Markets & Morality is proud to host Pinball: The Man Who Saved the Game followed by a post-film discussion with writer-director Meredith Bragg. The film begins at 7 p.m. Doors to the Knickerbocker Theater will open at 6:20 p.m. 

Pinball (IMDB 7/10, Rotten Tomatoes 95%) is a drama-comedy based on the true story of an unsettled writer with a fantastic mustache, Roger Sharpe, who finds solace and confidence in one thing he has mastered: pinball. When a police raid destroys the only machines he can find in 1970s New York City, he learns the game is illegal. Roger reluctantly joins forces with the Music and Amusement Association to overturn New York City’s 35-year ban on pinball while falling in love with Ellen, an artist and single mother. Roger’s path to save pinball ultimately rescues him. He and Ellen overcome their pasts and take a shot at love. Roger learns what it means to take a chance—and that commitment is the most rewarding gamble of all. 

“This intricate yet breezy film is a feast of wryly nuanced acting, a giddy wonder, and also a warmhearted, sharp-edged love story: young Roger’s (Mike Faist) encounter with Ellen Steinberg (Crystal Reed), an artist working as a secretary, is a romantic joust worthy of classic-age Hollywood.” – The New Yorker 

Meredith Bragg is one-half of the writing and directing duo responsible for Pinball. Brothers Austin and Meredith Bragg have spent years channeling their sibling rivalry into award-winning content including the short film A Piece of Cake, starring Rich Sommer (Mad Men, GLOW), which was nominated for Best Narrative Short at the 2020 Tribeca Film Festival and went on to win several awards including Best Comedy and the Audience Choice Award in Comedy at the Oscar-qualifying Indy Shorts International Film Festival. Their comedic web series, The Defenders of Stan, was sold to Warner Bros. Television, and they co-wrote the pilot. In 2016 they won the HP Masters of Short Film competition at the Cannes Film Festival. As producers for Reason TV, their work has garnered three first place wins for Best Comedy at the Los Angeles Press Club Awards as well as a National Magazine Award nomination. The Braggs have produced projects for Turner Broadcasting, Visa, Atlas Obscura, AT&T, The Smithsonian, The Washington Post, and two pilots for Warner Bros.’s online division. 

This film event is cosponsored by the departments of Communication, Economics and Business, and Political Science, the Pre-Law Society and The Anchor. Admission is free and open to the public.