Raising Bertie now available to stream for FREE on pbs.org

August 30, 2017 1:51 pm

Following its highly anticipated broadcast on PBS' prestigious documentary strand POV last night, August 28, award-winning Raising Bertie is now available to stream for free on PBS.org.

There was an outpouring of reverence and appreciation for the film, the filmmakers, and its subjects following the nationwide broadcast. A robust and thoughtful audience on social media tuned in and chimed in about #RaisingBertiePBS.

Director Margaret Byrne recently spoke with Vibe about the experience of spending six years making the longitudinal film, and the deep and lasting relationships she formed and keeps with the films' subjects. An excerpt:

It’s difficult to be invested in the lives of these young men and their families and know that I’m there to tell their stories, but I can’t do anything to change or really influence their circumstances in any major way. Being a documentary filmmaker is different than being a journalist, in a sense that it’s OK to get involved in people’s lives. Obviously if one of the guys couldn’t pay their light bill, I’m gonna help them out with that. There is more involvement. There’s a much deeper friendship when you’re working with people over so many years.

Read the full interview here.

Stream Raising Bertie for FREE here.