Award-winning director & Emmy-nominated Producer-Writer

Knowledge is power and the stakes are personal.

SYNOPSIS

It’s 6 p.m. in Jamaica. Across the island, televisions flicker on. Not for sports, not for music, but for a quiz show - Schools’ Challenge Quiz. This is no ordinary game show. It's an elite academic showdown where high schoolers become national heroes and first-generation university students.

At stake: $4.7 million Jamaican dollars . A full ride to University. A shot at rewriting their futures.

QUIZ is a high-stakes, character-driven docu-series that follows eight-time champions St. Jago High as they fight to make history with a record-breaking four-peat. But standing in their way are two formidable challengers: the rising stars of Jamaica College, and their long-time rivals, Titchfield High.

All three are locked in a fierce battle in the 2025 season of Schools’ Challenge Quiz—a season destined to make history, though not with the ending anyone saw coming.

It’s brain versus brain, school versus school. Rural versus urban.

For four adrenaline-charged months, the island holds it breath as teams of four step into a gladiator arena of the mind—battling not just for trophies, but for legacy, family, and for the kind of future few from their communities ever get to realize.

This is more than a game show.

It’s a national stage where futures are shaped in real time, and a single answer can tip the scale between obscurity and opportunity.

It's a rite of passage.

A cultural phenomenon.

A sport.

A proving ground.

And it happens to be one of the longest-running quiz shows in North America.

AN ELECTRIFYING INTER- SCHOLASTIC ACADEMIC SHOWDOWN, WITH A FAN BASE THAT RIVALS MUSIC AND SPORTS!

Now, for the first time in its 56-year history, QUIZ offers an all-access look at this beloved competition, and an inside-out view of this gem of an island. Through the lens of the game, the series uncovers the beauty and complexity of Jamaica’s post-colonial legacy, its deep inequalities, and its unshakable belief in the power of education to transform lives.

BEYOND THE BUZZ

QUIZ is a story of brilliance under pressure, of rising through adversity, and of what it means to carry the weight of a school, a family, and sometimes an entire community. This is about the hopes and dreams of an entire generation and the communities that stand behind them.

Director's Statement

I grew up in rural Jamaica, where education wasn’t just the path to opportunity. It was the only way out. I know what it’s like to sit in a crowded classroom, driven by ambition but surrounded by scarcity. QUIZ is personal because it mirrors my journey in many ways. I intimately understand the weight of expectation, the pressure to be exceptional, and the sacrifices demanded by success.

Knowledge is not just power. It creates identity. QUIZ captures the grit, hope, and brilliance I see in students across the island, then and now.

At its core, this film is about more than a competition. It’s about the discipline, resilience, and self-belief required to succeed in a system that often feels rigged against you. These students aren’t just playing for trophies; they’re fighting for futures, battling systemic inequalities, and proving that intellect can be a form of resistance.

Behind the buzz is something much deeper: a desire to be seen, to break poverty and generational cycles that have held them back for generations. I want audiences to feel the tension in every question, the exhaustion behind every late-night study session, and the raw, unfiltered joy of victory. QUIZ celebrates their brilliance, honors their struggles, and shows what it really means when the stakes are not just points on a scoreboard—but the future.

QUIZ is a love letter to young people finding their voices and stepping into their power.

Team

Executive Producer

Director of Photography

Executive Producer

Geeta Gandbhir is an award-winning filmmaker who began her career in narrative film under the mentorship of industry luminaries Spike Lee and Sam Pollard. After eleven years in scripted filmmaking, she transitioned into documentaries. As a director, she recently won the Best Directing Award at Sundance for The Perfect Neighbor, which was later acquired by Netflix. Her latest work includes the highly anticipated HBO series Eyes on the Prize, Born in Synanon for Paramount, and the short film How We Get Free for HBO, which was shortlisted for an Academy Award. As Editor, her films won two Emmy Awards, four Peabody Awards, and one Academy Award.

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Director|Producer

Director of Photography

Executive Producer

Sasha-Gay Lewis is an Emmy-nominated producer-writer and award-winning Jamaican director with a film and producing career spanning over 15 years. Her directing work includes the multi-award-winning film “The Incursion”, “Surviving Suicide”, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) I Look Up selected films “The People’s Vision” and “Home

Her producing credits includes: Youtube Original’s Emmy-nominated doc series “Glad You Asked S2”, HBO’s Original Documentary “Reopening Night”, ESPN’s “Skin in The Game”, MTV’s “16 & Pregnant”, and the Gemini Award-nominated,TV 5 distributed doc series “Life’s Rituals “[La Vie En Quatre Temps].

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Director of Photography

Jhonny Fabian Sarmiento is a Colombian cinematographer and director of photography whose work spans branded, narrative, and documentaries. An eye for verite and finding the extraordinary in the ordinary, his DP work includes “Lighthouse”, which won Best Short at the Out of the Can Film Festival and was nominated for Best Short at the European Cinematography Awards.

Camera Operator

Director of Photography

Born and based in Jamaica, Cleon Ewers built a distinguished career as a cinematographer and jib operator. With over 21 years of experience behind the lens, his works span commercial productions, live sporting events, documentaries, movies and theatre.

Editor

Camera Operator

Editor

Niq Lewis is an award winning film editor based in Los Angeles. Her clients include Vox, Conde Nast, Nike, Vogue, Vice Media, and Showtime. Niq's work has been acquired by Bloomberg Shorts, LA Times Short Docs, Netflix, Appletv and Prime. She recently edited the Oscar Shortlisted documentary, Planet Walker, which also won the audience awards at Big Sky and Blackstar film festivals.