Filmmaker Statement

Underneath Irrational’s poppy musical numbers and silly world of high-stakes pi memorization is a deeply personal emotional journey based on my struggle with the various activities I participated in growing up, such as Marching Band, Speech & Debate, and, most specifically, Fencing. All three were activities I practiced for many years, but I never seemed to improve much at any of them, a struggle I found very frustrating and, years later, ripe for exploring in a movie musical. I remembered a Pi Day memorization contest in my 5th grade class and thought it’d be amusing if anyone had decided to take that seriously, since nobody did at the time, so I decided to combine that silly premise with the less silly memories of my frustration.