THE HERRICANES: A Film Review
by Karen Pecota

Olivia Kuan | USA | 2023

Olivia Kuan makes her first directorial debut with THE HERRICANES, though her career began as a cinematographer after earning a BFA at NYU Tisch School of the Arts. Notably she has shot over thirty narrative features and five documentary features. Kuan adds to her portfolio while capturing stories with her camera, an abundance of short films that has broadened her world view, meeting a variety of unique people and their cultures.

Kuan has a personal investment in her documentary THE HERRICANES, as it is a part of her mother’s forty-year-old past, and one of historical significance in the world of women’s sports. Kuan’s mother was somewhat reluctant to present her past on film for the world to see since it happened so many years ago without appropriate recognition. Over time, the encouragement of her daughter gently prodded her to rethink about the historical value, in that a documentary would honor the brave women who succeeded in playing a hard-core sport for women and making it noteworthy for future generations.

Kuan realized that little was known about this period in women’s sports. The Houston Herricanes were part of a nation-wide professional football league and their history was on the verge of being lost. Kuan felt that the narrative should be showcased on film for archival purposes. Her pitch to certain producers was successful, and the project began with her spending hours and months gathering former players to interview, collecting archival footage and photography stills, and formulating the timeline celebrating the first all-female contact (full-tackle) football league in the 1970s.

Kuan recalls, “The Houston Herricanes’ history was almost only stored in the hearts and minds of the women who could remember it but with every player came another piece of the story.” Continuing, “Their unknown story, and that of their team competitors, is one of commitment, courage, and strength. Despite adversity and hardship, they fielded a team purely for the love of the game. What they started is a movement that is still in motion today.”

Kuan’s THE HERRICANES is a fascinating story for the annals of U.S. women’s sports, that’s so impressive, and not to be missed.