For Marblehead native Will Fitzpatrick, sports and filmmaking were always a natural pair. Growing up in Marblehead youth sports — baseball, lacrosse and, his self-described “big thing,” hockey — he rarely left home without a camera, ready to capture whatever action caught his eye.
That first camera, which he received as a gift at age 3 and still owns today, was occasionally supplemented by his parents’ camcorder.
At 10, Fitzpatrick traded that first camera and camcorder for a more versatile — and importantly, water-resistant — GoPro, which launched his first foray into sports filmmaking. He and his friends would take a Boston whaler out on Salem Harbor and pull each other behind the boat on surfboards while he filmed the action and later edited the footage at home using Final Cut.
“That’s how I taught myself how to make videos,” he said.
Alongside his passion for film and sports, Fitzpatrick developed an early fascination with international politics. The interest began during his daily commute to Shore Country Day School in Beverly, when he became intrigued by the flags of different countries flying outside the Hawthorne Hotel in Salem.
He also loved documentaries exploring the intersection of politics and athletics, including “Fire in Babylon,” about the underestimated West Indies cricket team that rose to dominate the sport.
Fitzpatrick went on to major in economics at Hamilton College, but during his senior year, he began seriously considering a career in filmmaking instead of economics or politics.
“What if I just tried to do it?” he recalled asking himself.
Now 28, Fitzpatrick holds a master’s degree in documentary filmmaking from New York University and has already built an impressive résumé.
Straight out of college, he worked in postproduction on “The First Wave,” a documentary following hospital workers during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic. The film was shortlisted for an Academy Award and won three Emmy Awards.
More recently, Fitzpatrick directed “Puelmapu,” a documentary about Indigenous people in Patagonia being forced from their ancestral lands under Argentine President Javier Milei’s administration. The film was accepted into the Latino and Native American Film Festival and is available to stream online through May 24.
Another recent milestone came when Fitzpatrick won Best NYU Documentary at the NYU Sports Film Festival for “Hold On,” a documentary about a group of rock climbers who share a remarkable bond: They have all been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
The climbers, based in Alexandria, Virginia, are part of Up ENDing Parkinson’s, a nonprofit organization with chapters across the country that helps people with Parkinson’s slow the progression of the disease.
“Hold On” centers on climber Ruth Grover, who uses climbing to combat not only the physical symptoms of Parkinson’s, but also the anxiety and depression that can accompany the disease. When Fitzpatrick and Grover met, they quickly bonded over two shared connections: Grover has a sister in Marblehead, and Grover and Fitzpatrick are graduates of Hamilton College.
According to Fitzpatrick, that immediate connection became mutually inspiring. Grover inspired him with the way she was “dealt a pretty tough hand and still finds motivation to move forward,” while the documentary gave Grover “a motivation boost to get even more into climbing than she already was.”
Fitzpatrick hopes “Hold On” will not only inspire viewers, but also educate them about the critical role exercise can play in fighting diseases such as Parkinson’s. He said emerging research has overturned the outdated belief that people with Parkinson’s should avoid physical activity.
“You need to be as active as possible,” he said.
As for what comes next, Fitzpatrick said he plans to continue making films about sports, global politics and other subjects he cares deeply about.
Above all, he said, “I just want to keep producing stories.”
