LEWISTON, Maine (NEWS CENTER) --What was supposed to be a highlight reel of the Lewiston boy's soccer team's playoff run has turned into an 80 minute film.
Still in the filming phase, former Lewiston soccer player and filmmaker Ian Clough has set a goal to tell the story that goes past the pitch and into the lives of the refugees and immigrants that make up team in a documentary titled One Team.
After hours of shooting and dozens of interviews, there's still more work to be done to tell the multiple stories behind one team.
"Not only are they great soccer players first and foremost but they have great back stories as well," said Clough.
It's a team full of diversity. Refugees and immigrants from a handful of nations playing the sport of soccer, something that is a universal language, and they're finding success.
"Growing up in Maine and the United States soccer is not a huge deal but to them it's gigantic. There couldn't be anything bigger than soccer," said Clough.
"Soccer was one thing we all had in common, it just meant a lot to us to be a part of this team," said Lewiston senior Abdi Shariff-Hassan.
That's the idea behind the project. A three minute trailer has received national attention after hitting the net possibly in light of recent attacks around the world.
"With the refugee thing being a hot topic right now it's all relevant," said One Team producer Tom Fournier, also a former Blue Devils soccer player.
"it's definitely becoming a part of the story, not something I set out to explore," said Clough.
In a city rich with diversity, it seems that scoring goals is helping to break down possible barriers.
"we don't really see it like that we just see it as one team with different cultures and different people we all just want to play the game we love," said Shariff-Hassan.
"I guess its just a testament to the community that I haven't seen any of it now. I don't see any of that during my filming, during my time in Lewiston and even a lot of the kids when I ask them about how it is now they look at it and say, 'we're just soccer players, we're just high school kids'," said Clough.
And it can be seen first hand when the film One Team is completed, just like the Blue Devils title run.
For more information on the film as well as the crowdfunding page that was just started, check out the One Team Film website and Facebook page.
The first cut of the film is set to be finished in late January with the final cut hoping to be finished in April.
