WHEN: premieres on NJ PBS on Thursday, April 4 at 9:30 p.m.; begins streaming April 1 on PBS.org and the PBS App. The documentary will also air nationally on WORLD on April 17 at 9 p.m. Eastern (8 p.m. Central). To find your WORLD station, visit https://worldchannel.org/about/faq/.
WHERE: NJ PBS, PBS.org and the PBA app
For more information on the film, visit IronZeal Films at https://www.ironzealfilms.org/ and follow @BridgingDividesSharingHeartbeats and @SusanPolisShutzPublic on Facebook.
One of the groups Schutz features in the documentary even works across barriers, the grassroots organization Fandango Fronterizo, which uses music to link Mexicans and Americans through a San Diego border wall. The Jerusalem Youth Chorus brings its Palestinian and Israeli youth members together to sing and to understand and respect each other. PeacePlayers connects 2,500 Protestant and Catholic children on basketball courts across Northern Ireland, forging new friendships as it bridges old and bitter divides.
“With news headlines constantly blaring hatred and vitriol, it was clear to me that we had better find a way to counteract the hate — and fast! The groups in Bridging Divides: Sharing Heartbeats are doing the hard work of bringing diverse people together through shared activities and discussions,” said Schutz, who serves as director and executive producer for the film. “In the process, they have found that what they look like, where they live or what their beliefs are were no longer a source of conflict, but something to celebrate along with their shared humanity.”
She is the cofounder with her husband, Stephen Schutz, of Blue Mountain Arts, a popular publisher known for its distinctive greeting cards, gifts and poetry books and a prolific director. Her poetry, which has been featured in 435 million greeting cards worldwide, has brought individuals together since the company’s founding in 1970. Now she is setting her sights on bringing together groups around the globe that have had epic battles across the ages.
Schutz’s eight other films have explored anxiety, active nonagenarians, depression, resilience and former white supremacists now helping others to leave the movement. Her first film, Anyone and Everyone, about LGBT kids coming out, was inspired by her son, Colorado Governor Jared Polis, the first openly gay governor. In 2019, her documentary, The Homeless Chorus Speaks, was awarded The Christopher Award, an honor founded by Father James Keller to salute media that “affirm the highest values of the human spirit.”
“Susan's films always find their way to the heart of her subjects, literally and metaphorically. This film provides hope and optimism at a time when we need it most,” said John Decker, senior director of content and development of KPBS San Diego. “And not just in platitudes, we see hope in people who are actually working together to solve complex social problems. We can learn a great deal from the examples of others.”
Bridging Divides: Sharing Heartbeats is produced by Jillian Frost and edited by Mark Taras. Stephen Schutz served as consultant. David Emrich was post-production supervisor and advisor.
American Public Television (APT) is distributing Bridging Divides: Sharing Heartbeats to public television stations nationwide. APT Worldwide will distribute the film to other countries.
About IronZeal Films:
Founded by director, entrepreneur, poet and author Susan Polis Schutz, IronZeal Films makes documentaries that make a difference. Titles include Anyone and Everyone (2007), Following Dreams (2009), Misunderstood Epidemic: Depression (2010), Over 90 & Loving It (2011), Seeds of Resiliency (2012), It's Just Anxiety (2017), The Homeless Chorus Speaks (2018), Love Wins Over Hate (2020) and Bridging Divides: Sharing Heartbeats (2024).
