Reese documentary website preps project for final push
“Angel in Amish Country” filmmakers Jay Maximo, left, and Dan Mizicko chat with former Hiland hoops standout and Hiland High School Athletic Director Art Yoder as part of their filming of the documentary featuring Perry Reese Jr.
When filmmakers Jay Maximo and Dan Mizicko began collaborating on a new documentary, they knew it was going to take a lot of work to tell the story of their feature film’s centerpiece, former Hiland head basketball coach Perry Reese Jr.
That began four years ago, and now they are in the final stages of production. A new website will hopefully help them reach their final destination and allow them to release their film in 2025.
After struggling to fittingly end the film, the ending to their documentary, “Angel in Amish Country,” materialized out of near perfection this past March when the Hiland boys overcame loads of key injuries and battled their way to state, seemingly on heart, much like the Reese team of 1992.
Exactly 32 years after Junior Raber’s answered-prayers heave from deep led to three game-winning free throws in the 1992 state semifinal thriller over Lima Central Catholic, the Hawks got another buzzer-beating win over LCC, again in comeback fashion, again in a state semifinal showdown, with a Nick Wigton long-range missile finding its mark as the buzzer went off, ending double overtime in a game for the ages.
In addition, former Reese standout Nevin Mishler, who starred on that 1992 championship team and sadly passed away last year, had a son, Caleb, who sported number 32. Amazingly, Aaron Hutchins, star of the 1992 Lima Central Catholic team, had a son playing for LCC.
“You can’t script that,” Maximo said. “Perry’s story was always about overcoming and having faith, and this ending fell into that so perfectly.”
The perfect ending?
Maybe for the movie, but not for the project because the filmmaking duo still has work to do.
Maximo said they are now in the process of creating a website that will provide two focal points, the first being basic information about the film, along with a video clip from the movie itself, and the second being a place where people can donate to the project so they can finance the final stages of production.
“The website will feature basics about the film itself, kind of an inside the making of type of thing about how it came about and the process that will include links to newspaper articles,” Maximo said. “It will also include a donation icon because we are at a point where we are closing in on the finished product, but we want to make sure we do everything the right way to honor Perry and the story. We are almost there.”
Filmmaking may be their passion, but the two understand what it takes to complete a project of this magnitude, and one thing that comes with that is raising funds that will allow them to finish production and do some promotional work.
Maximo said they will need to raise between $30,000 and $50,000 to do so. While neither enjoys this aspect of the work, they recognize it is a necessity.
The funding will go toward several final acts to complete the movie including editing and hiring a composer, animator, sound designer and color grader. In addition, they will hire actors for reenactments, pay for the licensing of music and more.
“We’ve learned a whole lot about the filmmaking process over the past four years,” Mizicko said. “The knowledge we’ve gained has been amazing, including the importance of building relationships through the process.”
Mizicko said the entire process has been a practice in patience.
“You want to get it out there, but you don’t want to rush it,” he said. “You have to let the story unfold. It has changed several times, and as much as we want to get this documentary out there because of how inspiring it is, we know we have to make sure that every detail is right, because telling the story properly is what truly matters.”
He said the community in Holmes County has been inspiring to them in terms of telling Reese’s story. Mizicko said seeing people’s passion about Reese has inspired them, and they’ve been around the community so much in pulling out details about Reese and the story that they feel like a part of it now.
As for the film, Maximo said it will be a G-rated movie anyone can appreciate and be inspired by, noting the story touches on so many different things.
“We’re hitting a lot of genres that people like,” Maximo said. “It includes basketball, faith, the Amish community, and the social aspects of race and religion, so it is touching on several strong genres.”
The two filmmakers have worked diligently on this documentary for four years, patiently collecting important data and fleshing out the true story of what Reese meant to the community, not only on the court, but also in the community. They both agreed it is about sharing the legacy in a poignant way.
“It’s such an amazing legacy,” Maximo said. “We’re excited to share it with the world.”
As the finish line comes into focus and the website takes flight, the duo realizes their dream of portraying Reese and his story is on the verge of becoming a reality.
To visit the website or to donate, visit www.angelinamishcountry.com.
To make a donation to the project's completion, checks maybe written out to Angel in Amish Country LLC and sent to Daniel Mizicko, PO Box 45, Vienna, OH 44473.