AFF ’25: The Boy from St. Croix

Enjoying its world premiere at the Austin Film Festival, The Boy from St. Croix is a heartfelt documentary of Hall-of-Fame professional basketball player Tim Duncan. It is directed by his older brother Scott Duncan, a veteran cinematographer who has spent his own career filming his brother’s athletic achievements as well as serving as the Director of Photography for the long-running reality series Survivor. With Tim (“Timmy” to his family, friends, teammates, and the adoring San Antonio Spurs fans) as the lead focus, The Boy from St. Croix is their family’s story. 

The documentary is striking for its cinematography. It opens with a slim horizontal shot of Tim alone in the light-colored waters that surround the U.S. Virgin Islands. The shot then expands, filling the screen with a full-frame of the oceanic environment. It is a quiet opening that reveals its subject enjoying what was his first sport, swimming. It continues with recent footage of Tim returning to one of the basketball courts that he first played upon, with a goal in dire need of repair. Through footage of Tim’s hometown and interviews with St. Croix natives—neighbors, childhood friends, and coaches who knew the Duncan family—the documentary offers an intimate glimpse into an athlete known for his privacy.

The Boy from St. Croix is also noteworthy for its authenticity. Truly, Scott is the only filmmaker in the world who could capture his brother’s world-class dedication, instilled by their parents, Ione and William, and his humorous dry wit. Who else but Timmy could say blank-faced when jokingly asked for his credentials at a recent visit to a Spurs practice that he was there for “volleyball” (his teenage daughter’s sport at Stanford)? For such a legendary career, there is plenty of found footage on websites like YouTube for fans to nostalgically watch Tim’s most famous plays. Although its narrative does capture Tim’s professional journey—which saw multiple individual awards and championships—it strives for something far more organic and personal. Thus, it allows for viewers to appreciate the uniqueness of Tim all the more. Here is an individual who achieved his father’s instructions to Coach Gregg Popovich—to never change from the good “Cruzan” (St. Croix citizen) who was first a son, brother, and neighbor before becoming known as one of the great basketball players of the world.

The documentary’s conclusion with Tim replacing the broken basketball goal with a new one rings true. One feels that Tim would have done this regardless, even though this act of altruism is filmed for the documentary. Scott’s capture of his brother then staying to shoot hoops with a curious youth who asks Tim “how tall are you?” is natural and not a staged moment. Audiences will find Tim Duncan as he was, as he is, and as he will continue to be, the towering, titular figure beloved around the world, especially in the Texas Hill Country. 

After its world premiere, Scott Duncan and his team have secured distribution through Netflix, with this fantastic documentary available sometime this November. Additionally, The Boy from St. Croix earned the Audience Award, winning for the Marquee Feature category at the 2025 Austin Film Festival. Much like Tim’s famous jump shot off the backboard, take it to the “bank” that fans will enjoy the Duncan Brothers’ family story.

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