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We are happy to announce the title of the documentary: "Liquid Rising." A full trailer will come out within the next few weeks and the full documentary will hopefully be released by the end of the month.
We sat down with Michael Krukar to talk about the progress of the documentary and his experience shooting the Liquid players and working with the TL staff.
M. Krukar:We struggled with this for a long time. I was always pushing Team Liquid: The Documentary. One of my favourite movies is Spaceballs and I always found it funny how they name everything Spaceballs: Whatever. We didn't really agree on that so we kept thinking. I was adamant that it had to have Team Liquid in the name and I was just throwing out some names to a friend when he said Team Liquid Rising. It's a great title because the water level rising can symbolize pressure, fame, and the growth of the team and of StarCraft 2. It also just sounds badass.
M. Krukar:I had so many ideas and plans on what to do and when I sat down to edit many of them were scrapped, mostly for time or to fit in with the feel of it. I'm surprised at how funny some stuff is. Someone in an interview will say something clever or funny and when filming them I'm too focused on the technical, I don't hear what they say. Now I can enjoy it and have a laugh.
M. Krukar:If you are a fan of Team Liquid, after seeing this you should be reaching an intense, radical fanaticism for the team. I want people who like these players to watch it and be able to connect with them. You can relate to some of the stories they tell and you can slowly realize that they're just regular guys like everyone else. If you aren't a fan of Team Liquid I hope you watch and become a fan.
M. Krukar:Without giving too much away I will say what surprised me most is that Zenio is actually the nicest guy on the team, and his English was surprisingly good. I told him he always comes off as a badass but then sitting down and talking to him he was sweet and a bit quirky.
Here's a sneak peak of the upcoming documentary I put together featuring one of the most important matches in heated EG/TL Rivalry...
M. Krukar:I can tell you as a fan I am incredibly lucky to be sent to so many events. All the press/vip badges I received I have hanging next to my desk. I look over them and each one is a great memory. IPL3 was the first event and I couldn't believe people are paying me to be here. I'll never forget talking to Hot Bid the first time. TL purchased some equipment for me and left it in the hotel room so Hot Bid sent me a text "Room 1011. Equipment on bed." I felt like Agent 47 and it was a great way to start. I also met a lot of people from the Team Liquid community and I was introduced to Team Liquid Mafia. Anyone who was at IPL3 will know those insane Mafia games, I don't think we'll ever top those.
M. Krukar:Some of you may not know but Hot Bid has a reputation for being a troll. I know that may sound shocking but working with him you never know if he's trolling you or not. I told him a few times I don't consider him a friend but currently he is dangerously close to becoming a friend. Wax like all great writers is the perfect drinking buddy and would never turn down a drink, especially a free one. Victor I have the utmost respect for and usually when someone disagrees with me I know they're wrong but Victor is one of those few people who I respect his opinion enough to listen to it. Several times we went out to eat just the two of us and we always had great talks. Just being associated with Team Liquid and having Victor vouch for me I was pretty much treated like a rock star. I could see it going to someone's head, it certainly inflated Hot Bid's already massive ego, but I always kept it cool even when getting free drinks or skipping waiting lines. The best way to describe it is Victor is the cool kid in high school and I have no qualms sitting at his table.
M. Krukar:I've had the opportunity to hang out with some of the players and I have to say we've on good terms. Sheth is such a nice guy I feel like I can say he's my friend, but I'm sure there are thousands of people who can say that about Sheth. Haypro was at the Team Liquid Head Quarters for a few days with me and there were definitely some laughs there. Hero I probably spent the most time with, we flew together to Korea. We had plans to party but his schedule was so busy with practicing for GSL and Blizzard Cup that he couldn't leave the house. I told him I would take him to a club when he comes to America and I plan on it if I attend any future MLG events. I also brought back to Canada about 15 bottles of Soju so I hope to share one with him after a big win. As a fan filming them has been great because their personalities have come out and some preconceived notions I had of them have been completely shattered. Hopefully when watching the documentary people can see some of them are a bit different then they people think they are.
M. Krukar:Hero had his NASL cheque at the airport. It was one of those very large novelty ones. They told us it was way too big to take with us and Hero was ready to throw it out. I said no man, we're getting this to Korea. He asked me to take care of it so I argued it out and they let us check it in. When we arrived in Korea we couldn't find it so I said let's go ask. This is in South Korea, no one speaks English and it's just me and Hero. He was so shy he asked me to go ask them if they have it. We ended up finding it and bring it all the way back to the oGs TL House.
M. Krukar:I think the most important fact that differentiates this documentary from the others is that I have no illusions of what I am making. I am making a documentary about Team Liquid mainly geared toward the fans of Team Liquid, not something trying to be bigger than it is.
M. Krukar:Unfortunately the SC2 community is very fickle and a player's 15 minutes feel more like 15 seconds. It's sad how fast today's heroes are forgotten tomorrow. Hero won Dreamhack and did well at NASL just two months ago, and since then losing Blizzard Cup and Code S up/downs, some fans have counted him out already. We are so over saturated with tournaments that they have become meaningless. If you win a major tournament one week you can lose in a smaller one shortly after. With that kind of structure we will never have a clearly defined champion and people will transfer their attention very quickly between whoever the flavor of the week is. That's why prolonging the release of a documentary hurts it greatly. I have footage of Nazgul talking about watching Ret playing an important game and at the time the win is very important. But think of all the games he's played since. That game is now completely insignificant.
M. Krukar:If I was given a choice to do it on anything I wanted I would like to do it on something controversial. Naniwa would be interesting to follow, possible even Destiny. There are some players that have interesting stories and the interviews we see or what little interaction we have with them doesn't come close to helping us understand how they think.
M. Krukar:It would be a dream to keep working with Liquid, whether they hire me in the future is up to them and if this documentary is a success. I enjoy watching Starcraft 2 but I doubt I would be attending a tournament without a purpose, without work. I've told Liquid about some possible ideas for future projects and right now they said focus on this one. I can only hope it's success allows me to continue doing what I love.
M. Krukar:We decided on February before going to NASL and Korea so I lost a few weeks worth of editing time but I'm still confident in a late February release date. If something unexpected happens it might throw us off but I don't expect it taking any longer than early March.
M. Krukar:I don't believe in impersonal thanks. Some people have helped me out and I will thank them myself because without them this project would not be as amazing as I hope it turns out. Ultimately the responsibility of the success and failure is on me and I just hope I can work hard enough to create what I've envisioned in my head.
TeamLiquidPRO Website
Documentary Announcement
Documentary Teaser Trailer
Liquid Team Twitter
Michael Krukar Twitter
Michael Krukar Website
We sat down with Michael Krukar to talk about the progress of the documentary and his experience shooting the Liquid players and working with the TL staff.
How did you think of the title?
M. Krukar:We struggled with this for a long time. I was always pushing Team Liquid: The Documentary. One of my favourite movies is Spaceballs and I always found it funny how they name everything Spaceballs: Whatever. We didn't really agree on that so we kept thinking. I was adamant that it had to have Team Liquid in the name and I was just throwing out some names to a friend when he said Team Liquid Rising. It's a great title because the water level rising can symbolize pressure, fame, and the growth of the team and of StarCraft 2. It also just sounds badass.
How goes the editing of the documentary? Any surprises?
M. Krukar:I had so many ideas and plans on what to do and when I sat down to edit many of them were scrapped, mostly for time or to fit in with the feel of it. I'm surprised at how funny some stuff is. Someone in an interview will say something clever or funny and when filming them I'm too focused on the technical, I don't hear what they say. Now I can enjoy it and have a laugh.
What kind of film should fans be expecting?
M. Krukar:If you are a fan of Team Liquid, after seeing this you should be reaching an intense, radical fanaticism for the team. I want people who like these players to watch it and be able to connect with them. You can relate to some of the stories they tell and you can slowly realize that they're just regular guys like everyone else. If you aren't a fan of Team Liquid I hope you watch and become a fan.
Are there going to be any surprises in the documentary? Give us a preview.
M. Krukar:Without giving too much away I will say what surprised me most is that Zenio is actually the nicest guy on the team, and his English was surprisingly good. I told him he always comes off as a badass but then sitting down and talking to him he was sweet and a bit quirky.
Here's a sneak peak of the upcoming documentary I put together featuring one of the most important matches in heated EG/TL Rivalry...
Which was your favorite event? Why?
M. Krukar:I can tell you as a fan I am incredibly lucky to be sent to so many events. All the press/vip badges I received I have hanging next to my desk. I look over them and each one is a great memory. IPL3 was the first event and I couldn't believe people are paying me to be here. I'll never forget talking to Hot Bid the first time. TL purchased some equipment for me and left it in the hotel room so Hot Bid sent me a text "Room 1011. Equipment on bed." I felt like Agent 47 and it was a great way to start. I also met a lot of people from the Team Liquid community and I was introduced to Team Liquid Mafia. Anyone who was at IPL3 will know those insane Mafia games, I don't think we'll ever top those.
How is it working with the TL Staff at events?
M. Krukar:Some of you may not know but Hot Bid has a reputation for being a troll. I know that may sound shocking but working with him you never know if he's trolling you or not. I told him a few times I don't consider him a friend but currently he is dangerously close to becoming a friend. Wax like all great writers is the perfect drinking buddy and would never turn down a drink, especially a free one. Victor I have the utmost respect for and usually when someone disagrees with me I know they're wrong but Victor is one of those few people who I respect his opinion enough to listen to it. Several times we went out to eat just the two of us and we always had great talks. Just being associated with Team Liquid and having Victor vouch for me I was pretty much treated like a rock star. I could see it going to someone's head, it certainly inflated Hot Bid's already massive ego, but I always kept it cool even when getting free drinks or skipping waiting lines. The best way to describe it is Victor is the cool kid in high school and I have no qualms sitting at his table.
Are you friends with the Liquid guys now? How was it interviewing and filming them?
M. Krukar:I've had the opportunity to hang out with some of the players and I have to say we've on good terms. Sheth is such a nice guy I feel like I can say he's my friend, but I'm sure there are thousands of people who can say that about Sheth. Haypro was at the Team Liquid Head Quarters for a few days with me and there were definitely some laughs there. Hero I probably spent the most time with, we flew together to Korea. We had plans to party but his schedule was so busy with practicing for GSL and Blizzard Cup that he couldn't leave the house. I told him I would take him to a club when he comes to America and I plan on it if I attend any future MLG events. I also brought back to Canada about 15 bottles of Soju so I hope to share one with him after a big win. As a fan filming them has been great because their personalities have come out and some preconceived notions I had of them have been completely shattered. Hopefully when watching the documentary people can see some of them are a bit different then they people think they are.
Do you have any funny stories about the TL Staff or Liquid players?
M. Krukar:Hero had his NASL cheque at the airport. It was one of those very large novelty ones. They told us it was way too big to take with us and Hero was ready to throw it out. I said no man, we're getting this to Korea. He asked me to take care of it so I argued it out and they let us check it in. When we arrived in Korea we couldn't find it so I said let's go ask. This is in South Korea, no one speaks English and it's just me and Hero. He was so shy he asked me to go ask them if they have it. We ended up finding it and bring it all the way back to the oGs TL House.
How is this documentary different than the many others out there?
M. Krukar:I think the most important fact that differentiates this documentary from the others is that I have no illusions of what I am making. I am making a documentary about Team Liquid mainly geared toward the fans of Team Liquid, not something trying to be bigger than it is.
Do you feel that the relatively fast editing and production of this documentary may hurt its quality? Why not go for a longer period of time?
M. Krukar:Unfortunately the SC2 community is very fickle and a player's 15 minutes feel more like 15 seconds. It's sad how fast today's heroes are forgotten tomorrow. Hero won Dreamhack and did well at NASL just two months ago, and since then losing Blizzard Cup and Code S up/downs, some fans have counted him out already. We are so over saturated with tournaments that they have become meaningless. If you win a major tournament one week you can lose in a smaller one shortly after. With that kind of structure we will never have a clearly defined champion and people will transfer their attention very quickly between whoever the flavor of the week is. That's why prolonging the release of a documentary hurts it greatly. I have footage of Nazgul talking about watching Ret playing an important game and at the time the win is very important. But think of all the games he's played since. That game is now completely insignificant.
If you had to do another documentary, what would you do it on?
M. Krukar:If I was given a choice to do it on anything I wanted I would like to do it on something controversial. Naniwa would be interesting to follow, possible even Destiny. There are some players that have interesting stories and the interviews we see or what little interaction we have with them doesn't come close to helping us understand how they think.
Are you going to do more documentaries on Liquid or work with them in the future?
M. Krukar:It would be a dream to keep working with Liquid, whether they hire me in the future is up to them and if this documentary is a success. I enjoy watching Starcraft 2 but I doubt I would be attending a tournament without a purpose, without work. I've told Liquid about some possible ideas for future projects and right now they said focus on this one. I can only hope it's success allows me to continue doing what I love.
Do you think the movie will be ready by the end of February on schedule?
M. Krukar:We decided on February before going to NASL and Korea so I lost a few weeks worth of editing time but I'm still confident in a late February release date. If something unexpected happens it might throw us off but I don't expect it taking any longer than early March.
Anyone you'd like to thank?
M. Krukar:I don't believe in impersonal thanks. Some people have helped me out and I will thank them myself because without them this project would not be as amazing as I hope it turns out. Ultimately the responsibility of the success and failure is on me and I just hope I can work hard enough to create what I've envisioned in my head.
TeamLiquidPRO Website
Documentary Announcement
Documentary Teaser Trailer
Liquid Team Twitter
Michael Krukar Twitter
Michael Krukar Website
