The maker of a documentary — that features a world record-breaking, 82-year-old Richmond runner — has launched a crowdsourcing campaign to finish off the project.
Elton Hubner spent two years creating The Fit Generation, which tells the stories of six British Columbians in their 70s and 80s, who are well known in their communities for their active lifestyles, personal achievements and have battled the likes of cancer, arthritis, chronic back pain, knee replacements and, inevitably, the loss of loved ones.
One of the Brazilian-born and German-raised Hubner’s six “characters” is Richmond’s Gwen McFarlan, a retired teacher who started running while fighting cancer in her early 60s and now holds the world record in the marathon in her age group (80-84).
In the film, the cameras follow McFarlan’s struggle to recover from an ankle injury that has prevented her from attempting to break more world records.
However, Hubner, who has largely funded the project himself, needs some financial help to finish it off in terms of professional colour and sound correction so that he can release the documentary to festivals around the world next summer.
“When I first came to Vancouver, I saw a lot of active seniors; from people lifting weights in the gym to people riding their bikes or running in Stanley Park; even dragon-boating and skiing,” said filmmaker Hubner, 35, who has travelled the world but fell in love with Canada and Vancouver, which he has called home since 2011.
Hubner met with the Forever Young group — senior runners in Richmond — and they told him about McFarlan.
“I was reluctant, at first, to speak with her because she was so exceptional. But then she got injured and I wanted to hear about her challenges,” he added.
“I wanted to highlight people such as Gwen and ask the question of others, ‘do you have a better excuse not to be active?’”
Hubner knows all about running, being a high-performance athlete as a teenager at 5,000 and 10,000 metres, including coming fifth in the South American Championship while representing Brazil aged 15.
He thinks the film will not only encourage other seniors to exercise, but also help younger generations understand that their own future depends on the effort they make to stay healthy and fit.
Hubner, who owns and operates Eyes Multimedia, made the documentary with the help of Canadian cinematographer Chris Wheeler.
He needs $20,000 to complete the project and has raised $2,000 via a Kickstarter campaign. “This story deserves to be finished; I want to involve other professionals to do a better job,” he said.
“We’re going to make it, I’m sure.”
People who donate can watch the 60-minute film. For more information, go online to TheFitGeneration.ca. To donate, go to KickStarter.com/projects/1968958357/the-fit-generation.
