Voiceover: Movies that Move Us
Voiceover: Movies that Move Us is a film-focused podcast hosted by Heather Bigley, a former academic and film teacher with a doctorate in Film Studies. In each episode, guests share the cinematic moments that changed their lives and the films that taught them something about themselves. Heather brings history, philosophy, and behind-the-scenes insight to a wide range of movies, from golden age classics like Wild Strawberries to blockbusters like Terminator 2 and small indie releases. The show explores how films can move us, mentor us, and occasionally illuminate something deeper.
Episodes
TRAILER: Voiceover — Movies that Move Us
What movies taught you about life? Showed you truths you didn’t know you needed to hear?
Join Heather Bigley, a former academic and film teacher, and the host of Voiceover: Movies that Move Us—the podcast where films have an impact. Each episode, our guests share the cinematic moments that changed their lives. We want to learn from those silver screen experiences, and so we share those moments wi
Bonus — Check Out These May/June Movies on BYUtv!
Heather chats about three films playing on BYUtv: It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, The King's Speech, and Young Victoria. Hear a few things to look for in each of them and a little behind the scenes info about how they were made.
Every month BYUtv adds new movies to their movie collection, available on the BYUtv app. Simply sign in and watch any number of films for free.
10 Commandments: Moving Stained Glass
What if The Ten Commandments isn't really the movie we remember it being? Seventy years later, Cecil B DeMille's biblical epic reveals something fascinating about old Hollywood, Technicolor, religious imagery, and the power of movies to feel genuinely sacred.
In this conversation, Chloe Donaldson joins Heather to revisit The Ten Commandments starring Charlton Heston, Yul Brynner and Anne Baxter a
Heroism & Resilience of 9/11: An Interview with Michael Gier
What if the most important 9/11 stories are not the ones you already know? Michael Gier explains why his new 9/11 documentary looks beyond the attacks to the untold stories of heroism, resilience, service, and second chances that followed.
In this Voiceover interview, Gier discusses The Heroism and Resiliency of 9/11, his nearly five-year filmmaking process, 35 hours of interviews, and the decisi
Hit the Road: Exile & Goodbye
A chaotic family sings, jokes, and bickers across Iran—but the trip is hiding a goodbye none of them can face. Hit the Road turns a familiar family road movie into a devastating story of exile, censorship, love, and the lies people tell to survive.
In this film commentary conversation, photographer and artist Maya June Mansour joins Heather Bigley to unpack Panah Panahi’s Hit the Road, its connec
Dr. Strangelove
Dr Strangelove was supposed to make nuclear war look absurd. Decades later, one of its darkest inventions no longer looks like fiction.
Nuclear disarmament activist Jim Thomas revisits Stanley Kubrick’s
legendary Cold War satire and explains what the film got frighteningly right. From nuclear
deterrence, mutual assured destruction, Golden Dome, the Doomsday Clock and the renewed nuclear arms race,
Hotel Rwanda: Constrained Choices
Chelsea Allen, a producer at Ninth Mode Media, revisits Hotel Rwanda with Heather, discussing how she's changed since she first saw the film as an idealistic high schooler.
Hotel Rwanda (Terry George, 2004) asks a question most viewers think they can answer—until fear, family, and survival enter the room. Rewatching the film as an adult reveals why “Never Again” is not merely a promise but a tes
Spartacus: Vicious v Virtuous
Philosopher Barry Lam joins Heather for a chat about Spartacus (Kubrick, 1960).
Spartacus is remembered as a massive Hollywood epic, but its most dangerous idea has little to do with gladiator battles. This conversation reveals why Stanley Kubrick’s 1960 film is really about human dignity, political power, freedom, and something Roman elites can never understand.
Starring Kirk Douglas, Laurence
Red Turtle: Trapped by Beauty
Kelly Loosli, co-founder of the BYU Animation Program, discusses The Red Turtle (Dudok de Wit, 2017) and how it's a film with "spirit."
The Red Turtle looks like a survival story, but its real escape may have nothing to do with leaving the island. This Studio Ghibli co-production uses almost no dialogue to turn loneliness, nature, love, and loss into a mystery that keeps changing the longer you s
Apollo 13: Career Day
Sarah Ruiz, aerospace engineer, describes how Apollo 13 (Ron Howard, 1995) propelled her toward a career with NASA.
Apollo 13 was nominated for 9 Academy Awards and won for Best editing and Sound. Based on the 1994 book Lost Moon: The Perilous Voyage of Apollo 13, the film details how the three astronauts on Apollo 13 were forced to abandon their mission to land on the Moon and instead return to
Empire of the Sun: Fantasy & Erasure
Jenny Chan of Pacific Front Untold podcast joins Heather to discuss Asian representation--they focus their remarks on Empire of the Sun (Spielberg, 1987).
Empire of the Sun stars a young Christian Bale in a historical war drama about the Japanese invasion of Shanghai in 1941 and a boy caught in a concentration camp with other British colonials. But the film is emblematic of challenges in other A
The Hunger Games: Gen Z Canon
Two Gen Z all-stars join Heather to discuss whether the Hunger Games influenced them or not as young people.
Claire and Cyrus were once members of the high school chess team and they bring with them a long-term friendship that informs today's chat. Watch them react to each each other as much as they react to the films under discussion.
Claire Cirelli is a software engineer in Phoenix, with a B
Ikiru: Sustaining Change
Gareth Higgins, a Reconciliation scholar from Belfast, Ireland, talks to Heather about Akira Kurosawa's Ikiru (1952), a film about a city bureaucrat who decides to build a playground for a local women's group.
While Akira Kurosawa is best known for his samurai films, Ikiru won the Silver Bear at the Berlin Film Festival.
Gareth Higgins' most recent book, co-authored with Kathleen Norris, is A W
Bonus. Chief of War: Hawaiian Spirituality
Kawika Allen and Leone Saaga joined Heather for a bonus discussion about Chief of War (2024) and Hawaiian spirituality.
Chief of War is a limited series created by Jason Momoa for Apple TV that tells how the Hawaiian islands were unified under Kamehameha in the face of encroaching Western colonialism.
Chief of War has won multiple awards, including from the Critic's Choice for Social Impact.
Rebecca: Twisted Fairy-Tale
Nina McConigley talks to Heather about her new novel How to Commit a Post-Colonial Murder (Pantheon, 2026) and how her feelings have changed about Alfred Hitchcock's Rebecca (1941).
Rebecca is an adaptation of Daphne du Maurier’s 1938 novel, which is itself a reworking of Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre, from 1847. And we only just realized that in this interview!
Nina McConigley's short story col
Little Women: Mother Wisdom
Aubrey Chaves chats with Heather about how Little Women influenced her as a young woman and how the film reads today, especially the power and wisdom of Marmee. They chat about which sister they identified with (as you do) and the stacked cast that made this film great.
Aubrey Chaves serves on the executive board of the Faith Matters Foundation and co-hosts its weekly podcast with her husband, T
Night of the Hunter: Modern Parable
Abby Olcese talks to Heather about Night of the Hunter (Laughton, 1955): the director's motivation, the use of music, the film's massive influence, and why it's a Christmas movie.
Abby Olcese is the author of Films for All Seasons: Experiencing the Church Year at the Movies. She is also the film editor for The Pitch, a website and magazine serving the greater Kansas City, Missouri, area.
LOTR: Family Culture
Movies can become part of your family's identity in a profound way. Heather chatted with her friend Kathy about how Kathy instituted LOTR Day, first as a chance to recover from the intensity of the December holiday onslaught, and then as a way to bring her family closer together.
Kathy Weinzinger is a Senior Executive Assistant at Northern Arizona University’s Center for International Education.
Charulata: Silence & Subtext
Oindrila Mukherjee talks to Heather about Charulata, directed by Satyajit Ray from 1964 and adapted from Rabindranath Tagore’s 1901 novel Nastanir or The Broken Nest. The main character Charu was married before puberty and now as a young woman in her 20s, she blossoms as a writer under the guidance of her husband's cousin. But the film is a tragedy as it examines what it means for a woman to awake
Field of Dreams: Defining Heaven
It's spring! That means baseball is in season. Cleon Wall joins Heather to discuss Field of Dreams (1989) and how the film attempts to show us what forgiveness, faith, and heaven can be in our lives.
Cleon Wall produces Sports Programming at BYUradio and in the past was a sports journalist and podcaster for KSL.
West Side Story: Perfect Tragedy
Elizabeth Hansen, founder and owner of Dramafy, joins Heather for a discussion of the Leonard Bernstein classic West Side Story (1961) that includes why musicals reach us so deeply and who the real underdog is of this urban tragedy.
West Side Story was the highest grossing film of 1961 and won 10 Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor & Actress, Art Direction, Cinemato
Earth 1947: Unity is a Choice
Raj Mankad, Deputy Opinion Editor at the Houston Chronicle, talks to Heather about what Deepa Mehta's 1998 film Earth meant to him during America's Iraq & Afghanistan wars and what it means to him now.
They chat about immigration, violence, and religious engagement, and why Raj wanted his teenage son to watch this movie with him.
As deputy opinion editor at the Houston Chronicle, Raj Mankad wo
Band of Brothers: Leadership, Sacrifice, & Care
Dr. Lee Harms, former Army Chaplain, talks to Heather about his connection to Band of Brothers (2001), a limited series created by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg. The series is adapted from Stephen Ambrose’s research of "Easy" Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division.
Easy Company landed at Normandy during World War II’s D-day and then spent the ne
Hamnet: Expressing Grief
Liberty Barnes, sociologist and ethnographer, joins Heather to discuss Hamnet (Zhao, 2025) and how the film demonstrates the importance of expressing grief.
Liberty is the author of the forthcoming The Children’s Hospital: Healing America with Pediatric Love (Oxford University Press), which is the story of the development and culture of pediatric hospitals in the United States. It is also the st
Terms of Endearment: Real Life with Movie Stars
Hubbel Palmer joins Heather to discuss Terms of Endearment, a film that premiered the year his mother died of cancer. Hubbel and Heather discuss whether male writers can capture the honesty of women's lives.
Hubbel Palmer is an American screenwriter. He is best known for writing A Minecraft Movie; Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life; Masterminds; and the Oscar-nominated short film Ninety-F
Paddington II: Looking for the Good
Lex Rofeberg introduces Heather to Paddington II. They talk about how Paddington II is more than a delightful children's tale—it's a mirror reflecting our society's complexities. They analyze its commentary on immigration, incarceration, and the goodness in every person. And most importantly, Lex discusses how children's art can inspire us to be kinder and more connected in our communities.
Lex
Dads on Film
Heather reflects on how films have shaped her understanding of fatherhood, using five informal categories of movie dads: noble single fathers, absent dads, dead dads, and unprepared dads.
Heather explores the tensions between fathers’ responsibilities to their children, their communities, and their own identities. These cinematic fathers, though exaggerated like modern fairy tales, tap into de
Knives Out: Searching for Truth
Adam Jortner joins Heather to discuss Knives Out and the search for truth in the movie mystery genre and our lives today.
Adam Jortner is a history professor by day and in his off hours a film instructor with Great Courses, where he explains the importance and history of the horror genre.
Rom Coms Ruined Me
Shane Seggar joins Heather to talk about feeling shut out from the rom com experience in the 1990s.
Today they tackle Sleepless in Seattle, While You Were Sleeping, and Notting Hill, some of the biggest romcoms of the decade. They also compare to the 2025 films Eternity and Materialists.
Shane Seggar once worked in the film industry as an assistant director and location manager. Now he works wit
Bonus — Testament of Ann Lee
The Testament of Ann Lee is up for discussion on our first episode of season 2. Directed by Mona Fastvold (The World to Come, The Brutalist), the movie tells the story of Ann Lee, the leader of a Shaker group that journeyed to the American colonies in the 18th century.
Heather talks to Caroline Johnson, whose research on the Shakers reveals what's historically accurate and what's not. More impor
Extra — 2026 Movies
Here is what has caught Heather's eye, coming to a theater near you in 2026. Plus, movies turning 25 this year.
Extra — Movies are Better Than Books
Heather wades into the debate about whether movies are better than books. Check out our YouTube channel for the full video experience.
Extra — James: Casting a Book
Heather discusses the 2024 Novel "James" by Percival Everett and its potential cast for the upcoming film rumored to be directed by Taika Waititi. Added bonus: Heather talks about key things to consider when casting a movie.
The book "James" is a rework of the American classic "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" from the perspective of Jim and won the 2025 Pulitzer Prize for fiction.
Bonus — Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out 3 Review
Heather heard there was a sincere discussion of religiosity in the satiric Wake Up Dead Man [Knives Out 3]. So she made the sacrifice for a 10am ticket at her local theater and watched the film to help prep you for the Netflix drop. What do you think? Is the film arguing for the benefits of religion, even if there have been so many problems created by religious institution and religious people (se
It's a Wonderful Life: Empathy & Sacrifice
Brian Tanner joins Heather to share how the empathy, sacrifice, and despair of the Christmas classic It's a Wonderful Life continue to resonate with him and audiences generally.
Brian is the producer of Kaboom, an audio drama anthology podcast, and Winner of 4 Signal Awards, including Best Kids Podcast, Best Road Trip Podcast, and Best Writing (Fiction)!
Hidden Figures: Genius in Action
Simran Jeet Singh joins Heather to discuss Hidden Figures (Melfi, 2016) and how the film has meant even more to him as the father of daughters.
Hidden Figures stars Taraji P Henson, Octavia Spencer, and Janelle Monae as Katherine Goble Johnson, Dorothy Vaughn, and Mary at NASA whose work helped America win the 20th century Space Race against the USSR.
Simran Jeet Singh is an Assistant Profes
Bonus — Truth and Treason: Defying Fascism
It's a bonus episode here on Voiceover--this time Heather is in conversation with Matt Whitaker, writer, director, and producer of Truth & Treason. The film is currently in theaters, distributed by Angel Studios.
You can also see a 4-episode cut of the same material on Angel's streaming platform.
Matt Whitaker's previous writing credits include: Saints & Soldiers (2003), Work & The Glory II & I
Song of the Sea: Motherless Children
Today's movie is Song of the Sea from Irish animation company Cartoon Saloon and Heather is joined by Rev Dani Lee at St. Mary's Episcopal and her bestie Oana Stan, who called in from Romania.
Song of the Sea is about siblings, Ben and Saoirse, who have lost their mother—she is a selkie, a creature who can shape-shift between human and seal form. It's got gorgeous animation and is haunting and lo
The Color Purple: Sisterhood and Survival
Brian McLaren discusses The Color Purple (Spielberg, 1985) and what he learned about redemption and forgiveness.
The film is an adaptation from The Color Purple by Alice Walker. Originally published in 1982, the book won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award. It’s a book of letters, from the main character Celie to God, as she tries to understand the brutality of her life. T
The Outsiders: Becoming Yourself
Kaleigh Cohen talks through The Outsiders (Francis Ford Coppola, 1983), the main stay of her after-school decompression process when she was 12.
We explore the movie's themes of authenticity, friendship, and overcoming adversity. and even dive into 'Napoleon Dynamite' and 'Forrest Gump' because of their similar themes of outsiders embracing their uniqueness.
Kaleigh Cohen creates free cycling
Bonus — Jack Ryan: Muslim Represention
Uzma Jafri and return guest Kevin Blankenship discuss Season 1 of Jack Ryan on Amazon Prime and how the show has been a bee in Uzma's bonnet, or a hornet in her hijab, for a while now.
Jack Ryan Season 1 was seen by 40% of Prime members its first year on the platform, which makes it an important artifact when discussing Muslim representation in American media.
We discuss negative stereotypes, I
Remember the Titans: Brotherhood & Race
Rob Taber talks about Remember the Titans, the first sports movie featured on Voiceover!
This 2000 classic about integration in 1970s Virginia stars Denzel Washington and Will Patton as two coaches who must unify high school football players divided by race and racism.
We cover community building, historical films, teaching leadership, and crying in sports movies.
Rob Taber has taught history
Now & Then: Female Friendships
Nava Kavelin of Ninth Mode Media and Podcrushed talks to me about Now & Then, a movie that felt so real to her as an 11-year old that she was embarrassed to see it with her parents.
Now & Then is about the summer of 1970, experienced by four 12-year olds on the cusp of teenage-hood. Starring Christina Ricci, Gaby Hoffman, and Thora Birch, the film wants to bring authentic female friendships to th
The Fountain: Death & Awe
Danor Gerald discusses Darren Aronfsky's The Fountain, a visually stunning film, about accepting death as a way to understand life.
In The Fountain, Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz play three different couples tied to each other over time, embattled by different desperate challenges, and trying to find a way to understand death. The Fountain is celebrated for its practical effects, made with macro
Bonus Nobody Wants This
Rabbi Lex Rofeberg from Judaism Unbound talks through American Jewish Representation in the Netflix series Nobody Wants This, starring Kristen Bell and Adam Brody. The show was a massive sensation in 2024, season 2 premieres in Oct 2025.
Lex shares what he sees as missed opportunities in Season 1 and what he hopes for Season 2. It's a great conversation that covers interfaith dating and marriage
Malcolm X: Controversy & Transformation
Haroon Moghul shares why Malcolm X is the film he recommends for every American Muslim.
Malcolm X (Spike Lee, 1992) avoids hagiography and instead looks at the complex, controversial American civil rights leader who transforms as he embraces Islam.
Haroon Moghul is the Founder and President of Queen City Diwan, a company that leads immersive travel experiences and hosts global leadership progr
Les Innocents: Women Helping Women
Liberty Barnes discusses a French film about women's trauma during WWII and how difficult films can help us build empathy.
Les Innocents (2016) is about a French doctor in Poland who discovers that a local convent is dealing with the aftermath of Soviet assault--many of the nuns are pregnant and must reconcile their religious vocation with their lived experience.
Liberty Barnes, PhD, is a medic
The Taste of Things: Gifts of Food & Love
Justin Petrisek from Notre Dame discusses The Taste of Things (Tran Anh Hung, 2023)--the anti-Iron Chef film known for its gorgeous cinematography and the way it contemplates devotion and commitment.
Starring Juliete Binoche as the masterful cuisinière who communicates through her exquisite meals, the film also asks, what does it mean to be a partner?
Justin Petrisek is at Notre Dame and serves
Barabbas: God's Shadow
Richard Lindsay discusses Barabbas (1961), a Hollywood Biblical epic starring Anthony Quinn as the criminal released by Pilate in the New Testament story of Jesus' crucifixion. The film engages with the existential crisis of freedom and the cackling Jack Palance--talk about tonal shift!
Richard Lindsay is the Program Director at the Blackfriars Gallery in Berkeley, California, where he curates a
Bonus — In the Company of Change: A Nun's Influence
Morgan Atkinson discusses his latest film In the Company of Change, about the Urseline nuns in Louisville KY.
The filmmaker explores the challenges that face the order in an era of declining vocations and uses the life of Sister Martha Buser as a lens through which to view changes of the past 60-plus years in the religious and cultural landscape of America.
Morgan Atkinson has made films for o
Bank of Dave: Community Riches
Meli Solomon discusses Bank of Dave (2023), based on a true story about a UK man who wants to open a local bank to help his neighbors but also to challenge the British banking system.
It's the kind of film that might have been made in the 1940s, with Jimmy Stewart in the lead--or wait, maybe they did?
Meli Solomon is the host of the Living Our Beliefs podcast and the researcher behind the Talki
Lage Raho Munna Bai: Fake it Til You Make It
James Goldberg discusses the highly decorated Lage Raho Munna Bai, a Bombai film about living like Gandhi in the modern day.
James Goldberg is an American poet, playwright, essayist, novelist, documentary filmmaker, scholar, and translator who specializes in Mormon literature.
The Dark Knight: Good, Evil, & Chaos
Kevin Blankinship discusses the evolution of The Batman and how The Dark Knight offers us blurred lines and shades of grey to better understand redemption.
Kevin Blankinship is an expert in Arabic and the Middle East who has written and published widely. You can find his work, including his poetry, in the likes of Journal of Arabic Literature, New Lines Magazine, Lapham’s Quarterly, and the Los
Bonus — Under the Banner of Heaven: LDS Representation
Heather & Ian chat with McKay Coppins and Benjamin Park about the Hulu 2023 limited-series adapation of Jon Krakauer's Under the Banner of Heaven.
Contact: Translating the Unknown
Becca Hurley Luong shares how Contact's message of peace and unity continues to teach her.
Becca Hurley Luong is a linguist, writer, and comedian. She produces The Lisa Show and Council of Moms at BYUradio.
Philomena: Forgiving the Past
Producer Matthew Janzen shares Philomena, a film that challenges our perceptions of forgiveness and truth.
Matthew Janzen is the Head of Film at ACE Entertainment, which produces Gen Z & Millenial feature films and tv series. Previously he was the Senior Vice President of Production & Development at Lionsgate.
The Wiz: Finding Courage
Robert Monson shares why this 1978 musical still resonates today and explores its themes of spirituality, community, and empowerment.
Robert Monson is a writer, musician, and scholar that looks closely at Black and womanist theologies as well as Black disability theology. He is currently a PhD student and is a host for two podcasts: Black Coffee and Theology and Three Black Men: Theology, Culture
Bonus — Book of Clarence: Black Jesus at the Movies
Multi-talent Danor Gerald joins Ian and me to work through Jeymes Samuel's 2024 Book of Clarence, a sword and sandal movie with an all-Black cast. What does this movie get right and why didn't it connect with Black audiences?
Danor Gerald is an actor, director, writer, and producer, as well as the President of Monark Media, PC, and Chief Creative Officer at Brand One Media, llc. He also co-hosts
Bye Bye Tiberias: Mother & Daughters
Cinema curator Marie-Laure Oscarson shares Bye Bye Tiberias (Lina Soualem, 2023) about the relationship of mother and daughter against the backdrop of war, displacement, exile, and autonomy.
Marie-Laure Julien Oscarson is a native of France who has been living in Utah the last couple decades. She has always been a film enthusiast. She remembers learning English watching classic American films on
Beasts of the Southern Wild: Authentic Childhood
Educator Evan Martin-Casler dives deep on childhood in the movies with a discussion of Ben Zeitlin's 2012 Beasts of the Southern Wild, a handmade movie that resulted in an Oscar nomination for six-year-old Quvenzhané Wallis.
Stay tuned for more coming-of-age movie recs at the end!
Evan Martin-Casler is teaching faculty at the University of Arizona and holds an MA from Tufts University in Diversity
A Room with a View: Falling In Love
Lisa Valentine Clark shares the romance A Room with A View.
Bonus — Conclave: Catholic Representation
Justin Petrisek of Notre Dame joins Ian and Heather to work through Edward Berger's 2024 Conclave, and how the film portrays Catholics, the papacy, and spiritual life.
Dune 2: The Forks in the Road
Heather teams up with In Good Faith host (and her boss!) Steven Kapp Perry for an examination of Denis Villeneuve's 2024 Dune 2.
Wild Strawberries: Living a Worthy Life
Heather zooms with film professor Sharon Swenson about Ingmar Berman's 1957 Wild Strawberries, the iconic Swedish film about reconsidering the life you've lived. Sharon also throws in a thought or two about why action films are under-valued and what makes Terminator 2 so awesome.
Stay tuned for more recommends of films that consider what a life is for.
Sharon Swenson spent 30 years teaching fi
How Do You Know: Recovering Yourself
Heather chats with sociologist Liberty Barnes about James L. Brooks' 2010 How Do You Know and how the film changed for her after she recovered from breast cancer.
Listen to the end for more rom-com recommendations!
Liberty Barnes, PhD, is a medical sociologist and ethnographer, whose first book, Conceiving Masculinity, won the 2015 Sociology of Health and Illness Book of the Year Prize. She hol
Arrival: Approaching Joy
Heather sits down with film professional Ian Puente from InTension Industries to discuss Denis Villeneuve's 2016 Arrival, and what the film has to say about spirituality and joy, as well as heptapods, language acquisition, and some familiar scriptures.
Listen to the end for suggestions of other films you might like if Arrival is one of your favorites.
Ian Puente as helped grow several indepen
