The Story Behind "The Jay DeMerit Story"

Photo Credit: JayDeMeritStory.com

Tonight the Free Beer Movement, in conjunction with the Austin chapter of the American Outlaws, will screening "Rise and Shine: The Jay DeMerit Story" at Draft Pick American Grill (1620 E. Riverside Dr) at 8:00pm. Free popcorn, food/drink specials, and drawings for door prizes are all on-deck! 


ONLY A FEW DAYS LEFT!!! HELP SUPPORT GETTING THIS MOVIE MADE: DONATE TO JAY'S KICKSTARTER PAGE!!!

In late February United States National Team and Vancouver Whitecaps defender Jay DeMerit tweeted out to his followers that “Rise and Shine: The Jay Demerit Story” was not up for one of this year’s Oscars. He ended his statement with the hash tag “coming to a theater near you”. If you follow DeMerit on Twitter, or know anything about him, there are very few things that he does or says off the field that one should take serious. It appeared as though his announcement was just a well-timed joke.

Fast forward two weeks and a trailer for “Rise and Shine” pops up on the Internet. It quickly makes the rounds across various soccer blogs, websites, and media outlets (including this one) and by the end of the day has been pulled off of YouTube. Soccer fans were left wondering if this was the real deal or some sort of mockumentary.

Enter Nick Lewis to clear up the confusion. Lewis is the co-director and co-producer, along with a friend, Ranko Tutulugdzija, of this mystery film.

“Rise and Shine” is, in fact, a real movie and it is just as advertised, “The Jay DeMerit Story.” The documentary’s mission, as Lewis put it, was to “recreate his path” and follow DeMerit’s unbelievable rags to riches American soccer story.

The film’s own story began about six or seven months before the 2010 World Cup. Tutulugdzija, who has played soccer with DeMerit in college at the University of Illinois at Chicago, approached his former teammate with the idea to tell his tale.

“We had a passion, we wrote a script, and Jay said ‘This is great,’” Lewis said. “He’s very interested in hearing what others had to say (about him) along the way.”

Setting aside their day jobs, Lewis and Tutulugdzija, an attorney and an acupuncturist, respectively, set off on a journey to track down many of the people in DeMerit’s past; an American soccer, “This Is Your Life.”

They were joined by a fresh-out-of-college 24-year old director of photography Zach Salsman, who they found on the Internet. In another twist, Lewis and Tutulugdzija were originally only going to write and pitch the script, but after their original director bailed on them, they were now at the helm.

Lewis wanted to emphasize, “We could not have made this without (Zach).”

The three trekked off to interview and film Jay’s story from Green Bay, Wisconsin, a small Midwest (American) football town, to Chicago to throughout Europe and to the English Premier League and, finally, to the U.S. National Team.

Along the way the filmmakers were able to get great interviews with some of the lives that Jay’s story has touched along the way; from the family he stayed with during his trial days to his Watford coaches to USMNT coach Bob Bradley and teammates Tim Howard and Carlos Bocanegra. Some of the most interesting parts of the film are these moments when these people open up about how unique and inspiring a tale Jay has woven.

Photo Credit: JayDeMeritStory.com

Lewis said the whole project took about a year and landed the crew on three continents.

“There’s a story within a story about how this film was made,” Lewis said.

He continued, “In a lot of ways it was just like Jay’s story.”

Lewis, Tutulugdzija, and Salsman have made this movie completely from their own money. At this point they’re sitting on a nearly finished project. According to Tutulugdzija the film was recently honored with the “Rising Star” award at the Canadian International Film Festival.

The film is set to be screened for DeMerit’s family, friends, and teammates in Vancouver on April 4th at the District319 Theater.

“It will be a community celebration of soccer and Vancouver,” Tutulugdzija said in an e-mail to FBM.

At this point, unfortunately, the film is limited to the private screening on April 4th and the film festival circuit until its makers can find more financial and distributional support.
Lewis indicated that the movie, which includes footage of DeMerit’s time at Watford and with the USMNT, would have to pay extremely expensive rights fees to FIFA and the Premier League for it to see a large audience. Just a minute of World Cup footage, according to Lewis, runs upwards of $50,000.

If the movie had a distributor, someone to take on these fees and help get it to mainstream audiences, Lewis believes it would “do well worldwide.”

“We tried to capture the game and how powerful it is,” Lewis said. “But it’s not just about soccer. It’s a universal theme.”

“A lot of people know who Jay is, but they don’t know his story,” he continued.

DeMerit’s story took him from Wisconsin to Watford, with soccer panhandling stops all across Europe, before his dream of playing professional soccer was realized. In 2003 DeMerit set off for Europe with $1,800 and barely a hope; only armed with perseverance. With friend Kieren Keane the two of them showed up on the door steps of clubs all across the continent looking for a tryout. Starting in the ninth-tier of English soccer for Southall both DeMerit and Keane moved to seventh division Northwood where, in a pre-season match, Jay impressed the coaching staff of Watford, a team in the English Championship.

By 2007 he was the captain of Watford in the EPL and by 2010 starting in the World Cup for the United States. Following the World Cup DeMerit signed with the Major League Soccer expansion side, Vancouver Whitecaps, and last week was named its captain before the opening of the 2011 season.

Right now, though, the film version of his fairytale sits at a crossroads. Few who would or could be captivated by this story will see it if the makers can’t get over their distribution and rights roadblocks.

DeMerit’s dream hinged on the hopes of getting noticed and proving he could play top flight soccer. His story’s tellers now hope their project follows a parallel path: get noticed, prove the film’s value, and show it off on the world’s stage.

For more information and information on how to donate to help finish the project visit: www.jaydemeritstory.com

Become a "fan" on Facebook of "Rise And Shine" to stay up-to-date with all the film's developments and information about how you can help.

Editor's Note: This article was written by the FBM's Dan Wiersema and originally posted over at our friends, The Shin Guardian)

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2011 Major League Soccer Beer-View: Western Conference

This is the America we dream of.

By Kirsten Schlewitz / Senior West Coast Beer and Aston Villa Correspondent

The 16th season of Major League Soccer kicks off tonight and like a fine wine it has aged gracefully. Or, more similarly, like a teenager thrashing about, some times its a hit... other times... not so much.

Despite its adolescent acne, we love American soccer and MLS. It's ours no matter how many times it breaks curfew or runs the car into the back of the garage.

It's with all those fresh teenie booper images stuck in your head that we switch gears and talk about the upcoming season in beer. MLS might only be getting behind the wheel, but since we're trying to emulate the great leagues of Europe we're going to start drinking early, too!

Join us as we "beer-view" the 2011 Major League Soccer season. We've tried our best, through both conference previews, to find a beer that comes from the team's home town, with only a few exceptions.

Check out our "Eastern Conference" Beer-view as well!

Chivas USA
Last Season’s Record (W-L-D): 8-18-4 (Eighth Place, no playoffs)
Brewery: Corona
Beer: "Extra" Lager
Season Beer-view: C’mon, how can it be anything other than Chivas’ new sponsor, Corona? A staple on the beaches of Mexico as well as in parking lots on match day, it’s often little more than a thirst quencher – although this is needed in the heat of Los Angeles. Bubbly and weak, it’s absolutely necessary to shove the accompanying lime to the bottom of the bottle.

And just like a squirt of lime can help elevate Corona’s status, the strengthening of Chivas’ back line will give the Goats the opportunity to back up their bite.

Colorado Rapids
Last Season’s Record (W-L-D): 12-8-10 (Fifth Place, Major League Soccer Cup winners)
Brewery: Great Divide Brewing Co.
Beer: "16th Anniversary Wood Aged" Double IPA
Season Beer-view: Like a fine beer, the Rapids have done little in the offseason but age. Sure, they’ve picked up Sanna Nyassi and Tyrone Marshall in an attempt to become the “Sounders of the Rockies,” but overall their starting XI will remain much the same. This is a team that takes comfort in consistency, in their warm blankets, in the smell of woodsmoke at the campsite.

This wood-aged double IPA will evoke many of those same sentiments. Aromas of smoke bring memories of a campfire, the bourbon smell reminds you of Grandad. The taste barely varies from the smell, easing the transition from nose to mouth. Finally, at 10% ABV, subtle it’s not, and it’ll hit you like…well, like Coner Casey.

FC Dallas
Last Season’s Record (W-L-D): 12-4-14 (Third Place, MLS Cup runners-up)
Brewery: Saint Arnold Brewing Co.
Beer: Amber Ale


(Editor's Note: We know that Saint Arnold is Houston-based and that's probably a huge slap in the face to FCD fans. No offense. There's Rahr Brewing in Ft. Worth, of course, by our writer wasn't aware of them at the time of this article. FCD fans.... take that Houston stuff and drink it down and smash the bottle!)


Season Beer-view: I have to confess, I haven’t had a lot of beers from Dallas. But I have had a lovely care package from Houston, and that’s almost the same, right? Well, even if it’s not, at least Dallas can overshadow their Texas counterparts on the soccer field, which is certainly more important. This year’s Dallas team will have trophies in their eyes, determined to land the cup that everyone was certain would be theirs.

And in honor of the other one that got away, I present the amber ale, a lovely red-brown pour. Mostly a sweet, innocuous brew, it has a bit of a citrus bitterness that sneaks in when you’re least expecting it.

L.A. Galaxy
Last Season’s Record (W-L-D): 18-7-5 (First Place, Conference Semi-Finals)
Brewery: Eagle Rock Brewery
Beer: "Populist" IPA
Season Beer-view: Having not gone to Los Angeles since I’ve become a beer snob, I was tempted to use a San Diego brewery, or at least one from Orange County, to fulfill this requirement. Instead my friend Ryan was kind enough to give me a recommendation. When I asked “So this beer is…” he replied, “Delicious.” Realizing that might not be enough for beer-snobs-in-training, he let us know it’s, “A wee bit bitter, probably a bit of tangerine or something of that sort in it.”

When asked why this beer should represent L.A., Ryan responded with, “Because everyone loves them.” Tough to argue with such populist logic, really. It’s mostly true, and unlikely to change as long as Landon Donovan remains with the Galaxy.

Portland Timbers
Last Season’s Record (W-L-D): N/A
Brewery: Cascade Brewing Co.
Beer: "Drie Zwarte Pieten" Sang Noir
Season Beer-view: You’d think a brewery naming their beer in such a manner has something to prove. In fact, Cascade is one of the top producers of wild ales in the United States, so naming their holiday beer after Black Pete, a character in Belgian folklore, actually makes perfect sense. In much the same manner, many are going to expect Portland have a point to prove this season, seeing as their Seattle rivals have already made quite an impression on MLS. In fact Portland has been quietly going about their business, setting up a solid team that should impress on its own merits, not as an afterthought to the Sounders.

Cascade’s Sang Noir also leaves an impression distinct from its Belgian cousins. This beer is almost like drinking hot spiced cider, tasting of sour cherries, whisky and cinnamon. Oh, and you’re probably not going to be able to find this one in stores, because what’s the point of liking something cool if you’re willing to share it with everyone?

Real Salt Lake
Last Season’s Record (W-L-D): 15-4-11 (Second Place, lost Conference Semi-Finals)
Brewery: Wasatch Pub and Brewery
Beer: "Polygamy" Porter
Season Beer-view: Salt Lake like to score. Scoring? Polygamy? Get it? Maybe we’re too subtle for you. Maybe it would help if I told you Jason Kreis looks like the type to have three wives and still looking for action on the side. It’s not legal, so he’s taking out his aggression with his team.

In much the same manner, the Polygamy Porter doesn’t encourage you to stop at just one. Its 4% ABV is low for its style, so make sure you have at least three. This porter’s rather dry, but pleasant enough, with chocolate and caramel tastes.

San Jose Earthquakes
Last Season’s Record (W-L-D): 13-10-7 (Sixth Place, Eastern Conference Finals)
Brewery: 21st Amendment Brewery
Beer: "Bitter American" Pale Ale
Season Beer-view: The San Jose Earthquakes are bitter. Since returning to the MLS, they've won nothing. They made it to the MLS Cup playoffs last year, but couldn't get past the first round. They look up north and see the San Francisco Giants winning World Series while denying the Oakland As, under the same ownership as the Quakes, a move to San Jose. They look south and see the Galaxy building a bigger trophy cabinet. In this scenario, they ignore Chivas, as do most people. This season is their time to overcome that bitterness and reclaim some silverware.

Bitter belongs in IPAs and Pale Ales, and this Pale is one of the best I've ever had. You'll smell it before you taste it, all sweet and flowery. But don't be fooled -- there's a definite bitter element here, with the taste combining both spicy and sweet. (Please note: this is in no way an analogy of the way that I believe SJ will play this season).

Seattle Sounders
Last Season’s Record (W-L-D): 14-10-6 (Third Place, lost Conference Semi-Finals)
Brewery: Epic Ales
Beer: "Otto-Optimizer"
Season Beer-view: Epic Ales is a fairly new brewery in Seattle that manages to be different and inventive, causing older, established breweries to be just a tad resentful of its success. The Otto-Optimizer is an example of a beer that inspires intense emotions, with most samplers either loving or hating it. Brewed with coffee and cardamom, both flavors are apparent in both the smell and the taste. The balance is just slightly off, however, with the cardamom lingering just a bit too long.

Not that the Seattle Sounders have any lessons to learn from a beer that attempts to be slightly too complex and finds itself in over its head.

Vancouver Whitecaps
Last Season’s Record (W-L-D): N/A
Brewery: Steamworks Brewing Co.
Beer: Espresso Stout
Season Beer-view: This is a beer that doesn’t put much stock in subtle nuances of flavor. Nope, this one grabs you over the head and throws coffee down your throat. Utterly delicious if you like coffee and chocolate, but after awhile one starts to crave something different. There’s only so long you can hold out without craving grapefruit peels and floral aromas.

Vancouver, too, are a bit of a one-trick pony, or at least they’ve been thus far in preseason. With goals proving difficult to find for the ‘Caps, they’re resorting to an over-physical style of play, intent on making their mark or at least leaving a bruise. The team has a few of the individual elements, but it may take a bit for them to figure out how to put them together.

Many thanks to @aaroncampeau, @ryanrosenblatt, @jeremiahoshan, @gingefc, and of course, @LesAnn87

About Kirsten

I may be a law student at Lewis and Clark, but soccer is my true love, with beer coming in a distant second. That's not to say I don't love beer--I've tasted over a thousand different brews, and listed many of them on Ratebeer. Living in Portland, Oregon, I attend quite a few festivals and tastings, and am able to argue passionately about the merits of Cascade hops vs. Chinook.

As for the soccer, I'm the Managing Editor of SB Nation's Aston Villa site, 7500 to Holte, the Italy Editor for SB Nation Soccer, and cover the Seattle Sounders on SBN Seattle (don't judge--I'm from Seattle!) Finally, I write for Two Footed Tackle when I find words worthy enough for the site. Want more? Follow me on Twitter!

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VIDEO - "Chasing The Dream: The Jay DeMerit Story"

UPDATE: Read our interview with the co-directors of the re-named "Rise and Shine: The Jay DeMerit Story."

Vancouver and USMNT defender Jay DeMerit's story is one of the greatest rags to riches stories ever. Never on Major League Soccer's or the National Team radar, he paid his way to England, was spotted by  Championship side Watford in an exhibition game and leads them to Premier League promotion as their captain. His exploits also earned him a spot on the Yanks World Cup roster and a starring role in South Africa this summer.

Now all of this is the subject of a new documentary that will make its debut in the fall of 2011. "Chasing The Dream: The Jay DeMerit Story" is the real-life "Goal! The Dream Begins" and Jay's story puts Hernan Munez on the backburner.

Check out the trailer. We're working with our friends, The Shin Guardian (where this clip was first spotted), on securing an interview with the film's maker, and, of course, the film's star.

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Better Know A Supporters Group - Vancouver Southsiders

Welcome to the second piece in a new feature on the Free Beer Movement site to expand our coverage of American soccer culture. It's called "Better Know a Supporters Group" just like Steven Colbert's "Better Know a District" from "The Colbert Report". 

Our goal: to feature each of the Major League Soccer teams' supporters groups. We've sent e-mails to each and every SG in Major League Soccer and soon you'll be able to check all what each is all about and what awesomeness they have to contribute to our growing American soccer world.

When we devised this idea a while back it was cool to be able to see what each supporter group is about, but in light of the terrible, one-sided, anti-American, condescending profile of Philadelphia's Sons of Ben SG by the British GQ (not even going to link to it to give them the site hits) we think its all the more important to give supporters groups in Major League Soccer the proper exposure and voice they deserve.

Read our previous Supporters Group Profiles.

Today we're featuring one of Major League Soccer's newbies, although not new to the American  (or Canadian) soccer scene, Vancouver Whitecaps and their supporters group, the Southsiders.

As told to the Free Beer Movement by John Know, President of the Southsiders.


The Basics

Photo Credit: Ty Altman

MLS Club: Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Stadium: Empire Field (temporary for 2011), BC Place Stadium (permanent home as of October 2011)

Year SG Founded: 1999

Section Name: The Southside

Any other SGs apart of your section?

Not at this time, although we are working on getting some regional sub-groups established on Vancouver Island (The SouthIslanders) and the Okanagan (The OK Insiders). We also have a group of fans sitting on the west side of the stadium in the proverbial “posh” seats who have cheekily named themselves “The Prawnsiders.”

Location of SG in Stadium (section #, side, direction): south end behind the goal out to the SE corner.

The Meaty Questions

What are the origins of your groups’ name?

Photo Credit: Christopher Endersby

As many of us are painfully aware, the 1990s and 2000s were dark days for North American football supporters. It was an era when football clubs bought into the philosophy that "family-friendly entertainment" would draw legions of suburban families with young children through the gate.
True football supporters soon found themselves displaced by soccer moms and small children who were more interested in silly mascots and T-shirt contests than the game in front of them.

In 1999, diehard fans of the Vancouver 86ers decided that enough was enough. They abandoned their seats in the grandstand and made a habit of congregating in the pitch-level beer garden behind the goal at the south end of Swangard Stadium. There they knew they could get away with standing through the whole match, pint in hand and voices in full song... all without drawing complaints from the parents mortified by the occasional curse word or rude hand gesture. They generated a real football atmosphere, without the need for computer screen prompting for them to "make some noise".

At first, the group called themselves "The Carlsberg Crew" - so named for the official sponsor of Swangard's beer garden. The following season, they changed their name to "The Canterbury Court", as the beer sponsor had changed between seasons. Realizing that the group might have to change its name each and every season, we opted to call ourselves "The Southsiders".

Favorite chants/songs?

Our anthem is “Boundary Road” (tune of John Denver’s “Country Roads”), but we’re also known for singing the loudest and most obnoxious “O Canada” you’ve ever heard. We’ve got an arsenal of songs in the repertoire that are older than many of the clubs we’ll be playing against. Just wait, you’ll see!

Why is sitting in the supporters section the “best seat in the house”?


Because we are the atmosphere. We don’t need a scoreboard with video graphics of clapping hands to tell us when to make noise. If I could tell the uninitiated one thing, it’s that they are going to have some of the best laughing fits of their lives in the Southside, because some of the things you end up singing are as much shocking as they are hilarious.

Brag. What makes your SG one of the best supporters groups in MLS?


We are the oldest SG in Canada, and we have been around longer than the vast majority of SGs in the USA. We support the oldest professional club in North America. Aside from a two year break following the NASL collapse, we’ve had a professional team here for 37 straight years. We are a city with proper football history and rivalries. Only our Cascadia cousins in Seattle come close, with Portland being the next runner up.

Greatest game(s) in team history?

Photo Credit: Susan Harris

- The 1979 semi-final win over the NY Cosmos, and the subsequent championship final win over the Tampa Bay Rowdies are obvious choices. How about…

-Opening BC Place in 1983 v. Seattle Sounders, winning 2-1 in front of 63,000 people!

- A 7–0 demolition of the Tennessee Rhythm in 2000 was a masterpiece to watch.

-The allegedly “semi-pro” Whitecaps (as Canada’s Toronto-centric media would have you believe) defeating “major league” TFC 1-0 in Toronto during the 2008 Nutrilite Canadian Championships. Beating them 2-0 at home the following year was even sweeter!

-Caps defeating Portland 3-2 at PGE Park in the 2009 USL-1 Playoffs – perhaps the most exciting, entertaining football match I’ve ever witnessed.

Predictions for this season?


A first year of important lessons, but good signs of progress. A second place finish in the Cascadia Cup derby with Seattle and Portland. Our first Voyageurs Cup (the above-mentioned Nutrilite Canadian Championship). A heartbreaking second round exit from the playoffs.

Why Major League Soccer? Why North American soccer?

For us, it’s not about Major League Soccer. The Southsiders have supported the Vancouver 86ers / Whitecaps through many different leagues since 1999, with many of us being longtime supporters well before that, point, even going back to the NASL days. The club could be in division two or three and we would still be supporting them. All football jobs and leagues have expiry dates… but true support lasts forever, and your heart goes wherever the club goes. MLS is just the latest chapter in 37 years of Whitecaps history. We’re glad to be there, but we don’t need to see an MLS patch on the jersey sleeve to know our boys in blue and white can compete with the best.

For more information and/or to join the Southsiders.

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FBM EXCLUSIVE - Jay DeMerit's ThrowBall Super Cup Prediction

This is a metaphor for the Super Bowl. Steelers get eye-poked. Packers win!

You may or may not have known this, but USMNT and recently returned to Major League Soccer (for the Vancouver Whitecaps) defender Jay DeMerit is one of the coolest people on the Twitter-box.

I know, you're telling yourself... what about Kanye West? Is DeMerit even the coolest soccer player on Twitter? There is the edge-of-your-seat-feed of Cristiano Ronaldo.

Let us tell you now... yes, he's the best. What makes the best more untouchable? This soccer player, this amazing story of soccer success is also a massive Green Bay Packers fan. The FBM can relate; having grown up in same land of beer, brats, and cheese of Wisconsin... we are too.

We got a hold of DeMerit on the ol' Twitter-box (the Whitecaps are in Arizona for pre-season camp) to ask about his plans and prediction for tonight's ThrowBall Super Cup.

Free Beer Movement: "WI guy to WI can I get a couple of quotes for the FBM site about what you're doing for the SB and what you'll be drinking?"

Jay Demerit: "Well I'm not gonna lie, we are in preseason training camp so the party will be staying PG. Chips and salsa."

But if I was in Dallas I'd be on the Mich Golden and patron with my hunting overalls and Rogers throwback jersey.. great gameday combo.

FBM: Michelob Golden, eh? Nice. Prediction?

JD: Best 30 pack out there.. Pack 34-27.

FBM: Awesome.. thanks Jay.

Ladies and gentlemen.... Jay DeMerit, soccer superstar, super Packers fan. Super Bowl champions?

The notorious hunting overalls and throwback Rodgers jersey.

Photo Credit: DeMerit's Twitter feed. A must-follow.


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