In 1979, a young producer for CBS News, on a flight home to NYC, came across an article in a newspaper. At the time, 29 year-old Patti Obrow White had no idea how the story that she was reading would dramatically impact her life. The story was about a controversial alternative program for troubled youth called, VisionQuest.

What captured White's interest was the unique approach to an often ignored of problem in the 70's, troubled kids. The idea of taking angry teens and putting them on a confrontational therapeutic wagon train journey across the western U.S. as an alternative to lockup was unconventional, innovative and… under investigation. Would this tough challenge be enough to save these "throwaway kids?" She decided to find out.

So White decided that it would be an interesting segment for "30 Minutes" (the teen version of "60 Minutes"). She took her crew and headed out to the Arizona desert to capture the departure of a wagon train that would travel 1,500 miles to Denver, Colorado. It was here, that she first encountered Bob Burton, the founder of VisionQuest.

Burton was an imposing figure in a big reservation style cowboy hat with a presence that was larger-than-life. Burton wasn't thrilled to see White and her crew. "I really thought I was going to do the story of them being shut down," she recalled. "There were allegations of child abuse and their treatment methods were under investigation by the state, so as a journalist, I thought I had a great story."

What ensued, was the making of the 1979 "CBS Reports" documentary, "The Wagon Train Trail."

"Out of ninety kids on the wagon train I had to choose four or five kids as subjects for the piece," explained White. Her attention was drawn to a tough street-smart kid with a history of drugs, runaway and prostitution from Denver, named Tracy. "I knew she'd be a great film character," recounted White. "She was attractive, articulate and angry." White was right.

After the first shoot, the raw, revealing and emotionally charged scenes captured by White along with Associate Producer Mimi Edmunds, cinematographer Greg Cooke and soundman Jim Camry that show Burton passionately confronting and dealing with the pain of these abused and abandoned children, and Tracy, in particular, were riveting.

White returned to CBS with the footage and asked CBS News vice-president, Bob Chandler and Executive Producer of Special Projects, Joel Heller for an hour. According to White, "In those days, everyone thought their piece deserved to be an hour." The scenes that were screened showed Burton confronting Tracy about her plans to runaway from the wagon train and an interview with Burton.

"There was an immediate interest in the story and according to White, the concept of following the drama over a period of time was intriguing to them." This was unusual for her show. In fact, the only place it would fit was as a "CBS Reports". She got her hour and made 4 subsequent trips to the wagon train about every six weeks to document the trials, tribulations, pain and hope in the lives of four subjects and Burton's attempt to salvage their lives.

"It focused attention on a group of kids who were considered society's throw-aways. And this was my first introduction into the world of these kinds of children and the kind of pain that they can suffer. Eventually, it was the kids that convinced me that this program was working," says the filmmaker.

Over the years, White kept in touch with both Tracy and Bob Burton from time to time, hadn't seen Tracy for the past 11 years. When Burton called in March of 1999 to tell White that he was taking Tracy's 12 year-old son, James, into the program, she couldn't believe it.

Burton went on to explain that Tracy, a struggling single mom with four children, was a college student and was living in Denver. Burton described why Tracy needed help with her oldest son, James, who had been institutionalized in Denver between the ages of six and twelve.

White, who now had her own production company, Filmsters, asked Bob for Tracy's number and called her. After catching up on Tracy's life, Patti asked her if she would consider allowing the cameras back into her world once again.

When Tracy reconnected with White she was thrilled, "We had gone through so much together, she knew all of my family history. There was already a trust there from twenty years ago, so I decided to think about it," said Tracy. After a few days, Tracy agreed to allow White to bring the cameras back again.

"I'll never forget that day when she hung up the phone," says Lee Anderson, Line Producer and Filmsters partner. "I knew three things. That we were making a film, that we didn't have a dime to do it and that without access to the old CBS footage it wouldn't be the film that it could be."

"I talked to Lee and my other two partners, Michael Miller and David Dizenfeld," White recalls. "They all agreed that we would be jumping off of a cliff without a parachute, but we all knew that this must have happened for a reason.

"It was a film that no one else could make because of my long-term relationships with the film subjects. It was something that we couldn't duck away from, so with a lot of faith and hope we decided to do it."

White and entertainment attorney Dizenfeld immediately went to work trying to secure licensing rights from CBS, while Miller (who had worked on the original film) and Anderson went to work.

"We began planning shoots, budgets and trying to find temporary funding in the form of corporate credit cards, deferred salaries... anything that would help make this a reality," said Anderson.

Director of Photography, Jim Green and sound engineer Larry Wallace both of Oklahoma City had never met the Filmsters, but were on board quickly. "When I found out that it was the follow-up to a film shot by Greg Cooke, someone whose footsteps I followed into this business, that was enough for me," says Green.

They agreed to work on spec, believing like the others, that this was an incredible opportunity to be involved in an independent feature documentary. Filming began four days later in Oklahoma on the day that James was inducted into the VisionQuest program.

The drama of Tracy and James' stories unfolded in very unexpected ways, "We kept leaving each shoot in disbelief. We were amazed by the emotional moments we captured. Each new shoot seemed to surpass the last one."

Filmed in several locations, the Filmsters traveled to Oklahoma, Colorado, Pennsylvania, Montana and Maryland spending 14 months shooting the documentary. Green shot all primary footage on BetaSP, while Anderson often shot second camera with a SONY DVX1000. "We ended up with 170 hours of original footage including the 5 hours of original CBS 16mm ins and outtakes that we got our hands on because of Patti's long relationship with CBS," says Anderson.

In order to keep going, the company needed funding.

Partner Michael Miller, who lives in Los Angeles was at a wedding party, telling a colleague about the amazing 20-year time-arc story of this "Erin Brockovich-like" mother fighting to save her son. A major Hollywood star overheard the conversation and immediately wanted to help. "The next thing you know, we received a check. It enabled us to keep going. This was soon followed by the same 'angel' bringing an investor from Denver on board," said MIller.

White called upon the talents of veteran award-winning producer/editor David Ewing for the monumental task of editing the film. With over 20 years in the business, Ewing had edited for practically every major network and cable entity. White and Anderson had worked with him in the past on the TBS documentary, "Survival of the Yellowstone Wolves" a CableACE nominated film.

"It wouldn't be the same film without Dave," says White. "He has a great story sense and technical skill combined with the art of visual storytelling." Production and editing assistant Eric Bannat worked on location in the field and in the editing room. Mimi Edmunds, associate producer on the first film, assisted with the story structure. Editing took ten months.

"Things eased a bit and the shoots continued, but the story kept evolving and we had to find a way to continue," says White. Miraculously, in the eleventh hour, Dizenfeld brought in AT&T as a corporate sponsor and we were able to finish editing and posting the film."

Vice President of Roland

"The film really needed a strong musical presence. We called upon composer Ron Riddle who added so much emotional texture," says White. "Ron did more than just creating a spectacular score, he arranged and produced the title song, "If I Could" , with New York recording artist, Baby Jane Dexter. The sound design and mix for the 119 minute film was done by the talented Skip Sorelle. Veteran online editor and vice-president of Roland House, Ralph Quattrucci did post-production at Roland House in Arlington, Virginia where it was edited. It was then color-corrected and upconverted the final version to high definition video.

In May 2001, "If I Could" was first screened at a benefit to help violence prevention. It received a standing ovation from over 700 people. Baltimore Sun columnist Susan Reimer wrote, "I watched this film not with a lump in my throat, but with clenched fists. But by its conclusion, I came to believe, as Bob Burton does, that while we cannot rehabilitate the victims of such horrific dysfunction, we must try to "habilitate" them. We can give them the tools to overcome the trauma of sexual abuse or abandonment and live life without inflicting them on the next generation."

This was followed by the World Premiere of "If I Could" at the Seattle International Film Festival where it won 3rd Runner Up for Best Documentary by popular audience vote. "If I Could" garnered awards at many film festivals including the Best Documentary award at the WINFemme Film Festival in Los Angeles and the Chris Award at the Columbus Film and Video Festival. "If I Could" will receive a CINE Golden Eagle in March. It is also a selection for the Denver International Film Festival and at select festivals in the coming year.

"Families destroy themselves, so families have to heal themselves," is the premise of "If I Could." From the outset, White envisioned a hopeful film. "After years of telling stories about dysfunctional families and troubled children, I was looking for the deeper understanding of these issues, something that would take us to another level in understanding how abuse, abandonment and trauma play out in families generation after generation."

"Even though "If I Could" is still seeking distribution, we know that making this film was very important, says White. Based upon the audience reactions, "If I Could" fills a need, a need for the REAL kind of reality programming that is lacking today. We are planning a long life for "If I Could" on the screen and in outreach for years to come.

"We know that this powerful film will make a difference," says director Patti Obrow White.