Detroit, MI
Freep Film Festival to open with documentary on storied River Rouge basketball team
A group of youths striving to uphold the triumphant legacy of a storied high school basketball program in an unassuming Detroit suburb will be the subject of the opening movie at this year’s Freep Film Festival.
The annual documentary-focused festival will begin April 10 at the Detroit Film Theatre, inside the Detroit Institute of Arts, organizers announced Thursday.
In keeping with the tradition of opening the festival with a local production, “Rouge,” filmed entirely in Michigan and led by a filmmaking team from metro Detroit, will kick off the five-day series of screenings and discussions.
“Rouge” makes its Michigan debut as a coming-of-age story set in the downriver community of River Rouge. The film follows the lives of four Black student-athletes at a school with the most state basketball championships in Michigan history, situated in one of the state’s most economically and environmentally challenged communities.
These are the best Michigan high school boys basketball programs of all time
“The selection of ‘Rouge’ for this year’s premier slot is just another example of how rich and important Michigan stories are to the festival — and to our audiences,” said Kathy Kieliszewski, the festival’s artistic director.
“We are thrilled to be hosting the Michigan premiere of this Michigan-made story that captures the heart of River Rouge and its beloved basketball team.”
Past festival openers such as “12th and Clairmount,” “The Russian Five” and “Boblo Boats: A Detroit Ferry Tale” drew thousands for their local debuts.
“Rouge” director and producer Hamoody Jaafar, a Detroit native and Wayne State University graduate, described premiering the film in metro Detroit as “magical.”
“My hopes are that the community feels it was an authentic, honest, truthful and noteworthy representation of the city and school district’s historic basketball program and achievements both on and off the court,” said Jaafar. “The community was overly welcoming of us from day one, and they deserve all the credit and recognition in the world. I just hope they are proud of what we created.”
In the 1950s, legendary high school basketball coach Lofton Greene led the racially integrated River Rouge High School Panthers to a record number of state championships in a league of otherwise segregated schools. Now, almost 70 years later, LaMonta Stone, a former Panther himself, has returned to the struggling industrial town to help the Panthers chase the school’s 15th state championship.
Jaafar’s previous films include “Detroit Diamond” (2018) and “Enter the Cavaliers” (2020).
“Rouge” producer Razi Jafri, another Detroit-based filmmaker, has previous credits that include “Hamtramck, USA” and “Three Chaplains.”
In addition to its primary characters, the film features appearances by Michigan State Basketball Head Coach Tom Izzo, Detroit Pistons announcer George Blaha and longtime Free Press high school sports writer Mick McCabe, among others.
The April 10 screening will launch the 11th annual Freep Film Festival, which will feature about 40 events (in-person and virtual), including screenings, parties, filmmaking gatherings and more, spanning five days, April 10-14.
Tickets for opening night are $15 and can be purchased at freepfilmfestival.com. Early purchases are recommended as Freep Film Festival screenings often sell out. If tickets are still available, they will be sold at the DIA on the evening of the show. Doors will open at 6 p.m. The program will begin at 7 p.m.
Reservations to watch the at-home stream of the movie are also available, with streaming April 11-16.
Brendel Hightower is an assistant editor at the Detroit Free Press. Contact her at bhightower@freepress.com. Support local journalism: Subscribe to the Detroit Free Press.
This is the full list of drivers participating in the 2025 IndyCar and Indy NXT races at the Detroit Grand Prix through downtown.
The 2025 Detroit Grand Prix is approaching quickly, with drivers from all around the world looking to capture a critical win on the IndyCar calendar.
The big race is on Sunday, June 1, when the NTT IndyCar series will start at 12:30 p.m., broadcasted on Fox. Before that race, the lower-level Indy NXT circuit will hold its race at 10:30 a.m., televised on FS1. Both can be streamed on Fubo (free trial).
This will be the third race since the Grand Prix returned to downtown Detroit in 2023 after years at nearby Belle Isle. The winner of the first revamped downtown race was IndyCar legend Scott Dixon, while his teammate at Chip Ganassi Racing Álex Palou won in 2024.
Palou is looking to continue his dominance of the 2025 IndyCar season, as the Spanish racer has won five of the year’s first six races, including his first Indianapolis 500 win one week ago.
Here is the field for both of Sunday’s races:
Who is racing in the 2025 Detroit Grand Prix?
Here is the full list of all 27 drivers scheduled to race in the IndyCar Grand Prix in Detroit on Sunday, with drivers listed by car number, team and engine:
- #2: Josef Newgarden – Team Penske (Chevrolet)
- #3 Scott McLaughlin – Team Penske (Chevrolet)
- #4 David Malukas – A.J. Foyt Enterprises (Chevrolet)
- #5 Pato O’Ward – Arrow McLaren (Chevrolet)
- #6 Nolan Siegel – Arrow McLaren (Chevrolet)
- #7 Christian Lundgaard – Arrow McLaren (Chevrolet)
- #8 Kyffin Simpson – Chip Ganassi Racing (Honda)
- #9 Scott Dixon – Chip Ganassi Racing (Honda)
- #10 Álex Palou – Chip Ganassi Racing (Honda)
- #12 Will Power – Team Penske (Chevrolet)
- #14 Santino Ferrucci – A.J. Foyt Enterprises (Chevrolet)
- #15 Graham Rahal – Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (Honda)
- #18 Rinus VeeKay – Dale Coyne Racing (Honda)
- #20 Alexander Rossi – Ed Carpenter Racing (Chevrolet)
- #21 Christian Rasmussen – Ed Carpenter Racing (Chevrolet)
- #26 Colton Herta – Andretti Global/Curb-Agajanian (Honda)
- #27 Kyle Kirkwood – Andretti Global (Honda)
- #28 Marcus Ericsson – Andretti Global (Honda)
- #30 Devlin DeFrancesco – Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (Honda)
- #45 Louis Foster* – Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (Honda)
- #51 Jacob Abel* – Dale Coyne Racing (Honda)
- #60 Felix Rosenqvist – Meyer Shank Racing/Curb-Agajanian (Honda)
- #66 Marcus Armstrong – Meyer Shank Racing/Curb-Agajanian (Honda)
- #76 Conor Daly – Juncos Hollinger Racing (Chevrolet)
- #77 Sting Ray Robb – Juncos Hollinger Racing (Chevrolet)
- #83 Robert Shwartzman* – PREMA Racing (Chevrolet)
- #90 Callum Ilott – PREMA Racing (Chevrolet)
*Rookie of the year candidate
Who is racing in Indy NXT at Detroit?
Here is the full list of drivers scheduled to compete in the Indy NXT race in Detroit on Sunday, with drivers listed by car number and team:
- #2 Sebastian Murray – Andretti/Cape Motorsport
- #3 Ricardo Escotto – Andretti/Cape Motorsport
- #9 Bryce Aron – Chip Ganassi Racing
- #10 Niels Koolen – Chip Ganassi Racing
- #11 Nolan Allaer – HMD Motorsports
- #14 Josh Pierson – HMD Motorports
- #16 Tommy Smith – HMD Motorsports
- #17 Callum Hedge – Abel Motorsports
- #18 Max Taylor – HMD Motorsports
- #26 Lochie Hughes – Andretti Global
- #27 Salvador De Alba – Andretti Global
- #28 Dennis Hauger – Andretti Global
- #29 James Roe – Andretti Global
- #30 Liam Sceats – HMD Motorsports
- #38 Hailie Deegan – HMD Motorsports
- #39 Jaun Manuel Correa – HMD Motorsports
- #40 Jack William Miller – Abel Motorsports
- #48 Jordan Missig – Abel Motorsports
- #76 Caio Collet – HMD Motorsports
- #99 Myles Rowe – Abel Motorsports
All Indy NXT drivers use AER engines.
How to watch Detroit Grand Prix
Series: NTT IndyCar.
Warmup: Sunday, June 1, 9:30 a.m. ET (FS1)
Race: Sunday, June 1, 12:30 p.m. ET (Fox)
All IndyCar practices, qualifications and races for the Detroit Grand Prix can be streamed on Fubo, which hosts Fox Sports Networks including FS1 and FS2, and offers a free trial to potential subscribers.
Watch the Detroit Grand Prix on Fubo
You can reach Christian at cromo@freepress.com.
DETROIT (FOX 2) – A special reunion on Friday gave a young woman who suffered a medical emergency the chance to thank the person who saved her life.
The backstory:
Emily Morgan was in a fitness class when suddenly Emily collapsed.
Luckily, Dr. Dema Fawaz, an emergency room physician at Corewell Health, was in the right place at the right time.
“I turned around and saw Emily being slowly lowered to the ground,” said Dr. Fawaz. “I sensed a lot of panic in the room and I immediately identified myself and said, ‘Don’t worry, I’m a physician, I can help.’”
Fawaz said she performed CPR until the ambulance arrived, helping save Emily’s life. It was her first time doing CPR outside of work.
Big picture view:
At only 27 years old, Emily survived cardiac arrest, and all she remembers is waking up in the hospital.
“They told me someone in my class had saved me, and I didn’t know who it was. But I immediately recognized her when she came in at the hospital. We’d taken classes together before, and I just didn’t know her name, so it was emotional in the hospital when she came and visited me,” she said.
Meanwhile, the heartfelt reunion was just another reminder of why learning CPR could save a life. Every second counts, and even though Fawaz is a doctor, CPR is not hard to learn, and the more people who know it, the better.
It might just save a life.
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