Read what critics and journalists have to say about the POV film that premiered on Thanksgiving Day, November 28 and will be streaming for free online until December 28, 2013!
The first-ever animated special from StoryCorps celebrates the transformative power of listening. Listening Is an Act of Love features six stories from 10 years of the innovative oral history project. Each story reflects StoryCorps founder Dave Isay’s fundamental belief: “We can learn so much about the people all around us — even about the people we already know — just by taking the time to have a conversation.” Framing these intimate conversations from across the country is an interview between Isay and his 9-year-old nephew, Benji. As always, the selections provoke both tears and laughter — and highlight the simple joy found in sitting together and asking life’s important questions. Funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Produced in association with American Documentary | POV.
“StoryCorps is one of the great inspirations of the last 10 years. . . . a priceless, irreplaceable history of humanity. . . . Wisely, the documentary . . . stresses that telling the stories is only half of this project.
The other half is listening. The people who ask questions are saying, ‘Your life matters. Tell me about it.’ What a wonderful thing for anyone to hear.”
— David Hinckley, New York Daily News
“In the soundproof recording studio . . . thousands of everyday people have talked about their hopes, fears, regrets, triumphs.”
— Brian Stelter, The New York Times
“If you are not in the mood for football, give PBS a holiday TV try. . . . StoryCorps founder Dave Isay has oft said ‘you find wisdom and poetry’ in the words of everyday people. And it’s true.”
— Adrienne Samuels Gibbs, Chicago Sun-Times
“Heartbreaking, hilarious and inspiring, sometimes all at once. . . . We’re in the midst of the season that encourages us to binge-shop for meaningless junk. . . . The perfect gift is easier¬ to give than most of us imagine. . . . Just ask a few questions of someone close to you and listen.”
— Mark Perigard, Boston Herald
“Touching. . . . poignant.”
— Vi-An Nguyen, Parade
“A holiday-friendly, family-binding event. . . . Just what many people crave at this time of the year.”
— Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times
“‘Live with courage’—PBS brings these three simple words to vivid life. . . . StoryCorps looks for wisdom and poetry in the lives of regular people; this animated film brings together a tapestry of natural storytellers doing what they do best. . . . This may just inspire you to use the record function on your smart phone at the next family meal and see what gems turn up. Top Pick.”
— The Christian Science Monitor
“Culled from a decade of gathering and recording intimate tales from across the country. . . . Every story is so different: the arc, the voice, the feeling of each tale. . . . So many of us don’t take the time to share the stories of our lives, even with the people who are closest to us.”
— Bonnie Tsui, The Atlantic
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