Rich Hall Connects the Past with the Present to Promote Upcoming Terence Crawford and Israil Madrimov Fight

Rich Hall directs a striking film through Big Time Creative Shop, promoting the upcoming fight between Terence Crawford and Israil Madrimov. Everything each fighter has ever been through to get there, are set in these points of convergence. From the corners of childhood bedrooms and family living rooms, of training gyms and cross-country trains, to this impending ring in LA’s BMO Stadium. As each boxer sits in their respective corner, what we dive into is a stream of visual consciousness. Rich uses the geography of the square ring and its four corners to connect the past with the present, so the fight and flashbacks are visually linked.  

Rich Hall said, “The Riyadh season promo pedigree is strong. Some brilliant directors have already laid their mark on these films and it’s no surprise to me. The guys at Big Time Creative Shop are amazing and make it an alluring prospect. Long form work that borders on short-film length, with ambition to make things as creative as you want, and unwavering trust to make them with the people that you need.

When we got the brief, something jumped out to me. I’d never seen a boxing film before that heroes the physical space of a ring before. The four angles of the canvas. The corners.  

I built an idea out that told the stories of two amazing figures, Terence Crawford and Israel Madrimov, through the inverted and sometimes positive protrusions of a corner. We would be transported to Omaha Nebraska or a small town in Uzbekistan all based on the interaction with their corners of the ring. Sometimes we would match cut, other times we would build sets into the corners, creating a sort of collage of their life within the square.  

I’m so happy with the finished product and that’s because of the amazing team. Thank you of course to Riff Raff and to the great crew in Mexico. Big shout out to The Hogan for the countless music edits, and Sam at 750 for the meticulous care. Thank you to the zen production master Kate Brady for pulling off this impossible feat with two weeks pre-production from sign off to shoot! Also to Dustin Lane (absolute hero) and Ben Corfield at Stitch too. All the others you know who you are.”