Go On, Be Brave
Go On, Be Brave is the story of Andrea Lytle Peet’s race against time – a diagnosis of ALS – and an attempt at the impossible, to be the first person with ALS to complete a marathon in all 50 states.
Interview with Director/Producer/Editor Miriam McSpadden
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
We made Go On, Be Brave because ALS is a disease with a 2-5 year life expectancy. It is 100% fatal with no cure and no effective treatment which we believe is unacceptable. ALS steals the body’s ability to move and breathe while leaving the mind fully intact. The ALS community is more than aware of the brutality of their diagnosis and yet many of these warriors choose every day to live, and not simply prepare to die. Andrea is one of these people. Andrea set an impossible goal on the 5-year anniversary of her diagnosis, to be the first person with ALS to complete a marathon in all 50 states. Setting long-term goals with a terminal illness is a defiant, dare I say rebellious, act in the face of a disease set to kill you in the cruellest way. Our film surpasses the genres of sport and disease and provides a larger narrative that inspires an audience to ask the universal question ‘what does it mean to truly live?’ Andrea’s story is one of hope that does not shy away from the brutality of living with a death sentence. Go On, Be Brave celebrates in every sense of the word the power of a community that says “you can steal everything from us, but you cannot steal our spirit.”
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
You will leave the theater transformed by the power of Andrea’s story and the community that surrounds her. That’s why you should watch this film. There is a joy in Andrea that is frankly inexplicable. This film is hard, it is funny, it is sorrowful and it is so full of joy and inspiration. What Andrea did is a feat that should have been impossible. It is so rare there was nothing for the medical community to even compare it to. If you want your perspective on life to be transformed in a deep and meaningful way, come meet Andrea and her community of ALS warriors. We promise, you will be grateful that you did.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
There is a deeply personal thread of seeing an individual, Andrea Lytle Peet, come to terms with death and then choosing to live regardless of how much time she has left. Just as she took inspiration from people who came before her, she then continues the cycle of inspiring others to do the same. We filmed for just under 4 years which was long enough to capture that full cycle. As we saw that narrative thread coming together in real-time, we knew we had a film that would surpass sport and disease and address the universal question "what does it mean to truly live a life?"
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
We first met Andrea and Dave almost 4 years ago in April of 2019. We discussed a project that was limited in scope due to budget constraints. We agreed to follow Andrea for one year, culminating in marathon #22 in Alaska, the state she was most excited to visit. We would then create a short documentary in 8-weeks and release a cut of the film while Andrea was still working towards her goal of 50 states. The initial goal of the documentary was for people to see the film and then join her in running marathons to raise awareness and funding for ALS.
Marathon #22 in Alaska was scheduled for May 2020. As Covid shut the world down, Andrea was faced with the scary and disheartening reality that she would be limited not by her disease, but by a pandemic far beyond her control. Only 20% of people live past 5 years with ALS. That number drops to a staggering 10% by year 10. The odds have never been on her side. Andrea made the brave decision to postpone by a year. We followed her lead. And then 2021 came around, and Delta surged. Races continued to be delayed and cancelled. In the spring of 2021, as the first vaccines rolled out, Andrea said “I don’t know how much time I have left. I’m doing the final 23 marathons in the next 12 months.” Brian, my co-director, and I looked and one another and said, “Well, if you’re doing 23 marathons in 12 months we are going to be with you every step of the way. And this is no longer a short film. This is a feature.”
What type of feedback have you received so far?
We held a small pre-screening of a rough cut of the film in the Fall of 2022 for a panel of 30 people who either have ALS, or have lost a loved one to ALS. This will always be our most important screening. In the end, we asked, “Did we represent ALS accurately?” We knew that if the answer was ‘no’ we would head back to the editing room until we got it right. There was a thick silence in the room as Brian and I felt like we were going to jump out of our skin with nerves. Finally, spouses Tessa and Kevin – Kevin who had been diagnosed with ALS 6 months prior – raised their hands, “This is the first time we have felt hope in the last 6 months, that we can live the remainder of Kevin’s life and not simply prepare for him to die.” Alex, a young woman who was diagnosed with ALS at only 28 years old added “this is the first time I have seen myself represented on screen. I’ve only seen stories of men with ALS. Andrea is like me.”
We left the room that day in tears and full of gratitude for the ALS community and their support. We thought we would use our craft to support their effort and instead the opposite occurred. They supported us and we will forever be humbled and grateful to them.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
The feedback has surprised us in the best way. We are so excited that the ALS community has felt their voices and stories have collectively been represented through this journey.
We’ve also received incredibly helpful stylistic feedback from other directors and technicians. One such example was that one director who viewed a pre-screener of the film with placeholder graphics that we were using to inspire the overall graphic style, bluntly said – “the style of graphics that you have chosen is more for you (Miriam) and Brian. It’s bold, sporty and modern. This is your style but it’s not Andrea's. Andrea is classic, she’s timeless, and she’s a writer. You need to pick something that reflects her and not you.” He was exactly right. We pivoted our entire graphics package to better represent a timeless and classic aesthetic that better embodies Andrea’s style.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
First, we hope that a story of a woman with ALS is championed and shared widely. As Alex stated, “[She] had never seen herself represented on screen until this film.” This needs to change. Secondly, we are seeking distribution so that this story can be seen widely. And lastly, but most importantly, we want this story to help anyone who has been given life-altering news, or a terminal diagnosis, to not feel alone. Getting news like ALS is devastating and we want people to know there is a badass community of warriors waiting to embrace and journey alongside them into these next chapters of their life.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Can I just say ‘yes’ to all of these? This film is an indie doc in every sense of the word. Approximately 94% of the budget was raised by individuals within the ALS community. I believe this film celebrates the tradition of gritty filmmaking that doesn’t take ‘no’ for an answer and Brian and I are first-time filmmakers. We are looking for executive producers who could give us a wider reach, sales agents who can connect us to buyers and/or distributors, film festivals so we can continue to travel with and celebrate this film, and journalists to help more people hear about this film and our mission to end ALS.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
We want to get this film out into the hands of the ALS community – so that people know they are not alone. Team Drea Foundation will be using this film to create an impact campaign across the United States to raise money for ALS research to find an effective treatment for this disease and ultimately a cure.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
Something that we ran into over and over again, was when you are telling a story of accessibility and disability, by nature of having a documentary team surrounding the subject, things could become more accessible than they otherwise would be. We had to have many conversations with Andrea and Dave about when do we step in to help and when do we allow Andrea to struggle and we simply document. At times it was extremely challenging when every fiber in your being wants to help. But a person with a disability must always have the final say in their own decisions around asking for or accepting assistance. This was a powerful lesson for both Brian and I to learn.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
ANDREA LYTLE PEET has her book “Hope Fights Back” published by Pegasus Books and distributed by Simon & Schuster out now for pre-order on Amazon for delivery, in September of 2023.
MIRIAM MCSPADDEN continues to work with PBS North Carolina on several documentary series, directing and producing documentaries highlighting untold stories around North Carolina. She also works with Digital P Media on a series for ESPN highlighting student-athletes in the ACC. And she’s in development for several longer form docu-series for streaming networks.
BRIAN BECKMAN continues his full-time job with The Kefa Project, an NGO in Rwanda that uses soccer to work with youth who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, and connecting them and their families with local resources.
Interview: February 2023
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
Go On, Be Brave
Go On, Be Brave is the story of Andrea Lytle Peet’s race against time – a diagnosis of ALS – and an attempt at the impossible, to be the first person with ALS to complete a marathon in all 50 states.
Length: 1:51:00
Director: Miriam McSpadden and Brian Beckman
Producer: Miriam McSpadden and Brian Beckman
About the writer, director and producer:
MIRIAM MCSPADDEN and BRIAN BECKMAN co-directed Go On, Be Brave. They have spent the last 10 years directing and producing stories of underrepresented communities in ways that are empowering for all involved. This is their first feature film.
Key cast: Andrea Peet – Main subject. David Peet – Secondary subject – husband to Andrea. Dr. Richard Bedlack – Andrea’s doctor. Dr. Fernando Vieira – Andrea’s research doctor. Mischa Decker – Andrea’s Physical Therapist. Peggy Fort – Fellow ALS athlete. Mayuri Saxena – Fellow ALS advocate who has inspired Andrea. Elizabeth Spitz – Andrea’s college roommate. Jody Klyn and Jillaine Baker – Team Drea members who lost mother to ALS.
Looking for: distributors, journalists and film festival directors
Facebook: Go On, Be Brave
Instagram: @go_on_be_brave
Hashtags used: #GoOnBeBrave #endALS #ALSsucks #ALSawareness #ALSwarrior #herALSstory #accessibility #disability #disabilityawareness #ALS #ALSwarrior #lifewithALS #MND #motorneurodisease #community #ALScommunity #sport #endurance #athlete #marathon #inspire #documentary #storytelling #womeninfilm
Website: goonbebravefilm.com
Made in association with: Digital P Media
Funders: 77.7% - Funded by individual donations from the ALS community. 15.6% - Self-Funded. 6.7% - Corporate-Sponsors (Catrike and Johnson Subaru of Cary).
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month?
Santa Barbara International Film Festival - World Premiere; February 15th and February 17th at Metro 4.
Film Festivals - TBD
US 10-city fundraising tour for Team Drea Foundation - TBD