--- title: "Rhythm Masters: A Mickey Hart Experience | 7th Hashtag Sports Awards" description: Global awards recognizing excellence in fan engagement and celebrating creativity across sports marketing, media & entertainment image: https://www.hashtagsports.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Assets-AF-2025/XVmvNxaW-U9P2TYV7LS-file.jpg --- Rhythm Masters: A Mickey Hart Experience | 7th Hashtag Sports Awards [The 7th Annual Awards](https://www.hashtagsports.com/awards/shortlist-2025?hsLang=en) # Rhythm Masters: A Mickey Hart Experience [ESPN Films](https://www.espn.com/espnplus/collections/4484573f-411a-11ee-9ec0-02571ed8de13/30-for-30-espn-films) Share [** ](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hashtagsports.com%2Fawards%2Fshortlist-2025%2Frhythm-masters-a-mickey-hart-experience) [** ](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hashtagsports.com%2Fawards%2Fshortlist-2025%2Frhythm-masters-a-mickey-hart-experience&text=Rhythm+Masters%3A+A+Mickey+Hart+Experience+%7C+7th+Hashtag+Sports+Awards) [** ](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hashtagsports.com%2Fawards%2Fshortlist-2025%2Frhythm-masters-a-mickey-hart-experience) ABOUT THIS ENTRY Rhythm Masters is a unique film that explores the rhythmic connection between music and sports from Grammy award-winning artist Mickey Hart, drummer of the Grateful Dead. His breath-taking score combined with insight from athletes helps show the depths of the universal rhythm found in music, sports, and life. ![Image](https://www.hashtagsports.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Assets-AF-2025/XVmvNxaW-U9P2TYV7LS-file.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&name=XVmvNxaW-U9P2TYV7LS-file.jpg) How does this represent "Excellence in Engagement"? While Rhythm Masters was not a traditional ESPN project, the project was able to permeate the culture at the intersection of music and sports. Hundreds of thousands of viewers were impressed with the collaboration. Due to these results and a new bar that was set, ESPN will continue to look for projects that occur at the intersection of sports and music. Objective _Rhythm Masters: A Mickey Hart Experience_ is an ambitious, innovative film that occupies a unique juncture of sports and entertainment, encouraging us to think about the deeper connections between the two – and of our world at large. Grammy-winning artist and Kennedy Center honoree Mickey Hart, drummer of the Grateful Dead and Dead & Company, takes the viewer on a sonic journey as he creates an original score inspired by conversations with iconic voices from the world of sports. The project began as a collaboration between Hart and his longtime friend - NBA legend, Hall of Famer, and famous Deadhead Bill Walton. After Walton passed during the production of the film, the project became more than a sonic journey - it evolved into a deeper meditation on life through the forces we encounter in sport, music, and beyond. Strategy & Execution Throughout this visual and symphonic odyssey, Hart connects with a host of legendary sports figures including Joe Montana, Bob Cousy, Marshawn Lynch, Sheryl Swoopes, Jack Nicklaus, and Phil Jackson to examine the deeper forces present in both music and sports. These figures provide experiences and personal insights into the ways sports and music share a universal language. The film celebrates the artistry behind these two worlds, illuminating how they mutually inspire and elevate each other. The striking visuals and evocative soundtrack illustrate the pulse and energy that music brings to sports and vice versa. We come to understand forces like power and speed through not just the movements they embody in the arena, but also in the studio and in the natural world. It is a meditation on the inner self, exploring the ways music and movement can provide clarity and focus in an unsettled world. With its powerful themes of peace, calmness, pain, suffering, and redemption, it is an unprecedented crossover of music and sports, a tribute to mastery in multiple forms. ** Nominations ** - Best Use of Culture, Music, or Entertainment **Organizations** - Bluefoot Entertainment - Fresh Features - ESPN Films **Featured** - Bill Walton - Marshawn Lynch - Joe Montana **Credits** **[ Scott Frankel](https://www.espn.com/) ** Produced By ESPN Films **[ Kyle Van Dam](https://www.espn.com/) ** Produced By ESPN Films **[ Burke Magnus](https://www.espn.com/) ** Executive Producer ESPN Films **[ Wright Thompson](https://www.espn.com/) ** Executive Producer ESPN Films **[ Timothy Horgan](https://www.espn.com/) ** Executive Producer ESPN Films **[ Eric Neel](https://www.espn.com/) ** Executive Producer ESPN Films **[ Mickey Hart](https://www.espn.com/) ** Original Score & Music By ESPN Films **[ Torey Champagne](https://www.espn.com/) ** Director ESPN Films **[ Heather Anderson](https://www.espn.com/) ** Executive Producer ESPN Films **[ Marsha Cooke](https://www.espn.com/) ** Executive Producer ESPN Films **[ Brian Lockhart](https://www.espn.com/) ** Executive Producer ESPN Films **[ Matt Allen](https://www.espn.com/) ** Co-Producer ESPN Films **[ Caryl Hart](https://www.espn.com/) ** Co-Producer ESPN Films **[ Reya Hart](https://www.espn.com/) ** Co-Producer ESPN Films **[ Rose Soloman](https://www.espn.com/) ** Co-Producer ESPN Films **[ Tom Furcillo](https://www.espn.com/) ** Director of Photography ESPN Films **[ Thom McCallum](https://www.espn.com/) ** Director of Photography ESPN Films **[ Lindsay Rovegno](https://www.espn.com/) ** Executive Producer ESPN Films **[ Dave Lynch](https://www.espn.com/) ** Editor ESPN Films **[ Julia Foust](https://www.espn.com/) ** Associate Producer ESPN Films **[ Ben Daniels](https://www.espn.com/) ** Additional Camera ESPN Films **[ Jeremy Davis](https://www.espn.com/) ** Additional Camera ESPN Films **[ Julian Focareta](https://www.espn.com/) ** Additional Camera ESPN Films **[ Mat Furuta](https://www.espn.com/) ** Additional Camera ESPN Films **[ Jeremy Williams](https://www.espn.com/) ** Additional Camera ESPN Films #### INSPIRED TO ENTER WORK? 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