One of the most well-known directors in the Vancouver entertainment scene is back with her latest film.
Kat Jayme, who directed Vancouver Grizzlies documentaries Finding Big Country and The Grizzlie Truth, as well as the Vancouver Canucks documentary I’m Just Here for the Riot, is directing The Second Set, which documents former world No. 1 Naomi Osaka in her return to tennis after the birth of her daughter Shai in 2023.
The film debuts on Aug. 24 on the free streaming service Tubi.
“I understand how big of a superstar she is. And I get the honour, the privilege, to tell her story that can help share who she is with the rest of the world,” Jayme said in an interview with Offside.
The Vancouver director partnered with Uninterrupted for the film, a production company founded by LeBron James and his business partner Maverick Carter.
The film is actually Osaka’s second documentary, after a three-part series that premiered on Netflix in 2021.
“I was so excited to watch [her first documentary], but I was just also like, damn it, I wish I was the director,” Jayme said. “I didn’t think she would do another one.”
After initially meeting with Uninterrupted to see if the two could partner up on some sort of project, she learned about their plans to make a film about Osaka’s comeback to the sport.
“I had always wanted to tell a story about athletes and motherhood,” Jayme said, adding that she’d previously envisioned Osaka as part of a documentary project. “It was the craziest, most amazing adventure.”
Jayme earned the film’s pitch after beating out four other candidates on a timeline of less than a week about learning about the plans for the project.
“I just locked myself in my room for five days and wrote something from the heart, but I really tried to envision what Naomi would want,” she said.
The film was shot at three different Grand Slam tournaments in 2024 in Australia, England, and the United States, as well as elsewhere around the world on the tennis calendar throughout the last year.
“From like morning till bedtime, I was with the team. So I really immersed myself with them,” Jayme shared. “[Osaka] really gave us, full access to her life, and it’s a very intimate invitation. And I just hope [viewers] feel what I feel when I was present with her, which is like just the warmth and joy that she exudes.”
Osaka went 3-4 in her seven Grand Slam Singles matches in 2024, losing in the first round of the Australian Open while making it to the second round of the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open after coming back from her pregnancy.
Osaka’s best run in a WTA tournament in three years came earlier this month at the National Bank Open, where she fell to 18-year-old Canadian Victoria Mboko in the final. Osaka has risen to No. 25 in the world, climbing up from No. 59 at the end of 2024.
“I think what she’s doing is incredible and very inspiring to women and moms, just to show that you can do it. It’s hard to juggle [a family and a career], but you can do it,” Jayme added.
Osaka, who has previously spoken about her bouts of anxiety on and off the court, has often faced much criticism for appearing cold or emotional. For Jayme, she hopes the film shines a light on the warmhearted nature of Osaka during their nearly year-long filming process.
“She took on big sister duties when I was with her, and she really took care of me and made sure that I was always okay,” Jayme shared, while laughing that Osaka is actually nearly a decade younger than her.
“She’s the funniest, nicest, and kindest human being.”
You might also like:Toronto Blue Jays’ Davis Schneider shares touching tribute to late brother
AloJapan.com