These days, America seems to be divided. Now is the time for Americans to reconnect and find healing!
We are all motivated by our own drive to follow our dreams and achieve our goals in the face of adversity. Filmmaker Louie Schwartzberg demonstrates this in his timeless documentary, America’s Heart and Soul movie (now available on Disney+).
As part of this journey, he met Louisana accordion maker Marc Savoy who summed up the meaning of this special project:
“It’s not just one kind of food or one kind of music or one kind of landscape. It’s the wonderful diversity of this country that makes this place so great.”
By hitting the highways of the U.S. in the pure goodness and motivation of Americans to find self-fulfillment.
Louie’s film captured a moment of unity in America, a reminder of a time when we felt more connected–like this short excerpt on the salsa dancing community.
During the journey of making that film, Louie captured this quote from environmentalist Robert Kennedy, Jr.:
“We’ve invented this system of Democracy that people from all over the world can get together and can create something really truly wonderful if they work together and maintain their focus on a spiritual mission. And that’s what America is about.”
This documentary finds inspiring Americans who face constant challenges in their everyday lives. But this doesn’t stop them. These inspiring figures at the core of the film demonstrate to watchers that adversity does not need to bring you down.
You can rise above and achieve anything you want with the right hopeful and positive mindset.
Life Is Like Salsa
The kindness and openness of each character rise to the surface as they share their stories with America. They don’t do these things for the attention or to bring down others.
Rather, they move forward in their lives despite the obstacles it throws at them because they have faith.
They recognize that the communities and people around them are good, and perhaps in pain like them.
As Long Beach salsa dancer Luis Vazquez explained, America has room for everybody. Just like salsa!
“You can put tomatoes, onions, cilantro, anything that you want in Salsa. So it’s the same. You just dance and put your heart into it.”
Every character in America’s Heart & Soul takes adversity and uses it to fuel them to be their best selves. They don’t let their past or differences with others impact what could be a positive and happy life.
We should truly consider these people as role models in our everyday lives, now more than ever.
By embracing their strength, determination, and generosity, we could follow in their footsteps of reminding others around us that we actually have a lot in common with one another.
Keep Exploring America’s Heart & Soul!
We’ll be adding more articles every month, and we will update our growing archive at this link… let us know what your favorite heart and soul movie is after watching Louies of coarse!
A Tribute to the Spirit of New York: New Yorkers are some of the most resilient people on the planet. Early in Louie Schwartzberg’s career, he followed the adventures of a bike messenger throughout New York City.