The perfect shot

"The Perfect Shot," a new documentary about German-born basketball player Dirk Nowitzki, presents a personal, behind-the-scenes portrayal of the king of the court, including interviews with Nowitzki's family. The film premiered this week in Cologne with Nowitzki himself in the audience.

Celebrated as a German wunderkind in the US, where he plays for the National Basketball Association (NBA), Nowitzki is famous for his highly skilled shooting mechanics, which he learned from his trainer Holger Geschwindner, who uses a variety of unconventional teaching methods.

The movie is about "two people venturing to do an experiment, which was a complete success," said film producer Leopold Hoesch at the world premier, referring to the close connection between Nowitzki and Geschwindner. "It's about friendship, hard work and fairness."

From rags to richest

"The Perfect Shot," directed by Sebastian Dehnardt, is not only a strong sports documentary that tells the story of a young man from a small German city who experienced a sudden rise to fame. It also lets the viewer in on the development of the intense friendship between the player and his coach.

Dehnardt and his camera crew followed Nowitzki for two years, documenting his NBA games as well as his occasional visits to his home country. When Dehnardt started shooting, Nowitzki was already at the peak of his career.

The director was left wondering how a shy, young man from southern Germany has made it so big in the competitive world of American basketball. And that's when the director met Holger Geschwinder.

Basketball guru and physicist

Geschwinder used to be an outstanding basketball player himself, playing for the German national team and even participating in the Olympic Games. But that was in the 1960s and 70s, a time where there was no money to be made with basketball - at least in Germany.

So Geschwinder studied physics and worked for the Max Planck Institute, a renowned research organization. But he never stopped looking for new basketball talent and eventually discovered Nowitzki at a youth basketball game when he was only 16 years old.

"There was this tall, slim guy that did everything a good basketball player has to do. And he didn't even have any technical tools yet," Geschwinder says in the film. Dehnardt was able to use archive film material that shows Nowitzki at that time.

Geschwinder quickly taught Nowitzki the "technical tools" he was missing by using rather unconventional methods. A fan of jazz music, Geschwinder actually used music in his training sessions. According to the basketball guru, individuals that are exceptional in a certain field have to work together - in music and sports alike.

"Everyone sometimes has to step up and play a solo and then the others have to step back," he says in the film.

King of the court

Geschwinder becomes not only Nowitzki's coach, but even a sort of father figure, especially when young Nowitzki has to adjust to the rough conditions of the professional basketball league in the US.

"Holger considers the smallest details, it's amazing," Nowitzki says in the film. "I worked with a lot of trainers over there [in the US], but when it comes to shooting technique and details, he is the best in the world."

After a difficult adjustment period in the US, when 20-year-old Nowitzki suffers from homesickness and insecurities, he manages to establish himself - thanks to his trainer. He joins the Dallas Mavericks, a second division team at that point. Together with the Mavericks, Nowitzki slowly rises to fame. He is voted the best player of the season several times and breaks one shooting record after the next.

But there is one goal the Mavericks and Nowitzki keep missing: They never manage to become champions. That changes in 2011 when Nowitzki and his team triumph in the final game and finally win the NBA title.

Nowitzki is voted the NBA's most valuable player and is celebrated across the US. President Barack Obama welcomes the sport heroes and the movie includes a scene where Nowitzki tries to sing the American national anthem and Obama turns around to poke fun at his singing skills.

Documenting a friendship

By now Nowitzki has secured his position as a basketball legend in the US. "It's a milestone in the history of the NBA. Dirk is the first leader of a winning team who has not learned to play basketball in the US," one of Nowitzki's teammates says.

"The Perfect Shot" is a movie about sportsmanship and the will power of an individual. It's a movie about two different cultures and a testament to an exceptional friendship.