Hungry Man’s Richard Bullock directs an emotional story of displacement, disappointment, sheer determination and hope in full-length feature documentary ‘RUN’  

Run. That’s what refugees do. Their race starts with the sound of a gun, not a starter pistol. They run from burning villages and away from danger. Now, a group of athletes are running for the right to represent the 71 million displaced people in the world today.

A three-year journey of heroism follows legendary Kenyan athlete, Tegla Loroupe, as she mentors a group of talented athlete refugees on their arduous road to the (now cancelled) 2020 Tokyo Games. The Athlete Refugee Team has been captured in this emotionally-charged independent documentary feature, considered to be the first production of its kind.  

The 90-minute film is produced by On, the Swiss sportswear company and Hungry Man Productions and was released on World Refugee Day (June 20 2020) to commemorate the millions of forcibly displaced people worldwide. 

Filmed over a three-year period across eight countries in three different continents, ‘RUN’ is a story of unwavering human spirit, empowerment and fearless bravery by a group of athlete refugees from the Congo, Ethiopia, Somalia and South Sudan. These athletes have been running from tribal gangs and civil war since they were children. Over the years they have suffered trauma on an unimaginable scale, training barefoot on dust-filled roads and in their own backyards as residents of the UN refugee camps.

The film is directed by Richard Bullock of Hungry Man Productions. Bullock is a writer/director whose long-form films have aired on National Geographic Channel, Eurosport and the BBC. Before focusing on directing full time, Bullock built up an award-winning legacy in advertising as former Executive Creative Director at 180 Amsterdam, working with leading agencies such as Chiat/Day/Mojo, Hunt Lascaris TBWA, Cliff Freeman & Partners and Lowe Howard Spink. 

His new documentary follows iconic long-distance world record holder and powerhouse matriarch, Tegla Loroupe, as she passionately trains and mentors this small group of athlete refugees with the goal to reach the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Tegla, born on the western border of Kenya, watched waves of refugees arriving to her country from Rwanda and Sudan, and has made it her lifelong mission to send a refugee team to the Games. A shattered dream, with an unexpected twist. 

The film begins in 2017 and covers three years of highs, lows, and unprecedented hurdles placed in the path of these star athletes - not least a global pandemic - as they navigated seeking asylum while competing overseas. As a result, the film tracks a human drama that is less about medals and more about people simply looking for a place to call home.

The final chapter of this story (for now) has had COVID-19 to compete with. With their training camp closed, the team were sent back to refugee camps and forced to put their Olympic ambitions on hold. The final arc of the film was therefore directed by Richard Bullock from afar, with the athletes self-shooting on Skype and smartphones in Israel, Germany, Kenya and Switzerland.

Self-shooting aside, throughout the film’s three-year journey Bullock ensured the athletes were empowered and in control of their own narratives.

Richard Bullock, director, says: “Refugees get a lot of people talking for them so I made a conscious effort to allow the audience to listen to the characters directly. The refugee athletes are all incredibly wise and thoughtful. From very early on I tried to uncover how they were able to remain so hopeful and positive when the world had given them little reason to believe it was anything but violence and horror. I learnt an incredible amount about coping with difficulties and facing uncertainty from them. I think that’s the biggest takeaway - it’s not about running at all. It’s about resilience and overcoming hardship. If you’re ever faced with a mountain to climb, the words and actions of these athletes will resonate profoundly.”

 The inspiring words of one athlete in particular stuck with the director. Gai Nyang told him: “I dream with my eyes open. I do my dreaming during the day and I always think and say to myself, there is still a chance to make something of this life.”

 ‘RUN’ was officially released on athleterefugeeteam.com on June 20th, World Refugee Day, on which 15% of On’s e-commerce sales will go to the Tegla Loroupe Peace Foundation – to buy land next to the team’s basecamp in Ngong to build their own track and field facilities to train in.

 Additionally, the documentary will reach a global audience, set for broadcast on ESPN, Globo, Eurosport, ZDF, BEin Sports and more.

DIRECTOR'S STATEMENT:

In 2017, I went to Kenya and directed a short sponsorship film about the Athlete Refugee Team. There were 31 athlete refugees from six countries living and training together in the Ngong hills north of Nairobi.  The founder of the training camp is former Kenyan athletics star Madam Tegla Loroupe. While filming the selection trials for the upcoming World Championships, one athlete, Kadar Omar collapsed on the ground after his race and screamed at the sky: “I am a human being. I can do what others can do!” He had beaten his personal best time by 15 seconds and qualified for the World Championships. It was very hard not to be moved by his efforts.

At the end of that trip to Kenya, Madam Tegla took me aside and said very directly “You must come back and tell the whole story.”  And so, I did. 

Beyond Madam Tegla’s request I felt personally motivated to tell the story of these extraordinary people, who through sheer persistence had already competed at one Olympic Games and were headed for another.  Over the next three years unprecedented hurdles were placed in their path. Aside from a global pandemic, their ability just to move about the planet as stateless people is incredibly difficult. The team was rocked by star athletes seeking asylum while competing overseas and the team management struggled to keep the mission on track. 

The film very quickly started to track a human drama that was less about medals and more about people simply looking for a place to call home.

These are people who at the age of seven or eight started running from the sounds of guns and tanks and are still running for their lives today.

What these people have endured and continue to endure is beyond anything you can imagine. The way they tackle setbacks is truly inspiring. If you are ever faced with a mountain to climb, the words and actions of these athletes will resonate profoundly. In 2017, when we commenced filming official UN statistics estimated there were 65 million displaced people on earth. When the film was completed that number had exceeded 71 million.

Richard Bullock