![\"Basketball](\"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/esporte-clube-sirio-oscar-schmidt.jpg\")
With the script already completed, Crespo is now seeking sponsors for the miniseries, initially titled Quando Fomos Gigantes<\/em> [When We Were Giants]. The project has been approved by national cinema agency Ancine to raise funds through tax incentives, meaning companies can deduct their contributions from taxes. \u201cThe approval came two months ago, and since then we\u2019ve been working to bring in partner companies\u2014at no cost to them,\u201d Crespo said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The project\u2019s creator, Crespo, was never a basketball fan but has always been involved with Esporte Clube S\u00edrio, where he even held board positions. \u201cAs the 45th<\/sup> anniversary of the world title approached, two years ago, I realized many people from the younger generation don\u2019t know this story or its significance,\u201d he said, explaining what inspired the project.<\/p>\n\n\n With degrees in Journalism from the Pontifical Catholic University (PUC) and in Film from Funda\u00e7\u00e3o Armando Alvares Penteado (FAAP), Crespo and his production company began the project by researching texts, photos, and videos on the subject. They then started developing the miniseries, which will have four episodes and is set to be completed in 2029, when the world title marks its 50th<\/sup> anniversary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In an interview with ANBA, Crespo shared some insights into what will shape the production and his views on how the story unfolded. \u201cThe club (Esporte Clube S\u00edrio) became a powerhouse that could go head-to-head with Corinthians, Palmeiras, and Franca\u2014a city entirely devoted to basketball\u2014while having fewer than three thousand members at the time,\u201d he said, referring to its golden era.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The miniseries traces the period from when Esporte Clube S\u00edrio was based in Ponte Pequena\u2014then a hub of sports in the city, where the club invested in basketball\u2014to the team\u2019s trajectory at its current headquarters on Indian\u00f3polis Avenue, in S\u00e3o Paulo\u2019s south zone. \u201cS\u00edrio chose basketball because it couldn\u2019t afford to maintain a professional football team,\u201d Crespo said, referring to a time when football began requiring salaries and other obligations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n A few years later, as 1950 approached, construction of the city\u2019s marginal roads forced sports clubs out of the Tiet\u00ea river area, where S\u00edrio was based. \u201cAmong the clubs that played basketball and didn\u2019t have professional football, S\u00edrio was the only one able to relocate,\u201d Crespo said. The club moved closer to Clube Atl\u00e9tico Monte L\u00edbano, also founded by the Arab community and already established in the south zone. \u201cAnd the basketball scene kind of followed S\u00edrio,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The miniseries will tell the story of Paulo and Alberto Narchi, who in those early days brought basketball enthusiasts from the riverbanks to play in the south zone. \u201cThey managed to recruit a lot of talented players from clubs that would be affected by the marginal roads,\u201d Crespo said. \u201cThey started bringing in top players as early as the 1950s, and S\u00edrio began to compete with major clubs.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2026 many people from the younger generation don\u2019t know this story or its significance<\/p>Rafael Kalil Crespo<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n The miniseries will cover S\u00edrio\u2019s defeats in the Intercontinental Club Championships in 1969, 1973, and 1978, as well as its role in national team victories. \u201cBrazil won the Basketball World Championship in 1959 and 1963. In 1963, four of the five players on the court were from S\u00edrio. So in both World Cups Brazil won, S\u00edrio played a central role,\u201d Crespo said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Over the 30 years covered by the miniseries, S\u00edrio was home to many of Brazil\u2019s top basketball players, such as Amaury Pasos, Oscar Schmidt, and Marquinhos Abdalla\u2014all now deceased, with the latter two passing earlier this year. \u201cThe few exceptions were S\u00edrio\u2019s main rivals at the time, but they\u2019re part of the story too. The key figures of Brazilian basketball up to the late 1970s are all part of this history,\u201d Crespo said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The protagonist will be Washington Joseph, known as Dodi, captain of the team that won the 1979 Intercontinental Club Championship. Of Arab descent and a club member, Dodi began playing basketball at Esporte Clube S\u00edrio as a boy and remained throughout the period portrayed in the miniseries. \u201cThe team nearly folded after the 1973 world defeat, and he was practically the only one left,\u201d Crespo said. Much of the series is told from the perspective of the prodigy and loyal Dodi.<\/p>\n\n\n The fact that Esporte Clube S\u00edrio was founded by Arab immigrants is reflected in the miniseries through stories of how the club supported its athletes. As basketball was not a professional sport, players received all kinds of support from club members. \u201cS\u00edrio mobilized as a community, and that\u2019s something we want to explore deeply in the miniseries\u2014it\u2019s what makes this story so special. The club fully embraced its basketball team,\u201d Crespo said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The historical narrative will be blended with accounts exploring the personal side of each event. The miniseries will also feature previously unseen footage from Brazilian basketball history, filmed by Esporte Clube S\u00edrio board member Wilson Ford, now deceased. \u201cHe had a Super 8 camera and filmed the team\u2019s trips and behind-the-scenes moments. His nephew preserved those images,\u201d Crespo said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The owner of Valete de Copas Filmes is already in talks for the miniseries\u2019 distribution and says negotiations are well advanced with major industry players. The goal is for \u201cWhen We Were Giants\u201d to be released in Brazil and abroad. While focusing on Brazilian basketball through the lens of Esporte Clube S\u00edrio, the series will also feature major figures and events from international basketball, according to Crespo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Valete de Copas Filmes Read also<\/em>: Translated by Guilherme Miranda<\/strong><\/p>\n![\"Club](\"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/esporte-clube-sirio-Revista-Sirio-Campeao-do-Mundo-757x1024.jpg\")
![\"Journalist](\"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/rafael-crespo-1024x683.png\")
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