Interview:
David Hartstein,
Sam Wainwright Douglas
directors,
Andrew Miller,
screenwriter,
"Luv Ya, Bum!"
In the late 1970s and 1980s, few professional football teams captured the love and imagination of their fans more than the Houston Oilers. Known for their Baby Blues uniforms, the Oilers went from perennial losers to playoff contenders under their father figure of a coach, native East Texan Bum Phillips. The Oilers’ success during Phillips’ six-season tenure is chronicled in the documentary Luv Ya, Bum!, directed by the Austin-based David Hartstein and Sam Wainwright Douglas and written by Andrew Miller. Bum Phillips began his coaching career at the Texas high school level, including at Nederland High School and at Port Neches-Groves High School. Playing to the chants of the team slogan “Luv Ya, Blue!”, the Oilers ranked among the NFL elite during the last three seasons of Phillips’ leadership. But the failure to get past the Oilers’ dreaded rival the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1978 and 1979 playoffs, and an early exit in the 1980 playoffs to the Oakland Raiders, cost Phillips his job much to the shock to Oilers fans. Luv Ya, Bum! offers a portrait of a native East Texan who did things his own way and brought innovation to the game of football; preached self-discipline and accountability to his players; and remained true to his Lone Star State roots to his dying day in 2013. The documentary also examines the close personal and professional relationship between Phillips and his son Wade, a defensive guru who coached under Phillips at the Oilers and the New Orleans Saints before going on to serve as the head coach of the Buffalo Bills and the Dallas Cowboys and winning a Super Bowl as the defense coordinator with the Denver Broncos. Luv Ya, Bum! includes interviews with Wade Phillips and his son Wes, currently the offensive coordinator with the Minnesota Vikings; Oilers greats Earl Campbell and Dan Pastorini, JJ Watts, Peyton Manning, former Houston Titans and Denver Bronco head coach Gary Kubiak, and former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw. Narrated by native Houstonite and Oilers fan Dennis Quaid, Luv Ya, Bum! screens at 12:30 p.m. March 13 at the Paramount Theatre during the SXSW Film & TV Festival. Austin-based David Hartstein and Sam Wainwright Douglas previously directed last year’s SXSW entry Faders Up: The John Aielli Experience. Hartstein previously directed Along Came Kinky …Texas Jewboy for Governor and produced Sister Aimee, Barracuda, The Honor Farm, and The Happy Poet as well as the documentaries Through the Repellent Fence, Fathers of Football, and The Sensitives. The Austin-based Sam Wainwright Douglas previously directed Through the Repellent Fence, Hot Grease, and Honky Tonk Heaven: Legend of the Broken Spoke. Andrew Miller makes his screenwriting debut with Luv Ya, Bum! Aired: March 12, 2025. Web sites: https://schedule.sxsw.com/2025/events/FS18818 |
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