LAKELAND, Fla. — There’s an art to working the red carpet — it’s a lot of posing, a lot of smiling, and a lot of photos — and when Freddie Stevenson did it recently, he looked like a natural.

The former gridiron star looked as much at ease on the red carpet as ever he did on the football field ahead of the premier for "Trials to Triumph," a documentary about his life.

Freddie’s comfort level was understandable because this day was several years in the making. The former Bartow High and Florida State fullback said he had manifested this moment and now he was going to enjoy it.

“Man, this, this is a special moment,” he said.

Freddie has been sharing his story for years, but now his documentary, "Trials to Triumph," is reaching an even bigger audience.

He says the triumphs were his prowess on the football field that earned him a scholarship to Florida State and then a short stint in the NFL. His trials, Freddie said, were growing up without a father who spent most of his childhood in prison, and his family’s brief time with homelessness.

“Just being able to tell my story, my transition after the game then my struggles along the way, I think is going to help so many people that are out there struggling, trying to find their purpose in life,” Freddie said.

He got a lot of help along the way, but Freddie says there’s one woman who deserves a lot of credit in his upbringing: His mother, Sylvia, who taught her children so many life lessons about sacrifice and overcoming adversity.

And in the documentary, she emerged as the star of the show.

“I don’t think there’s a letter in the alphabet that can put a word together to explain how proud I am, because I am one proud mama.,” Sylvia said. “Makes me feel that I did something right.”

“She’s a warrior,” Freddie said. “There is no 'Trials to Triumph' without her.”

Before his movie premiered, Freddie addressed the audience at downtown Lakeland’s Polk Theatre. He thanked them for their support, and then the lights went down and the movie began.

“My whole entire life, I’ve been telling my story,” Freddie said. “I’ve just been doing it on the field. And it took me a while to realize that it was just setting me up to tell it in a different way. 

“This year, everybody getting out to see this film, I truly believe it’s going to be something special that absolutely shifts the world.”