Give Me the Ball!

United States2025101 minEnglish

World champion tennis trailblazer Billie Jean King has had a game-changing impact on culture and sports. Rare archive and candid interviews with Billie Jean and those closest to her reveal how one woman put changing the world ahead of saving herself.

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The story of professional women’s sports could not be told without Billie Jean King. Her status is so iconic, some might lose sight of the real human being — her struggles, her flaws, and her all-consuming, competitive drive. In fighting for equity for herself and others, King was uncompromising, to the point of subordinating her personal well-being by hiding her sexual orientation and eating disorders. Directors Liz Garbus and Elizabeth Wolff present Billie Jean King in full, in her own words, and with archival footage that brings the dark times and indelible victories to life again. With refreshing honesty and the hard-won perspective of having lived through it all, Give Me the Ball! is an electric portrait of one of the greatest of all time. — SS

Available in person only.

PremieresAll FeaturesBiographyLGBTQ+ StoriesWomen-Centered StoriesNonfictionAudio DescriptionClosed CaptionOpen CaptionU.S. Only- less

Credits

Director(s)
Liz Garbus
Elizabeth Wolff
Producers
Liz Garbus
Elizabeth Wolff
Dominic Crossley-Holland
Dan Cogan
Chris James
Gentry Kirby
Executive Producers
Jon Bardin
Tommy Coriale
Louis Mole
Isabel Davis
Jay de Andrade
Ben Lampkin
Heather Anderson
Marsha Cooke
Brian Lockhart
Burke Magnus
Co-Executive Producer
Seth Abraham
Edited by
Joshua L. Pearson
Director of Photography
Thorsten Thielow
Tony Hardmon
Music by
Laura Karpman
Archival Producers
Helen R. Russell
Andrew Mayz
Associate Producer
Charlotte Zonis

Contact
Jon Bardin
jon@storysyndicate.com

Meet the Artist

Liz Garbus

Liz Garbus is a two-time Emmy Award–winning and two-time Academy Award–nominated filmmaker. She has helmed celebrated genre-defying documentaries and premium drama series as a director and executive producer under her company Story Syndicate.

Elizabeth Wolff

Elizabeth Wolff is drawn to the ways stories from the past help us make sense of the world today. Named one of DOC NYC’s 2023 “40 Under 40,” she specializes in adapting biography, memoir, and political histories into documentaries and has collaborated with Liz Garbus on several acclaimed projects.

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