Mexican-American filmmaker, Nicole Amyx embarks on a quest to discover why her mother runs ultra-marathons. What does it take to run at such an extreme distance? Are women better suited for it than men? As she tries to run a long-distance race herself, she looks to find the answers to these questions.

Director Statement

Growing up I was always involved in the world of film and sports. Having a filmmaker father and an athlete mother, it was only natural for me to follow in their footsteps. I didn’t have the confidence that my parents had and this in turn created an inner anxiety in me. Sports was my outlet to anxiety. By the time I was a teenager I had noticed that in the world of sports there was an inequality between men and women. The way women were viewed as “lesser” really struck something in me. I made “Finding Her Stride” because I really wanted to show people that things are changing now. That there is a sport where women can be truly equal and where gender doesn’t matter. Ultra-Running gives women the confidence to compete and be on an even playing field with men, and even beat them. I realized how much running has helped me tackle my anxieties and wanted to make a film to show women what they are capable of. This film is a personal film about my journey in finding my confidence and through it I hope to show women what they can achieve. This has been my passion piece for the past 18 months. I have put my heart and soul into this film. Women deserve to be seen and heard and that is why I made this film.

Nicole Amyx is Mexican-American and was born and raised in San Francisco California. Her mom is an ultra-runner and her dad is a filmmaker. Her parents have influenced her to where she is today. She has been passionate about filmmaker since she was 10 years old. She studied her B.A at San Francisco State University and got her degree in Cinema with an emphasis on Documentary and Editing. Her thesis film Emiria was about a female football coach. She worked for a year as a Freelancer in San Francisco and was also a PA and Assistant Editor on the Documentary series Waking Dream. Nicole is dedicated to themes that making an impact and help evoke change. This led her to making her Masters film Finding Her Stride at Leeds Beckett University. Nicole hopes to continue making and working on inspiring documentaries.