The Vintagent Trailers: A preview of our favorite feature films out there.
Motorcycle Man (TBD)
Run Time: 1:56
Producer: Daniel Lovering
Director: Daniel Lovering
Editor: Chi-Ho Lee
Key Cast: Dave Roper
FILM MAKERS
Daniel Lovering is a writer, photographer and award-winning documentary filmmaker based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. His first feature-length documentary, “Through the Place,” won the Best Architecture Film award at the 2016 New Urbanism Film Festival in Los Angeles and the Festival Director’s Award at the Queen City Film Festival in Cumberland, Maryland. An experienced journalist, Daniel has reported from more than a dozen countries. His writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Economist and Foreign Policy, among other publications. Daniel worked for eight years as a staff writer for The Associated Press in Asia and the United States, reporting on subjects ranging from business and politics to war and natural disasters. He began his career in film and television production, working as an intern on the children’s television series “Bill Nye, the Science Guy.”
SUMMARY
MOTORCYCLE MAN is a short documentary about a man who has pursued a single passion in life: motorcycle racing. Dave Roper has raced every year since 1972, competing on exotic vintage bikes at racetracks around the world and winning a reputation as a folk hero of the sport.
But Roper is hardly an adrenaline junkie. He takes a philosophical approach to racing, viewing it as a test of mental and physical abilities. As he enters his twilight years, Roper reflects on the unconventional path he has followed in life, the dangers he has faced and the choices he has made.
MOTORCYCLE MAN follows Roper from a workshop in Brooklyn to his home on Long Island to a racetrack in Canada. Along the way he encounters autograph-seeking admirers, old friends and fellow racers eager to test their skills on the track. It also delves into Roper’s past, including his historic win at the Isle of Man TT, a notoriously dangerous race in the UK, in 1984.
MOTORCYCLE MAN celebrates the speed, sweat and thrill of motorcycle racing, while offering a meditation on craft, obsession and what it takes to pursue your dreams.
MOTORCYCLE MAN is now in post-production. We recently completed an Indiegogo campaign, but we still need to raise more funds to finish the film. We’re currently seeking tax-deductible donations through our nonprofit fiscal sponsor, Filmmakers Collaborative. We’re offering many of the same incentives from our Indiegogo campaign, including digital downloads of the film ($25), refrigerator magnets ($35), your name in the credits ($50), posters signed by Dave ($100), a broken part from one of Dave’s bikes ($500) and even dinner with Dave ($1,000). Email us for more details. Consider joining our team by making a contribution. Thank you!
RELATED MEDIA
Website
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Love this. Every time I go to Karl Engelener’s shop I see that Aermacchi that Roper is riding and hear about the weekend’s race exploits and what they are trying out to make it faster. It is cool to see it on the track
Cool little doc. Dave is everywhere – I have seen him at WERA and AHRMA events at Road Atlanta, Barber, and Daytona for years. I immediately recognized that head of hair from behind when I saw him in the IOM paddock a couple of years ago. They guy loves to race. Also great that guys like Ianucci keep those old bikes running so we get to see them is action and not just at a museum.
Saw the film in Newburyport, MA. Beautiful and well-crafted homage to what makes a legend and great guy like Dave tick.