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Welcome to the “If I Could Run” website
I wrote this story “If I Could Run” to tell my experience of being bullied when I was a Sophomore/Junior in high school in 1958/59. It was such a humiliating, depressing and agonizing time in my life. I can remember it so clearly 60 years later. Bullying is still so active in today`s society. However, I believe it is even worse with social media being so available. When I was going through my bullying experience, I could at least find peace and security at my home after school and on weekends. Now, social media allows a person to be bullied twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. My story tells how I was able to get through this horrible experience.
A movie producer picked up my story and together we produced the movie. Because we had the opportunity to have an up and coming young female star play the lead role, I changed the main character to be female instead of male. The movie is filmed on my farm, at my high school and in my town where the actual bullying occurred so many years ago. We entered it in film festivals around the country and it was received very positively, winning many prestigious awards. ~ Don Miller
Now Available
Paperback, Kindle, Kobo, Nook, iBooks, or tablet
My Hope
My hope is that this book and/or movie might help someone find the strength and courage to face this terrible thing and give confidence and belief in one`s self to beat it!
Listen to the song Never Give Up from If I Could Run
Also Available
Hardcover, Paperback, Kindle
A Story of Strength
A story about finding the strength to overcome obstacles and learning to see things in a new way. An emotional tale of two girls brought together by circumstance.
The Girl: Bullied & Harassed
The Dog: Injured & Abandoned
Based on true events, this story takes place in the late 1950’s. A young girl’s love for running propelled her to join the school cross country team. With only boys on the team, she faced bullying and ridicule. Finding an injured, abandoned dog proved to be her salvation. Together, the girl and the dog set out to face this daunting challenge.
A STORY OF COURAGE, STRENGTH, AND SPIRIT.
Dedicated to every Child that has ever been Bullied.
If I Could Run Awards
Winner
Official Screening Selection
Borderlands Film Festival 2018
Winner
Best Fiction Feature Film
Aphrodite Film Awards 2018
Nominee
Best Feature Film
Borderlands Film Festival 2018
Nominee
Award of Exceptional Excellence
Depth of Field International 2018
Winner
Best Film
Direct Monthly Online Film Festival 2018
Winner
Best Feature Film
Eye-catcher Film Festival 2018
Winner
Best Production/ Score in a Feature Film
Global Nonviolent Film Festival 2018
Winner
Best Feature
Direct Short Online Film Festival 2018
Winner
Best of Festival
Gulf Coast Film & Video Festival 2018
Nominee
Rising Star
Houston Film Critics Society Awards 2018
Nominee
International Feature Film
Lake View International Film Festival 2018
Winner
Film Feature
IndieFEST Film Awards 2018
Nominee
Feature Film
Lucky Strike Film Festival 2018
Winner
Best Actress
Mindfield Film Festival Albuquerque 2019
Winner
Best Director
Mindfield Film Festival Albuquerque 2018
Winner
Best Editing
Mindfield Film Festival Albuquerque 2018
Winner
Best Cinematography
Mindfield Film Festival Albuquerque 2018
Winner
Best Original Score
Mindfield Film Festival Albuquerque 2018
Winner
Best Feature Film Bi-Monthly
Mindfield Film Festival Albuquerque 2018
Nominee
Best Feature Film
Moondance International Film Festival 2018
Winner
Best Actor
NYC Indie Film Awards 2018
Winner
Best Feature
NYC Indie Film Awards 2018
Winner
Best Feature Film
Peachtree Village International Film Festival 2018
Nominee
Best of Show
Pinnacle Film Awards 2018
Winner
Movie Trailers
Worldfest Houston 2018
Winner
Best Young Actress /
Best Picture
Worldfest Houston 2018
Nominee
Rising Star – Actress
Worldfest Houston 2018
Nominee
Rising Star
Worldfest Houston 2018
About Author Don Miller
This journey began many years ago (1956- 1958) when I was a freshman/sophomore in high school being bullied. (I`ll come back to this part later).
I was married in 1966 to my wife of 54 years, Barbara. In 1968 we were excitedly expecting our first child. On August 8 of that year our child was born. However, during the birth, the umbilical cord became caught around the baby`s neck and he died. That was our first tragic setback in our life`s journey.
March 21 of 1970 our second child was born. A healthy baby boy we named Oliver “Rick” Miller, named after my father.
In 1975 came our second setback. We had a house fire and lost everything. My dog Duke woke me up and saved our lives.
October 9, 1976, we had our second child, Donnie. And November 15, 1978 we had a beautiful baby girl, Heidi.
March 21, 1982 tragedy struck us again. It was Ricky`s 12th birthday. My father flew him and my nephew to northern Vermont for a weekend snowmobile get away. My father was an airplane pilot all his life, logging thousands of hours. On the way home (March 21, Ricky`s birthday) they got trapped in a spring snow thunder storm and the plane crashed. My father was killed. Ricky and my nephew were both injured but survived. Words can`t express the devastation this brought to my life. However, it would get worse.
October 22, 2004 after a long battle with an injury Ricky received in a race car our son Ricky died. There can be no tragedy any worse than a parent losing a child.
For the next two years I wasn`t worth to much. Grief was consuming me 24 hours a day and I was lost in my self pity. One day as I wallowed in my grief, my wife grabbed me by my shirt front (as a mother does to a child that is misbehaving) and shook her finger in my face. “Now you listen to me. I know you`re brokenhearted and overcome with grief. But, so am I and so are our two beautiful children. We have a responsibility to them now and for the rest of our lives. We`ve been dealt a cruel blow, but our lives cant stop. So, snap out of it and let`s take care of what we have left”. She was so right. I had been so lost in my grief that I left her and my kids to struggle on their own. A mother`s bond with a son must be one of the strongest things in this world and I had not been there for her or my kids.
Knowing how many family`s have and love dogs, and also knowing the devastation of taking that dog on the last ride to the Vets, (I have done this 4 times in my life) I decided to write a song “The Last Ride”. One day my daughter sent me a link to a short film “If I Could Talk”.
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The film reminded me so much of the song I just wrote. So, I got in touch with the producer of the film, Shawn Welling, and sent him the song. He loved it and suggested making a music video of it. He and his wife Michelle and their dog Ranger flew from Houston Texas to Vermont and we made the video. While he was here, he asked me if I would play a part in his sequel to “If I Could Talk” called “If I Could Bark”. I assured him that I had never acted and probably wouldn`t do to good. He said we would give it a try and we did. The next few days were so much fun. Ranger and I worked so well together and we got both films done.
That spring I flew to Houston, Tx and attended the Worldfest Film Festival for the world premier of the films. Another great experience and loads of fun. “The Last Ride” won a silver Remi and “If I Could Bark” won a gold Remi. We had so much fun and success with these productions. Shawn asked me if I could write another story and possibly make another film.
I flew back home, thinking about it on the long flight. And this is how, 60 years later the story “If I Could Run” was born. When I was at the film festival I had the pleasure of meeting a up and coming young actress, Preslee Tucker. Shawn suggested her to play the lead in “If I Could Run”. So I changed the main character in the book to a young girl. The story reflected my experience of being bullied in high school.
That summer and fall Shawn and his team came to my small town and we produced the movie. We used students from the High School. My daughter and my son are in it as well as my niece. None of them had ever acted.
The next spring, I flew back to Houston to again attend the Worldfest Film Festival. There are films entered from all over the world. 4,500 films in different category`s were entered. Shockingly and amazingly “If I Could Run” won BEST FILM OF THE FESTIVAL!! It has gone on to win over 30 prestigious awards worldwide!
So, this is my story to this point. Bullying is such a disgusting, hurtful thing and it ruins lives! Now it is even worse with all the social media links. 60 years ago, when “If I Could Run” takes place, I could go home from school each day and be away from it. Weekends I was also safe from the hurt. However now it goes on 24 hours a day and there is no escape. It continues to destroys lives.
I made “If I Could Run” and this site available to all and hope it may help someone realize that setbacks, tragedy`s, and even bullying can all be part of life`s journey. However, they can be overcome with understanding, help and perseverance.
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