Synopsis

In July, 2007, West Point Glee Club alumni spanning five decades of classes returned to West Point for their first ever glee club reunion. The event culminated in a concert with the USMA Band on Trophy Point. This documentary covers that four-day period.

Twenty hours of mostly behind-the scenes footage shot by amateurs has been condensed into 90-minutes of music, camaraderie, hard work, and fun.

How often do you get a chance to go back and do something you loved doing thirty or forty years ago, and doing it with some of the same people who shared that love?

Note: this documentary does NOT include the concert, per se. It focuses on the buildup to the concert and the aftermath. Only portions of the concert are included.

From the Producer:

This genre of movie has been categorized as guerrilla filmmaking. According to Wikipedia,

“Guerrilla filmmaking refers to a form of independent filmmaking characterized by low budgets, skeleton crews, and simple props using whatever is available. Often scenes are shot quickly in real locations without any warning, and without obtaining filming permits."

Case in point, I even resorted to using a FREE encyclopedia (Wikipedia) to obtain my definition.

‘Return to Trophy Point’ was shot on a shoestring budget, and by “shoestring,” I’m not talking those expensive designer shoestrings you splurge for at Macy’s; I’m talking about the Kirkland brand of shoestrings that you buy by the barrel at Costco.

Most of the documentary footage was provided by reunion attendees and their spouses. I utilized these unsuspecting videographers at the last minute using a technique our counterparts on the Navy side commonly refer to as “impressment into service.” We primarily used consumer-level cameras to record the event. No fancy-schmancy High  Definition footage found in THIS documentary, no sir!

I spent even less of my budget on lighting; parts of the movie look like a trailer from 'Zero Dark Thirty: the Musical.’ The silver lining for the attendees was that none of them got shanghaied into lighting crews.

My hope is that substance will trump production values and that you will enjoy our four-day adventure at West Point. You don’t hear people complaining about the quality of the Zapruder film, right?

Seriously, while I make light of the production values, ‘Return to Trophy Point’ captures all the fun and work we experienced during that event. Attendees simply wouldn’t stop singing! The documentary really attests to the power of music (primarily song) and it’s ability to transcend time and generations.

I like to think of the Reunion as exemplifying The Long Gray Line of Music.