EXCLUSIVE: Gentlemen – or make that, kids – start your engines.
Imagine Documentaries is developing a docuseries on the BabyRace Driver Academy, “the prestigious Italian go-karting program that serves as the first step for exceptional young drivers aiming for Formula 1 stardom.”
Emmy winner Miloš Balać (Welcome to Wrexham) will serve as showrunner on Baby Driver: The First Step to F1. Imagine Documentaries’ Brian Grazer, Ron Howard, Sara Bernstein and Justin Wilkes are executive producers along with The Washington Post. Erica Fink serves as a co-producer on the project.
The series is based on an article by Kevin Sieff, international investigative reporter for The Washington Post. Sieff’s reporting separately led to the first project produced under Imagine’s partnership with the Post, the upcoming Netflix series The Gringo Hunters.
‘Baby Driver: The First Step to F1’
Imagine Documentaries
Baby Driver: The First Step to F1 “will follow the young competitors, ages 8-12, as they fight to win the World Series of Karting,” notes a release. “Their lifestyle is like no other: kids and their families arrive from all over the globe and employ a traveling entourage of coaches, sports psychologists, social media managers, photographers, and more.”
The release continues, “The show will capture the intensity of the academy’s training environment, as drivers from all over the world — including Texas, France, Scotland, the UAE, Thailand, Kenya, Italy, and Spain — come together to race on Italy’s iconic tracks. They spend their weekends competing in some of Italy’s most beautiful locales, from Lake Como to the Amalfi Coast.
“The show will allow viewers to get to know racers on and off the track, as intense competitors who know how to cut you off at 70 mph, as they work toward a future in Formula 1.”
‘Baby Driver: The First Step to F1’
Imagine Documentaries
The BabyRace Driver Academy, located in Lonata del Garda in between Milan and Venice, was founded in 2006, training young speedsters between the ages of 6-13. Imagine Documentaries notes in this rarified “world of elite young racers,” competitors jet set “back and forth to Italy for competition weekends, under immense pressure from parents and coaches. Only a small number will have a shot at F1, and the path to get there can cost millions.”
The project comes on the heels, or on the wheels, of Imagine’s Earnhardt docuseries, “highlighting Imagine’s ability to uncover captivating stories in the world of racing and beyond, demonstrating the company’s range and commitment to immersive, exciting storytelling as it celebrates its 40th anniversary.”
Imagine Documentaries
Imagine’s premium documentary division, launched in 2018, is led by Emmy and Peabody Award-winning producer Sara Bernstein. Recent productions including the Emmy Award-winning Best Documentary Jim Henson Idea Man (Disney+), directed by Ron Howard; Critics Choice Documentary Award winner Music by John Williams (Disney+), directed by Laurent Bouzereau, the Peabody Award-winning Judy Blume Forever (Prime Video), directed by Davina Pardo and Leah Wolchok; Oscar-shortlisted documentary Frida, directed by Carla Gutiérrez; The Super Models (Apple TV+), directed by Roger Ross Williams; Emmy-nominated We Feed People (Disney+), directed by Ron Howard; Lucy and Desi (Prime Video), directed by Amy Poehler; and Downfall: The Case Against Boeing (Netflix), directed by Rory Kennedy.
Just this week, Imagine Documentaries released the docuseries David Blaine: Do Not Attempt on NatGeo; its docuseries Fight for Glory: 2024 World Series, directed by R.J. Cutler, premieres this Friday on AppleTV+.
Content shared from deadline.com.