Sweaters

> "*One boy, one dream, one shot.*"
> ― Tagline
>
>

***Sweaters*** is a short film created by We Have Friends.

## Summary

Geeky schoolboy Jim returns home from school after getting rejected by his crush, Megan Jimbo, only to get hit in the head with a basketball by Jim's Dad, his sports-obsessed dad. When Jim reveals he got rejected again, his dad insists that Jim needs to join a sports team in order to get attention. That night, Jim has a nightmare in which Megan chides him for not being on the team, before choking him out. The next day, he heads to the school gym for basketball tryouts, where he meets several others interested in joining the team.

After correctly instructing one of them how to shoot a free-throw, the coach enters and appoints Jim the new captain, in addition to immediately recruiting the others onto the team without any practice. Sporting his new jersey, he finds Megan and tells her that he made the team, and she seemingly agrees to a date with him after their first game.

The team, now called the “Sweaters,” ends up winning their first game on forfeit because the opposing school never showed up. One of them quits due to the absurdity. Jim’s Dad, the only person in the bleachers, is disappointed in Jim because the team didn’t earn their victory, but the Coach assures him that they’ll prove their worth at next week’s game. In the locker room, Jim texts Megan if she’s interested in that date, but she replies that she has a family dinner.

Over the ensuing days, the team trains with the Coach, and Jim grows more confident in his athletic ability, trading portraits of his science idols for NBA posters. Megan, however, dodges Jim’s invitation to dinner, and he’s forced to take one of the members to keep the reservation at a fancy restaurant. They share an awkward and silent dinner together.

Feeling renewed, Jim asks his dad if he’ll show up to that day’s game, which he declines, still feeling that Jim isn’t a real player. Hurt, Jim claims he did this all for him. Regardless, he leads his team onto the court, facing off against members of an intimidating German-speaking high school team. The Germans take the lead 50 - 0 by the end of the second quarter. At half-time, Jim is surprised to see that his dad finally showed up; they reconcile, and Jim’s Dad, who had a change of heart, encourages him not to win, but to give it his all.

Exhausted and losing badly, the Coach calls a time out and tries to rally her team to score 100 points in 30 seconds. Though they know it’s physically impossible to win, Jim says that they should at the very least try to score one point as a team. Against all odds, Jim performs a slam dunk with less than a second remaining, and everyone celebrates. Megan, who’d been watching the game, reveals that she never took up Jim’s invitations because she believed he joined the team just to impress her. Now that she’s seen his sportsmanship and interest in the team, she agrees to join them all for dinner at Applebee’s.

## Stills

Jim plays on his calculator after a hard day.Jim's Dad lectures his son.The Coach appoints Jim captain.The gym is mobbed for the Sweaters' first game.Number 4 quits the team.Megan declines Jim's invitation.Jim's Dad ignores his son.The Sweaters face off against the Germans.The Sweaters get routed.Jim's Dad arrives for a pep talk.Jim formulates a plan.Jim and Megan head to Applebee's.