FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Brandon Burlsworth, a walk-on at the University of Arkansas, was known for his dedication to the game of football. Moving from a walk-on to a team player and eventually drafted by the Indianapolis Colts pro team, Burlsworth defied all limitations and expectations. Burlsworth was named an All-American football player and showed people what hard work and dedication to the sport looked like.
After a tragic car accident, Burlsworth’s name was shown in the obituaries, leaving Fayetteville folks and the football community heartbroken.
The movie “Greater,” written and produced by Brian Reindl, is a portrayal of Brandon’s life and pursuit of the sport he loved. Reindl, having no previous involvement in the movie industry, believed he was called to a specific purpose in pursuing this film.
“I’m sort of a serial entrepreneur. I’ve done a little bit of this and that,” Reindl said.
Reindl pursued several different real estate opportunities in Fayetteville, and this propelled him forward financially to allow him to create the film. After selling several properties near the metro district in downtown Fayetteville, he saw a divine door open to make this movie with the money he saved in his own bank account.
Reindl had been told by several people that this film wasn’t the smartest financial decision. Without many big-name connections, Brian said he relied on God and his Fayetteville community to help him finish the film.
“I loved it because I feel like it was the one thing in my life that wasn’t for money,” Reindl said.
Allowing the story to write itself through the testimony of Brandon’s family, friends and teammates, Reindl pursued several different versions of his script before it was finalized and filming could take place. Reindl finally released the film in 2016 to hundreds of movie theatres across the south.
“There were lots of times in there where I wasn’t really sure…But I was determined to get it done,” Reindl said.
Interviewing Burlsworth’s high school coach, Tommy Tice, Reindl heard a metaphor to thread the entire movie together. In the movie, actor Christopher Severio shares this metaphor that ultimately changes the trajectory of the story from defeat to hope.
In Reindl’s script, he restates the metaphor of two brothers arriving at a pile of manure. One starts digging, and the other watches. As one brother watches the other, he asks why he feels the need to dig into the manure. The other brother explains that if there’s a pile of manure this big, there must be a horse under there somewhere.
This metaphor paints a picture of the relationship that Burlsworth could have amidst his dreams, as well as Reindl’s pursuit of the film, even though he had never stepped foot into a studio before.
Now, ten years after producing the film and watching his hard work hit the screen, Reindl went back into real estate and is producing other projects around Fayetteville. Reindl said he has several more ideas for another film, but said he is unsure if God will open another door for him to pursue the next film.
Reindl’s film “Greater” has made it to Netflix and will soon be available on the Angel Studios streaming platform. As he would admit to anyone, Reindl’s ability to make a good film was only because he took Burlworth’s story to heart, and he himself became a filmmaker through his dedication to honoring a calling on his life.
“I was inspired so much by Brandon Burlsworth that I decided to get off my couch, and I was going to become a walk-on myself at the age of 40. I became the walk-on filmmaker,” Reindl said.