VIDEO: Mini feel-good film captures spirit of running in less than two minutes

All it takes is a minute and a half for German director Eugen Merher to capture the determination of a true runner. 

In a recent mini film made public on Dec. 15, Merher conveys the story of a man in a nursing home who is discontent with his day-to-day life. When he spots a runner through the window one day, he looks back at his own running past. After he sees his pair of Adidas sneakers in his room, he decides to lace up again and get outside the walls of the nursing home for a run. There’s just one problem: the nursing home staff won’t allow him to go out and they block him every time despite his best efforts.

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Eventually though, the other residents catch on. Together they plot a way to let the man escape the home for his run while blocking the staff before they can stop him. In the end the words “break free” pop up on screen echoing what many feel is the prime purpose of going running.

Merher’s short, dialogue-free flick is a warm and fuzzy watch, well worth the minute-and-a-half distraction between tasks at the office. The young director perfectly conveys the nostalgia felt many when they look back on their running days as well. 

Merher is just 26 years old but has had an interest in film-making for much of his life. After studying at the University of Hohenheim, he went on to the University of Oregon. In 2014, he became a commercial director at Filmacademy Baden-Wuerttemberg. Interestingly, much of the work he displays on his personal profession website also focuses on a senior citizen main character. 

The music in this Adidas video is by Alex Wolf David. The video has received nearly 429,000 views since being posted to YouTube in mid-December.