeles, California. The staff at TJP specializes in making some of the best documentary and television shows for the major cable networks. The production staff of TJP has been involved with the creation of more than 500 hours of television during the past ten years. TJP staffers have produced shows for networks including Discovery Channel, History Channel, A&E, TLC, Travel channel, VH1, National Geographic, HGTV, Court TV, PBS, CBS and Animal Planet.