Just Sing starts with a familiar hook — like something out of Glee or Pitch Perfect — a group of college singers chasing a national title. But it quickly becomes something more personal.
The new documentary, directed by Angelique Molina and Abraham Troen, follows a pivotal season with the SoCal VoCals, the University of Southern California’s elite collegiate a cappella group, as they chase a record-setting sixth ICCA championship. From Oscar-winning producer John Battsek (Searching for Sugar Man), the film arrives in theaters April 24, blending high-level performance with a coming-of-age story about graduation, uncertainty, and what comes next.
Finding the “real-life Pitch Perfect”
The project began with a simple question: what does competitive a cappella actually look like off-screen?
“Our producer was curious what the real-life Pitch Perfect was,” Molina tells Gold Derby. “We connected with the ICCA tournament and started looking for the right group.”
They quickly landed on the SoCal VoCals — not just for their talent, but for their track record.
“They’re undefeated,” Troen says. “Every time they’ve competed, they’ve won. So immediately, the stakes are higher — what happens if they don’t?”
But it was the people, not the accolades, that made the decision easy.
“When we met them, we realized these were really interesting individuals with rich stories,” he adds. “We fell in love with their music, and we fell in love with them. That’s when we knew we could spend years making this film.”
Earning trust — and capturing intimacy
Spending that kind of time with the group meant becoming part of their world. “We were with them day and night,” Molina says. “We kind of became honorary members of the group.”
That access allowed the filmmakers to capture moments rarely seen in competition documentaries — from backstage nerves to unfiltered conversations.
“To get that level of vulnerability, they had to trust us,” she says. “They had to believe we would tell their stories in a way that felt true to who they are.”
Troen adds that the goal was to immerse the audience, not polish the experience. “We didn’t want a glossy, staged version of a cappella,” he says. “We wanted you to feel like you’re actually there — what it sounds like, what it looks like, the energy in the room.”
More than a competition
While the film follows a high-stakes season, both directors say Just Sing was always about something bigger.
“We pitched it as a coming-of-age story from the start,” Troen says. “No matter what happened in the competition, they were going to graduate. That ending — that transition into real life — was always going to be part of it.”
That perspective shapes the film’s emotional core. For many of the singers, the ICCA championship isn’t just a goal — it’s the final act of a chapter that has defined their college experience.
“It’s a bittersweet moment,” Troen adds. “They’re chasing something incredible, but they’re also about to leave it behind.”
Stepping into the spotlight
With more than a dozen members in the group, narrowing the focus wasn’t easy. “There were 16 of them, and honestly, we could’ve made a documentary about every single person,” Molina says. “They’re all that compelling.”
Ultimately, the filmmakers followed a smaller group, with much of the storytelling taking shape in the edit.
“It’s like arranging music,” Troen explains. “You’re figuring out which voices complement each other to tell a coherent story.”
That process was shaped in part by what wasn’t happening within the group.
“I think we expected a little more rivalry — who gets the solo, who’s in front,” Troen says. “But that just wasn’t the case.” Instead, the dynamic reflected the collaborative nature of a cappella itself.
“You can have a lead vocalist, but the harmony behind them has to be perfect,” Molina adds. “Everyone has to be on the same page. They have to be one.”
That sense of unity ultimately became a defining part of the film — and helped determine which stories best fit together.
Life after the spotlight
Even after filming wrapped, Molina and Troen have continued to follow the group’s journeys — many of which reflect the uncertainty the film captures.
“We stay in touch through social media,” Molina says. “They’re all doing amazing things — performing, teaching, working in music.”
Some have already reached major milestones, from Broadway to professional music careers, while others are carving out their own paths. For the filmmakers, that ongoing connection is part of what makes the experience stick.
“You spend years with people like this — you don’t just walk away,” Troen says.
As Just Sing heads to theaters, both directors hope audiences experience it the way it was intended — not on a phone, but in a room filled with sound.
“These voices deserve to be heard that way.”
