Freestyle Digital Media Acquires Video-on-Demand Rights to Documentary Film "Because They Believed"

Freestyle Digital Media, a digital film distribution platform owned by Allen Media Group’s Byron Allen, has acquired the North American video-on-demand rights to the documentary film “Because They Believed.” Directed by Steven C. Bernier, the film focuses on interviews with athletes who broke racial barriers and is set to release on February 2nd.

Among the athletes featured in the film are American sprinting stars John Carlos and Tommie Smith. They famously used their success in the 200-meter race at the 1968 Olympic Games to speak out against racial discrimination, raising black-gloved fists during the medal ceremony. Both were expelled from the rest of the Olympic Games after the International Olympic Committee threatened to ban the entire U.S. team.

The film will also showcase other legendary sports figures like baseball star Dusty Baker, who won the World Series as a player with the Los Angeles Dodgers and achieved the most victories of any African-American manager in Major League Baseball (MLB) history as the manager of the Houston Astros. It will also feature Tae Yun Kim, the first woman to attain the rank of taekwondo master, and Herbert Carnegie, one of the first black hockey players who faced racism in the 1940s and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2022. Raymond Chester, on the other hand, led the Morgan State University football team to three undefeated seasons before winning a Super Bowl title with the Oakland Raiders.

Director Steven C. Bernier said, “Working on ‘Because They Believed’ with Arif Khatib, who is also a producer and co-screenwriter, has been an incredibly enlightening experience for me. His extensive collection of archival interviews with professional athletes spanning several decades is impressive. Our entire cast and crew were dedicated to bringing their stories to life through this film, and we can’t wait to share it with the world!”

Blood Sweat Honey, led by Alex Nohe, was the company that negotiated the acquisition of the rights to “Because They Believed” for Freestyle Digital Media.