A FILM BY BRYAN FOGEL
A FILM BY BRYAN FOGEL
THE FILM
Academy Award Winner - Best Documentary Feature
Winner: Sundance Film Festival 2017 - U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award: The Orwell Award
Winner: Sundance Film Festival London 2017 - Audience Choice Award
The ruthless worlds of international sports and politics rarely collide as spectacularly on screen as they do in Bryan Fogel’s thriller that is sure to set off convulsions of controversy.
While investigating the furtive world of illegal doping in sports, Fogel connects with renegade Russian scientist Dr. Grigory Rodchenkov—a pillar of his country’s “anti-doping” program. Over dozens of Skype calls, urine samples, and badly administered hormone injections, Fogel and Rodchenkov grow closer despite shocking allegations that place Rodchenkov at the center of Russia’s state-sponsored Olympic doping program. When the truth is more complex than imagined, and accusations of illegalities run to Russia’s highest chains of command, the two realize they hold the power to reveal the biggest international sports scandal in living memory.
Exemplifying the special bond between filmmaker and subject, this is a vital portrait of the sacrifice some people will make to stand up for truth. ICARUS places you at the heart of an international game of cat and mouse, where a miscalculation can cost you your life.
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ABOUT BRYAN FOGEL
When Academy Award Winning Director Bryan Fogel set out to make ICARUS he had one goal: to examine how easy it is to get away with doping in professional sports. Instead, he was connected to a Russian doctor-turned-whistleblower, Grigory Rodchenkov. Together, they blew the lid off a state-sponsored doping scheme that has been ongoing in Russia for decades and which directly led to Russia being banned from the 2018 Winter Games in South Korea.
In a story that rivals any international spy thriller, Fogel’s program takes audiences through his quixotic adventure making ICARUS. Audiences are captivated by the unprecedented unravelling of an international scandal leading directly to the Kremlin, and the intricacies of Russian covert tampering—not only in the U.S. but on the international playing field.
FOGEL HAS GIVEN KEYNOTE SPEECHES TO ORGANIZATIONS AROUND THE WORLD AND HAS APPEARED ON ABC NIGHTLINE, CHARLIE ROSE, SETH MEYERS, JOE ROGAN, CNN, ESPN, THE VIEW, NPR, BBC, AND HAS BEEN FEATURED IN PUBLICATIONS AROUND THE GLOBE.
“Bryan was dynamic, polished and had us riveted. His story and presentation is incredible and he shares it with brilliance and enthusiasm.”
– GOOGLE CREATIVE SUMMIT
“Bryan was great and the audience was really engaged. His talk was right on the money, and everyone loved him. Totally seamless. Bravo!”
– NFL Properties, LLC
“Bryan, your presentation was brilliant and your graciousness to stay and connect further with our members was heartfelt. So many people stopped me to say how much they enjoyed hearing you and how they had queued Icarus on their Netflix accounts. You are an incredible storyteller.”
– BRUCE DORRIS
President, Asso. of Certified Fraud Examiners
“Bryan was engaging and the Oscar was a huge hit. Everyone was taking selfies with it and a treat. He is a spectacular storyteller.”
– CHRIS PINK
Managing Director, Wells Fargo
“Bryan captivated the audience and the feedback we received from both out clients and Deutsche Bank staff was overwhelmingly positive. His story is timeless and is a brave and amazing speaker.”
– Kelsie Blalock
Vice President, Deutsche Bank Global Prime Finance
“Bryan was great! We’ve had speakers every month for 20 years, and he was one of the very best. He is an incredible story teller, very interesting, engaged, and had our guests riveted!”
– Richard Strong
Baraboo Growth, LLC
“Bryan’s keynote was an incredible success. ICARUS is one of today’s truly remarkable stories – it’s high drama in real life. Bryan’s story is filled with big ideas, heartfelt moments, humor, and incredible ups and downs. He had the audience on the edge of their seats, laughing, crying and ultimately thanking him with a standing ovation. I cannot recommend Bryan enough.”
– Scott Albro
Founder and CEO, TOPO
“Far and away the best speaker at the conference. He really knows how to engage an audience. Awesome, inspiring, incredible and his great use of A/V to help us visualize his story, I think people could have listened to him all day! Simply Excellent.”
– Leslie Simpson
Director of Events, Asso. of Certified Fraud Examiners
“Countless people have come up to me to complement your presentation, thank me for bringing you to speak, and to tell me how inspired they were by your story and film. Thank you so much for coming to Goldman Sachs and making such a huge impact.”
– Michael Brandmeyer
Senior Director, Goldman Sachs
“Bryan’s keynote address at our Integrity in Sport conference in Melbourne set the scene for the entire event. He raised the bar to new heights with his ability to captivate the audience, almost like they were living and experiencing the journey in his shoes. Bryan is engaging, enthusiastic, humorous, provocative; he entertains the entire time he is on stage and inspired everyone that you touched. Weeks on, I still have people thanking me for bringing Bryan to Australia. What an amazing story told by an amazing person! “
– Shane Gillard
Greyhound Racing Victoria
“It is such a great story in its own right – stranger than fiction – made so much more powerful when presented by Bryan in person. New Zealand Rugby stands for protecting integrity in sports at all levels and was proud to be associated with the messaging in the movie and by Bryan himself. It is very moving to see corruption on such a scale and is a must see.”
– Keith Binnie
New Zealand Rugby (ALL BLACKS)
“Our audience LOVED Bryan’s charming, witty demeanor and the suspenseful nature of the topic. He was personable and incredibly knowledgeable. Jewish audiences will truly resonate with Bryan’s demonstrated values of not standing idly by in the face of injustice. On a personal note, Bryan has been so lovely to work with, and every correspondence I’ve had with him has been nothing short of sweet and gracious. We were thrilled to bring him back home to Denver for this event, and are positive audiences all across the country will too feel like they are welcoming an old friend to their communities.”
– Amy Weiner
Director of Festivals, Mizel Arts and Culture Center at the JCC Denver
“Bryan’s presentation is thought-provoking, very entertaining, humorous to laugh-out-loud at times, and even suspenseful – his unfolding story of developing and producing Icarus is a spy thriller. The presentation wove together many separate elements of sports, history, science, politics, legal issues, and human nature– all connected up to one of the most amazing and shocking sports expose’ stories ever. Great he brought his Oscar too- I’ve never been that close to one!”
– Debbie MacKillop
JCC Intergenerational Programming Coordinator
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