Sync or Swim Director/Producer Cheryl Furjanic sports her favorite swim cap.

One of the most athletically challenging and disappointingly under publicized events at the Olympics has always been Synchronized Swimming. Many knock it off as easy or just about show, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. This is something documentary director Cheryl Furjanic knows all too well.

For the past five and a half years Furjanic has been making a film about the 2004 United States Synchronized Swimming Team (the women’s team in case you were wondering as there is no men’s team.) The film, cleverly titled Sync or Swim, not only looks at the sport of synchro (for those hip with lingo) and how intense it really is, but also delves into what it takes to be an Olympic athlete, mentally financially and physically. It’s a compelling portrait of a fascinating sport, the amazing lady athletes behind the sport and what it means to overcome adversity.

I recently got to ask Cheryl a few questions about her work on Sync or Swim, synchronized swimming and this year’s Olympic games:

Cheryl Furjanic : I’m a huge Olympic fan and will watch anything Olympic-related – it doesn’t matter what it is. I saw synchronized swimming for the first time on TV during the Sydney Olympics in 2000.I thought it was one of the strangest things I’d ever seen, but it was also one of the most mesmerizing. I loved that it was both artistic and showy and incredible athletic. I quickly filed it away in the things to make movies about one day category. I did a little research here and there for a few years and eventually saw that the Olympic Trials were approaching. I decided I had nothing to lose by asking them if I could make the film actually, I thought there was no way they’d say yes.

The Olympic Team rehearses their routine.

I wrote up a pitch and sent it to the U.S. Synchro media director. A few days later I got an email that they’d be thrilled to work with me on my documentary project. After a few phone calls with their office the project was green lighted. They were excited to get some positive exposure for their sport that doesn’t get much respect. Of course at this point I hadn’t written a formal proposal and hadn’t done any fundraising (because I didn’t think they’d ever say yes), but within a few months I had gathered a crew and a new credit card and headed to the Olympic Trials on the west coast. Over the course of two years I flew back and forth to California, and eventually Athens, to shoot with the team - 60 shooting days total. In between shoots I raised funds, and applied for loans and more plastic – which is how I was able to keep the production going. The movie still owes me a bunch of money but I saw it as an investment - I believed in the film, in myself as a filmmaker, and in the women on the team and I knew it would be a great documentary.

CF : Most people don’t know that the swimmers actually never touch the bottom of the pool during a routine (or for most of their 6-8 hour practices, for that matter). There’s actually a penalty for intentionally using the bottom of the pool. So all the lifts and throws you see are accomplished by swimmers building a base under the water to launch a teammate through the surface and into the air.Amazing. I also find it interesting that instead of the Knox Gelatine that the swimmers now use to keep their hair in place, Vaseline was used in the old days. Can you imagine the mess? Thank goodness for unflavored baking products.

TP : In the film you follow the girls as they go to Olympics, what was your experience like at the games?

CF : Being at the Athens Games was one of the most amazing experiences I’ve ever had. My crew and I worked really hard for 10 days but I was also able to have the Olympic experience. There really is a palpable Olympic Spirit which is shared by people from all over the world who are there to watch the Games. I’m sure there was something extra special about it for me since I felt so connected to the U.S. Synchro team and their families and experienced it through their eyes as well. I cried when they won. Being at the Olympics is an incredibly moving experience. I’m definitely planning to go back but without as many cameras next time.

Anna & Alison after their Olympic Trials routine

CF : Several of the swimmers from the film put off college to pursue their Olympic dreams and only started after the Athens Games. Two of them graduated from Columbia a few months ago and one from Stanford. A few of the swimmers retired from the sport (no more swimming or coaching), but many are still involved in some way. Tammy Crow is coaching in Walnut Creek, Alison Bartosik is the Assistant Coach at Stanford, and Anna Kozlova is coaching in Santa Clara (and in nursing school at the same time). Oh, and one woman is swimming in a Las Vegas show. There aren’t a lot of options for post-Olympic or elite synchro swimmers, but those are some of them. I know it sounds cliché, but anything these women put their mind to, they’ll accomplish. Compared to the incredibly intense Olympic synchro training that you see in the film, the rest seems pretty easy.

CF : It’s really interesting to see how much the sport has evolved in the last four years; the moves are faster and stronger, the lifts are higher. I can guarantee that every country will perform an amazing routine. Russia, Japan, and Spain all have really amazing teams and are definitely some of the teams to beat for a spot on the medal stand. On Team USA, definitely watch for Andrea Nott (who is featured in Sync or Swim). She’s swimming in both the Duet and Team competitions. To see how hard she worked and struggled to get to where she is today is incredibly inspiring.

CF : My goal was to have the film broadcast during the Beijing Olympics but NBC didn’t bite (the NBC stations are the only channels that have broadcast rights to Olympic programming during the Games since they are the current Olympic network). Now we’re looking for a TV station to pick it up for broadcast in the fall – when audiences are still in the afterglow of the Games. I’m working on having a version of the DVD available in the fall and booking one-night theatrical screenings as well as continuing to make the festival rounds. I plan to develop a study guide and tour campuses where I’d like to team up with departments like women’s studies, sports studies, etc. to use the film in ways that are different from its film festival life. I’d also really love to team up with the Olympic Team or even local synchro teams to do some screenings/showcases as well. Most people have never seen the sport live – which is truly amazing.

CF : Well, I’m still teaching documentary video production full-time at New York University. I’m also at the tail end of graduate school, which I’ve been attending part-time since the summer of the Athens Games (yes, I keep pretty busy). I’m getting my Masters degree in Interactive Telecommunications from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. My research is focused on new media storytelling, fan engagement, fan activism, social networks, and the feedback loop. I’m looking to do some work with broadcast TV shows to build interactive story elements and fan experiences into their shows. The fans of these shows are already watching, they’re organized, and they’re primed for new experiences. I’d like to keep making documentaries as well. I’d like to make another sports documentary, or maybe a doc with kids – but hoping not to go the 5.5 year independent route with the next one.

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If you live in New York City you’ll have a chance to see Furjanic’s film and at a pool no less! Sync or Swim is playing at the McCarren Park Pool in Brooklyn on Monday August 18th. Get there at 6pm for a “pool party” - the film starts @ 8pm.

More details are HERE : http://www.synchromovie.com/screenings/

Also, takepart to learn more about this years US Synchro team and to support some awesome ladies.

And stay tuned to TakePart for a special sneak peak of the film!