DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH REPORT

PERSONALITY ANALYSIS

I) Title: HONO GAMES or COACH CARTER

Author: CHACCHI NGA, Mercedes Lizeth

.
 Summary: In this research report we will discuss topics worked in the classroom based on
psychology, where we will describe the character we chose in this case is the basketball
coach KEN CARTER who, based on leadership, motivation and effort; He manages to
form a team with objectives, united and solid to win a championship, and for each athlete
to lose the fear that is in them to have an achievement. Here we will see about the
development of capabilities, values and strengths among them, the biological bases of
behavior (triune brain), emotional intelligence, sociocultural bases, everything about the
chosen character, understanding it through examples captured to share with all of you. .

Keywords: MOTIVATION – LEADERSHIP – CHANGE – SUCCESS – GOALS –

FEARS.

Abstract: In this research report we will expose about topics based on the psychology that
we have dealt with in the classroom, where we will describe the character we have chosen
in this case is the basketball coach KEN CARTER, who based on leadership, motivation,
effort; manages to form a team with objectives, united and solid to win a championship,
and that each athlete loses the fear of what is in Here we will see about the development of
the abilities, values and strengths among them, the biological bases of behavior ( triune
brain), emotional intelligence, sociocultural bases, all about the character we have chosen,
understanding them through examples to share with all of you.

Keywords : MOTIVATION - LEADERSHIP - CHANGE - SUCCESS - GOALS –

FEARS

II) Introduction

The work that we will analyze is the movie “Honor Games”, we have chosen to know and
analyze the main character that the basketball coach “KEN CARTER” comes to play.
KEN CARTER; is a person who, throughout his or her lived experiences, becomes a
leader, sociable, empathetic, motivating, with values; capable of fighting for his ideals;
May the people around you bring out the best in themselves. We chose Carter because he
is a person who is not only interested in being a basketball coach and having good athletes,
 or winning championships, but also in transforming the mentality of all members of the
school that an athlete should not only be good at sports. If not, he must also be a good
student. The coach sees a system so that students do not fail by forcing them to sign a
contract where they must enter classes and have good averages; Since at RICHMOND
HIGH SCHOOOL only 50% graduate and only 6% go to university, and 80% would end
up in jail due to those statistics, he offers them to think about it, promising that he will do
everything possible to have a university life. . He transforms the lives and mentality of all
the members of the team, helping them to respect each other. A clear example was: when
they were treated with the term “black” among members of the same color, telling them
that if a white person called them black they would leave. to the hands, he highlights that if
one wants respect one must begin by respecting each other by prohibiting that type of
jokes. It teaches them to mature, stop being children, and become responsible men with a
winning mentality, who believe in themselves and think about a university future. That is
why KEN CARTER always fights for that ideal, despite the fact that the members of the
student council and parents wanted to impose that the students play despite being
academically bad. KEN CARTER resigns at that moment because he feels that if he
agrees, everything he has fought for would be in vain, that they have goals and an
academic future.
Timo Cruz, a member of the basketball team, thanked him saying “By freeing ourselves
from our own fears, our presence frees others.” KEN CARTER in the last basketball game
that, despite not winning, they never gave up, tells them that one obtains an internal
victory, something that very few achieve. Coach CARTER makes us see how everything is
achieved with a lot of effort and work, the behavior that he presents for professional
training such as leadership, teamwork, continuous effort, sociable behavior, passion for his
work, patience is rescued from the coach. , decision-making capacity, persistence and
responsibility.

III) Body

3.1 Biological bases of behavior ( based on the Triune brain theory )

 Neocortex : In the scene where the coach establishes rules for the entire basketball
team, due to their behavior and low grades in their High School subjects, he
resolves to close the gym and cancel the hours of basketball training and resume
 them when they have good results. qualifications, chooses to implement
unconventional and strict methods.

 Syst. Limbic : We can see in the episode where the coach receives the academic
reports of each student, he realizes that they are below the average they signed and
that many have not attended classes, the coach feels so helpless that he begins to
get excited, angry and feel evil. On the other hand, he also shows an altered
reaction when the students ran away to go to a party, he finds them and gets furious
taking them away.

 Reptilian brain : We see the scene when Timo Cruz refuses to accept the coach's
rules, he tries to hit him when he disagrees with his ideas, Ken Carter in his defense
tries to dodge him and reduces him so that he does not continue attacking him, the
coach does not try to hurt him; just calm him down to avoid attacks, another scene
is when a stranger spits on his car when he was with his son, as a form of protest to
go to the gym.

3.2 Emotional intelligence

a. Self-awareness : Coach Carter decides to close the gym until the students catch up
on their subjects, this causes the press, parents and the student council to disagree,
accusing him of doing his job poorly, which he does not. It is important to him
since the only thing that matters to him is that they have a university future; since
he knows that the council only cares about winning the championship.

b. Self-regulation : Damien Carter, the coach's son, leaves the San Francisco school
and decides to play at RICHMOD, since he wants to have the same experience as
his father. Carter, like every father, gets angry, but he understands that part of his
son's growing up is make his own decisions and assume the consequences, so he
agrees to what he asks of him.

c. Self-motivation: CARTER throughout the film is in charge of motivating all the

boys, he makes them see that with a little discipline they can achieve many things,
like the phrase he gives them: “They will play like winners, they will act like
 winners and they will be winners.” ", to many students who are finishing, he tells
them that they can become university players that they should project themselves
to that; which many become aware and decide to make an effort for that, another
example is the words of encouragement despite not winning, it teaches them that
they never gave up; that they obtained an internal victory, something that very few
achieve.

d. Empathy : KEN CARTER comforts Timo Cruz when he arrives home after the
death of his friend, who tells him that he will do anything to get back on the team
and he just hugs him. Or when the mother of a Junior Battle asks him to please
accept her son back into the team, that she agrees with its rules but that basketball
is the only future that could help her son have a college career, He tells him that
his oldest son died and that he should not take away that opportunity, which the
coach accepts.

e. Social skills : KEN CARTER tries to get the director of the HIGH SCHOOL to
care about the students in their academic subjects, allowing her to deliver the daily
evaluation of the athletes so that he can help them improve in their studies. It also
makes parents see with the contracts that it gives them to sign that going to a
basketball game in a suit and tie is so that they themselves feel and show a good
image to everyone, including the people who can take them to university on
scholarships, It makes them see that dressing well is not expensive because they
can find the clothes with very little money. Another episode is when he teaches the
academic council the importance of not only having won championships, but also
scholarship students so that they can improve themselves and have a better future.

3.3 Sociocultural bases of the human psyche

a. Type of Family: In our opinion, KEN CARTER's type of family is a NUCLEAR

FAMILY.

b. Parenting style: Coach CARTER had a DEMOCRATIC parenting style, since in the
film he highlights clear and appropriate rules with the students and son; For example,
 if you have a 2.3 GPA you are on the basketball team, if not you are out. He also has a
lot of dialogue and can reach a negotiation. For example, with Cruz, he left confused
and did not want to belong to the team due to certain rules that the coach gave. When
the coach wanted to return, he told him everything his teammates had done and that he
owed him a certainty. number of exercises until Friday to be able to return to the team.

c. Attitudes and prejudices: Many of the attitudes that Coach Carter began to correct
were punctuality, arrogance, lack of camaraderie, that they learned to respect and
impart respect, to value effort and self-love, the importance of fulfilling their tasks in
training plans; He managed to develop the confidence to take on challenges,
strengthened the discipline and humility to recognize each person's mistakes. Finally,
through his intelligent and firm strategy, the coach managed to correct many negative
aspects in the boys, as well as the development of everyone's physical condition.

3.4 Sexuality (and its manifestations in terms of role, gender and sexual option)

It allows us to identify and make visible the practices and ideologies that cause
differentiated, hierarchical and unequal participation within the social, political and
economic institutions of women and men.

This aims to recognize that socially there is a set of ideas, representations and
beliefs based on the fact that there are things specific to men and women, meanings that
are transmitted and reinforced in people as part of their identity process ( Rocha Sánchez
and Díaz-Loving , 2012 ). Process that, according to Butler (2007), is a constant process of
relearning the ways of being men and women, who are characterized by diversity and
heterogeneity rather than universality.

This process has a special influence on the stage of youth, since it is a phase where
young people structure their subjectivity and prepare for adult life and topics such as
emotional relationships and sexuality gain crucial importance as they are important
components in the formation of identity (Romo, 2009) . Sexuality becomes at that moment
a new space for knowledge and interrelation with others; The majority of coital
relationships are recorded in this stage of life (INEGI, 2013) , which represents new
learning and challenges to assume, which is our study problem.
 If we assume that culturally there is an assignment of what is appropriate for what
is feminine and what is masculine, then this becomes a kind of filter that will guide erotic
behaviors, including the desires, attitudes, meanings, rules and norms that go through the
experiences. sexual relations of women and men ( Guevara, 2010 ; Hernández, 2008 ).

In this sense, numerous investigations in the youth population show multiple forms
of inequality and lack of equity in gender relations, including sexual life, which is the
context where behaviors and attitudes are reproduced that limit the potential of young
people and are represent behavioral, health and mortality problems ( Abril, 2014 ; INEGI,
2013 ; Rodríguez et al., 2011 ).

Role: According to the American Psychological Association (APA, 2011), a

person's sexual identity is the intimate experience of their being, where several
components are integrated, among which are: biological sex, gender identity, sexual
orientation and gender expression. In this way, sexual identity refers to an individual's
sexual preference, their way of feeling and the way they express their gender.

Gender identity In this conceptual order, the Principles on the Application of

International Human Rights Legislation in Relation to Sexual Orientation and Gender
Identity (Yogyakarta Principles), define the latter in their preamble as: “The internal
experience and individual gender as deeply felt by each person, which may or may not
correspond to the sex assigned at birth, including the personal experience of the body
(which may involve modifying bodily appearance or function through medical, surgical
or otherwise, as long as it is freely chosen) and other expressions of gender, including
dress, speech and manners. As explained in the document on Sexual Orientation and
Gender Identity in International Human Rights Law, there are variants of gender identity:
Transgenderism (trans people) is a term used to describe the different variants of gender
identity. whose common denominator is the non-conformity between the biological sex
of the person and the gender identity that has been traditionally assigned to it. A trans
person can construct their gender identity independently of surgical interventions or
medical treatments (United Nations, 2013). According to the cited document, a
subcategory of transgenderism is the case of transvestites: “In general terms, transvestites
are those who “express their gender identity—whether permanently or temporarily—
through the use of clothing and attitudes of the opposite gender that is socially and
culturally assigned to their biological sex.
 This may include modifying or not modifying your body.” For its part, the
document conceptualizes transsexual people as those who “feel and conceive themselves
as belonging to the opposite gender that is socially and culturally assigned to their
biological sex and who opt for a medical intervention – hormonal, surgical or both to
adapt their physical-biological appearance to their psychic, spiritual and social reality.”

Sexual orientation: The American Psychological Association (APA, 2017) defines

sexual orientation as “a lasting emotional, romantic, sexual, or affective attraction toward
others,” which differs from sexual behavior because it refers to feelings and concept of
self.” “People may or may not express their sexual orientation in their behavior.”
According to the same source, sexual orientation “exists along the continuum from
exclusive heterosexuality to exclusive homosexuality and includes various forms of
bisexuality.” It is shaped at an early age and as a result of a complex interaction of
biological, cognitive and environmental factors, which is why it is understood that it is not
a personal choice, nor can it be changed at will or with therapy. The indicated definition
agrees with that provided by the Pan American Health Organization, the World Health
Organization and the World Association of Sexology. These organizations define sexual
orientation as “the specific organization of eroticism and/or the emotional bond of an
individual in relation to the gender of the partner involved in sexual activity. Sexual
orientation can manifest itself in the form of sexual behaviors, thoughts, fantasies or
desires, or in a combination of these elements” (PAHO-WHO, 2000).

His teammate Kenyon Stone struggles to come to terms with his pregnant girlfriend
Kyra and eventually breaks up with her because he didn't believe he was capable of
playing basketball, studying for college, and being a father. at the same time.

Kenyon reunites with Kyra, who had an abortion. The team plays in the high school
playoffs, with Saint Francis, one of the best teams in the state, as the first opponent. The
team eventually loses, but is proud of what they have accomplished. The ending reveals
that six of the players like Jason, Damien, Cruz and Kenyon have gone to college and
graduated.

3.5 Cognitive processes (perception, attention, memory, thinking, language)

The perception of the real events of a basketball team from Richmond High School,
located in the state of California, United States. In the journey of a mediocre team that
begins to improve thanks to the arrival of Ken Carter, a legendary former high school
player who managed to leave the neighborhood and graduate from college.
Basketball is a main and important part of the film, but not the only one. It contains
life stories and the suffering that the inhabitants of a forgotten place must face, in the face
of a system designed to make them fail. It is not a chimera, it is real and concrete data that
occurs daily in different neighborhoods in the United States, where students are at the
mercy of the street.
Coach Carter also highlights the social complaint that especially criticizes that
educational system. Through unconventional means, Coach Carter teaches his students
how to behave on and off the court, opening their minds and showing them that there is a
world of opportunity beyond Richmond.
The basketball team was full of mediocre and undisciplined players, but
its performance improves thanks to Carter's hard work.

The coach prioritizes academic performance over sports performance. It forces

players to have good grades, so they can be part of the team. Carter teaches his players
how to behave on and off the court. But one day he receives reports from the teachers,
with the low grades of all the students and that is why he decides to close the gym. A
story that helps understand the importance of discipline and values in sport. But it also
criticizes the educational system of the United States.

There are ethical problems, professional and academic discipline, and the
complicated lives that students who are also athletes lead. The lesson he leaves behind is
that there is always time for everything and that education is the most important thing,
even more than basketball or any sport.

3.6 Learning theories (how the observed behavior was learned, reinforcement
processes, etc.)

Coach Carter sought to mold the character of the players, to improve their
academic and disciplinary levels, also due to the rigidity that said coach managed,
behaviorism is also observed because the coach shaped behaviors through stimuli and
thus the young people responded to What the coach asked of them, of Coach Carter's
attitudes that he would take up, are the balance that he visualizes between authority,
ethics, dedication and teamwork, very important elements for our educational work. You
 can also make use of two important characteristics such as discipline and the collective
construction of knowledge that can be put into practice, not only in academics, but also in
everyday life. I was able to relate didactics and learning in this film as a set of methods
and techniques that allow teaching and learning efficiently, since in this way the coach
made the players learn from their own experience and build their ideas little by little.

Coach Carter worked the traditional model because of his courage and starting
point when teaching, something that stood out to him a lot and encouraged his players.
Discipline and didactics go hand in hand and together we can achieve an adequate
learning process. He is a disciplined coach who wants to train a group of young people
who did not have good behavior in favor of the institution and the group, they just wanted
to “play” without rules and without good training, leaving aside the most important
things. important are the studies and the kind of life that each one led; When the coach
arrived he set rules and regulations for those who wanted to be part of this team, some did
not accept them and wanted to continue the life they led and give meaning to what was
really worth it. This coach is a good example for the people we are preparing, since, with
very good professional preparation, he wants his group to learn to support each other. It is
quite interesting and leaves us with several lessons, but at the same time it is sad to see
how in that institution it was more important to win basketball games than the academic
situation and the future of the students.

3.7 Affective processes (what are the main affects and feelings that move the
character to act in that way)

to. Emotions:

Leaders promote cultural change in the system with which they work. And people
often resist this kind of change. So some of the leaders' initiatives are not popular. But
despite this, he does not hesitate to push them, to implement them decisively, avoiding
the tendency to want to please those around him.

Coach Carter knows that his job is not only to coach some kids who play
basketball, but to push them to be better players as well as students and even men. And he
does whatever it takes to do so, with conviction and determination despite the resistance
he finds in them. He knows it's for his own good and, since it's a movie, they thank him in
the end. In real life, leaders do the same out of conviction, without expecting someone to
thank them one day.

b. Feelings:

He takes his people beyond their apparent possibilities. They believe in them more
than themselves and with effort and sacrifice they make them become those they never
were.

Coach Carter finds a team with good technical fundamentals, but out of shape.
And by dint of improving this physical form, it takes them from a record of 4 wins and 20
losses in the previous season, to being almost undefeated in the following one. This
meant the boys had to train harder than ever before.

c. Moods:

It often involves confronting others, risking your status quo in favor of your most
fundamental beliefs. Being a leader is neither easy nor comfortable, and often requires
incredible courage to stand firm in your convictions.

Coach Carter firmly believes that his boys are 'student-athletes', with the emphasis
on the noun 'students' rather than the adjective 'athletes'. Thus, when his players do not
achieve the expected academic results, he suspends basketball and games until they
achieve those results.

And this situation creates a serious conflict not only with the children but also with
their parents and even with the school management. And Ken stands firm in his
convictions in the face of all that opposition, risking whatever it takes to defend what he
believes in.

d. Passion:

Leadership:
Leadership has been associated with power, dominance and authority, exercised
through one or more people towards a social group over which they exert influence to
some degree. In this order of ideas, leadership is an extremely important managerial
competence at the managerial level, since this factor is compelling not only to direct an
organization, but also to achieve the stipulated organizational objectives. In the movie
Coach Carter, you can see how the coach, through his knowledge, aptitudes and skills,
manages to generate confidence and credibility in each of the team members to meet both
collective and individual objectives.

Teamwork:
It is the willingness and ability to share knowledge and experiences that allow you
to work together to achieve a common goal, distributing and/or assigning responsibilities
based on the strengths of each of its members. The film shows how teamwork allows us
to achieve common goals, thanks to the strong spirit of teamwork that Coach Carter
transmits to all the members of his team, after hard work on the part of the coach he
manages to achieve Your team works together, helping each other and meeting goals not
only on a sporting level, but also on an educational level, ensuring that each student
obtains a professional degree.

Decision making:
Ability to analyze various variants or options, consider existing circumstances,
available resources and their impact on the organization, and then select the most
appropriate alternative, in order to achieve the best result based on organizational
objectives, implies the ability to execute actions with quality, opportunity and awareness
about the possible consequences of the decision made.

Based on this definition, in the film it can be seen how Coach Carter makes use of
this competition by making correct decisions, such as making each of the team members
sign a contract where they commit not only to attending training but also to obtain good
grades, with the sole objective of becoming people rather than players, preventing them
from falling into crime or drugs, treating them all equally, including their own son.

Technical ability:
It involves knowledge and expertise in certain processes, techniques or tools
specific to the position or specific area occupied. Technical skill is a competency of vital
importance when assuming a managerial role, since, from the area of knowledge and
level of expertise in a given field, managers act, make better decisions, establish goals
and objectives, etc. . In the film, Coach Carter manages the Richmond basketball team,
facing several problems that these students live with on a daily basis; This is where the
coach, based on his knowledge and experience, makes an analysis of the situation and,
based on this, begins to use different methods and strategies to generate a positive change
of mentality in his team, turning them into successful and successful people in different
aspects (academics, social, personal, etc.)

Communication:
It is the ability to listen, ask questions, express concepts and ideas effectively, and
present positive aspects. The ability to know when and who to ask to carry out a purpose.
It is the ability to listen to others and understand them. Understand group dynamics and
effective meeting design. Includes the ability to communicate in writing with conciseness
and clarity. Clearly this competition is reflected in the film, since Coach Carter knew how
to express to his team the importance of having a vision not only regarding winning each
game but also their life in general. Additionally, the coach suggests that the players use
names of their ex-girlfriends as codes that would help them communicate in a simpler,
but at the same time effective, way.

and. Motivation (do the analysis based on one of the theories studied in class)

They have all changed. There they become a team, in the deepest sense of the
term. Don't forget to share it with your team.

As the unrepeatable Michael Jordán, for many years of his career one of the most
individualistic players ever, said, 'individual talent wins games, but teamwork wins
championships.'

As leaders we need to increase teamwork and foster a strong team spirit to truly
achieve our collective potential. We need the best players to help train them, the other
players to make them better, so we will let them trust their abilities, as if they were the
best players.
 We can really see this throughout the film, when in the end due to their strong
team spirit, the team works together to help ensure that everyone reaches the same
educational level, with the strongest students acting as leaders, and they act as coaches
for those in need of help, with the result that everyone on the team achieves the desired
educational level, which will allow them to achieve the opportunity within a university.

What is interesting is that the spirit of teamwork and the team transcends from
sport to other areas, such as in education, also in organizations or groups. It is obvious to
see players training with other players in basketball, but seeing them helping each other
with their studies shows the power we have on teams.

3.8 Based on personality theory, does the chosen character present introverted or
extroverted characteristics? Support your answer:

The personality is not only introverted but also presents motivating words to others,
but it is about generating reasons, objectives to fight for, Coach Carter tries to ensure that
through their sports involvement they manage to maintain their student scholarships and
leave the institute with training that allows them to obtain better resources.
The figure of the leader is shown, not as someone who lives better than the rest of
the team, whose opinion is always respected and accepted, but as a person who makes
decisions, based on achieving the best results, even if sometimes they are not accepted. ,
nor are they comfortable for the rest.
It has a predictable final approach, but that does not mean that it discards all the
development and plot approach.

IV) Conclusions and Discussion

Discussion

Coach Carter is a sports and social denunciation film that criticizes the United
States educational system and promotes the value of discipline as a basis for achieving
success in both sports and life.
Discipline, trust, effort, willpower, responsibility, teamwork, mutual respect and
education. All of them are necessary values to be able to become great people and with
which you can achieve everything you dream of. This film focuses on teaching and
training basketball to teenagers with low self-esteem, little mutual respect, low discipline
and a high degree of egocentrism.

Conclusions

KEN CARTER; is a person who, throughout his or her lived experiences,

becomes a leader, sociable, empathetic, motivating, with values; capable of fighting for
his ideals; May the people around you bring out the best in themselves.

In the scene where the coach establishes rules for the entire basketball team, due
to their behavior and low grades in their High School subjects, he resolves to close the
gym and cancel the hours of basketball training and resume them when they have good
grades, chooses to implement unconventional and strict methods.

Coach CARTER had a DEMOCRATIC parenting style, since in the film he

highlights clear and appropriate rules with the students and son; For example, if you have a
2.3 GPA you are on the basketball team, if not you are out.

The perception of the real events of a basketball team from Richmond High
School, located in the state of California, United States. In the journey of a mediocre
team that begins to improve thanks to the arrival of Ken Carter, a legendary former high
school player who managed to leave the neighborhood and graduate from college.

Coach Carter worked the traditional model because of his courage and starting
point when teaching, something that stood out to him a lot and encouraged his players.
Discipline and didactics go hand in hand and together we can achieve an adequate
learning process.

Coach Carter finds a team with good technical fundamentals, but out of shape.
And by dint of improving this physical form, it takes them from a record of 4 wins and 20
losses in the previous season, to being almost undefeated in the following one. This
meant the boys had to train harder than ever before.
 Based on this definition, in the film it can be seen how Coach Carter makes use of
this competition by making correct decisions, such as making each of the team members
sign a contract where they commit not only to attending training but also to obtain good
grades, with the sole objective of becoming people rather than players, preventing them
from falling into crime or drugs, treating them all equally, including their own son.

What is interesting is that the spirit of teamwork and the team transcends from
sport to other areas, such as in education, also in organizations or groups.

The figure of the leader is shown, not as someone who lives better than the rest of
the team, whose opinion is always respected and accepted, but as a person who makes
decisions, based on achieving the best results, even if sometimes they are not accepted. ,
nor are they comfortable for the rest.
Discipline, trust, effort, willpower, responsibility, teamwork, mutual respect and
education. All of them are necessary values to be able to become great people and with
which you can achieve everything you dream of. This film focuses on teaching and
training basketball to teenagers with low self-esteem, little mutual respect, low discipline
and a high degree of egocentrism.

V) References





 5 Leadership Lessons from the Movie Coach Carter

 https://ricardlloria.wordpress.com › 2016/02/22 › 5-lec...

 RESEARCH REPORT ANALYSIS OF...

 https://www.clubensayos.com › Psychology

 



 Principle person person: Coach Carter - YouTube

 https://www.youtube.com › watch

 COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF LEADERSHIP THEORIES...

 https://www.academia.edu › COMPARATIVE_ANALYSIS...

ANNEXES

LIST OF MOVIES FOR PERSONALITY ANALYSIS

Coach Carter, comment on the film - LaHiguera.net

https://www.lahiguera.net › cinemania › movie › com...

The screenplay, written by Mark Schwahn and John Gatins, is inspired by the life of Ken
Carter . Brian Robbins, Mike Tollin and David Gale produce, and producers...
 Playing high school basketball requires more than just skill, perseverance, discipline and
teamwork... especially if your coach is someone like Ken Carter (Samuel L. Jackson). To be able
to take the field, you have to sign a contract in which you agree to give your best on the field and
in classes. Carter is not only concerned with winning the game but also with ensuring the future
of his team.

Therefore, when his players begin to suspend, Carter closes the gym and prevents the
team from practicing or even playing. Carter persists in his attitude despite the opposition of the
high school directors and the players' angry parents, who see basketball as the only way for their
children to leave Richmond. Carter also studied at Richmond High and also loved to play
basketball. And although he was a good player - he has several records not yet surpassed in the
school's history - Carter thinks that the place he occupies in life is due to his studies and not to
basketball. And he wants the kids on his team to put education before leisure, he wants their
dreams for the future not to be limited to the basketball hoop but rather to contemplate an
unlimited series of options and possibilities.

Says Oscar-nominated actor Samuel L. Jackson on the controversial character he plays:

"This is not a conventional story because Ken Carter is not conventional at all. The film and its
protagonist talk about teaching children to expect more from themselves and to project
themselves beyond the present moment."

Director Thomas Carter agrees, adding that Jackson was the ideal candidate to embody
Ken Carter's serious attitude toward life: "It's hard to come across a story like that, with a
protagonist so tenacious and at the same time so easy to love." . Ken's dedication and enthusiasm
is truly extraordinary. "We needed someone who was able to project this passion for the kids on
the team and for basketball on the screen, and Sam Jackson was that person."

Ken Carter himself echoes this idea: "My list of actors I would like to see playing my role
in a movie is very short. He has only one name: Samuel L. Jackson..."

The genesis of the project dates back to that month of January 1999 when Carter decided to close
the gym. Producers Brian Robbins and Mike Tollin read an article about the matter in the Los
Angeles Times and immediately contacted Ken Carter. Tollin says: "We thought it was a very
original story because it didn't just have to do with basketball but with human relationships.
"Coach Carter's obsession with improving the lives of the young people on his team is truly
amazing." And Robbins adds: "The most striking thing about the story is the way in which
Carter's decision affected the entire community: on the one hand it pitted them against each
other, and on the other the community came out stronger."

MTV Films executive vice president David Gale says the story is as compelling as it is
relevant: "It's a great coming-of-age story but at the same time it has a message that will resonate
with all audiences."

Director Carter says that one of the main goals he set was to avoid clichés: "I wanted to
show the good and bad side of student sports: the game can help a boy concentrate on seeing his
dream come true, But that dream can also be unrealistic or short-sighted.

The main obstacle facing one of Carter's star players, Kenyon Stone (Rob Brown), is his
love for his girlfriend Kyra, played by pop star Ashanti. When she becomes pregnant, Kenyon
hesitates between leaving Richmond or staying and helping raise her son, knowing that if he
stays he could mortgage his future. Says Brown: "I read a lot of scripts and I carefully choose the
films I decide to make. This seemed like an important story to me. My character has many
problems but he is a smart boy and does not want to make the same mistakes that he has seen
others make. But he loves Kyra very much, so he suffers from a very real dilemma that many
young people face before they are mature enough to deal with it."

Grammy winner Ashanti, who is making her film debut here, says she is proud to have
debuted with such an important project: "It's a great script. It puts you into the lives of the
characters and makes you care about each and every one of them. I think the movie is going to
move a lot of people because it tells the true story of Ken Carter, a good man who cared about
the future of his boys. I have been lucky to make my film debut with such a team of
professionals. Thomas Carter is a dedicated director and so are the cast members. And Sam
Jackson... well, Sam is the boss! "I've had a wonderful experience."

COACH CARTER talks, among other things, about the negative influence exerted by
drugs and pressure from teammates, which, together with the lack of parental guidance, can
cause a young person to lose their way. Rick Gonzalez, who plays the troubled Timo Cruz,
comments: "Timo struggles to make the right decision. He's used to fighting to protect what's his,
and he goes through life a little hard. He is a victim of the pressure he receives from his peers,
and also of drugs, so he has a very tough attitude on the outside. But he is a good-hearted boy.
"What he needs is someone who believes in him, and that person is Coach Carter."
 Coach Carter's son, Damien (played by Emmy winner Robert Ri'chard), says his father
was a role model both on and off the court: "My dad coached on the court and was a good father
at home . He treated me the same as the others: I also had to sign a contract with him. What's
more, since I wanted to leave my private school and enter Richmond to be able to play with him,
he demanded a higher GPA..."

Robert Ri'chard comments: "It was an honor to play the role of Damien. He is a boy who
has a lot to prove to his playmates, so his character has many dimensions. Just like the film itself:
it is a work of impact, like a discharge of two thousand volts of electricity...".