EIF and MPTF Join Divided We Fail

Hollywood's leading nonprofit organizations, the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF) and the Motion Picture & Television Fund (MPTF), have joined "Divided We Fail" to bring attention to the domestic issues that worry Americans most: health care and financial security. This unprecedented three-year collaboration seeks bipartisan cooperation in finding solutions.

"We are thrilled to have EIF and MPTF join us," said Bill Novelli, CEO of AARP. "This nation's health care and financial security crisis is about to explode: 47 million Americans have no health insurance, and more middle-class people are filing for bankruptcy because of health care-related expenses than for any other reason. We need to build a national conversation around these issues, and the entertainment industry is uniquely suited to help us do that," he said. "We must get everyone -- individuals, companies, and policymakers -- involved, regardless of their political persuasion. Only then will we be able to address these very serious challenges successfully."

A broadcast public service announcement (PSA), featuring a diverse lineup of celebrities who call attention to the need for affordable, quality health care for all Americans, is the initial step in the broad-ranging collaboration. Directed by actor and director Tony Goldwyn -- grandson of legendary producer and EIF Founder Samuel Goldwyn -- with music composed by Philip Glass, the PSA features Ben Affleck, Garth Brooks, Dakota Fanning, Morgan Freeman, Eva Mendes, Joaquin Phoenix, Jeremy Piven and Reese Witherspoon.

"The entertainment industry's leadership felt that we could make a major contribution to Divided We Fail," said MPTF Foundation Chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg. "Hollywood can call attention to these problems and help galvanize the public into taking action, which is a key first step in solving them. We're very grateful to Tony Goldwyn and all the performers who got the ball rolling by volunteering their time to appear in the PSA."

EIF and MPTF have long histories of working in the health care arena. EIF, which was founded in 1942 by Samuel Goldwyn, runs national initiatives to increase awareness of critical health care issues and raises millions of dollars for medical research. The 86 year-old MPTF is a major provider of health and human services for entertainment community members.

Tony Goldwyn, who directed the PSA said, "When I heard about the Divided We Fail project, I was really attracted to it. I thought, 'This is exactly what I've been thinking.' And I know it's what a lot of other Americans have been thinking too. People wind up feeling that the two sides are just too far apart; that these problems are so big and complex that we can't fix them. What we're saying is, if we all get together and start talking, we can. Going forward, the entertainment industry will work to get these issues front and center for everyone by doing what we do best, telling the stories of real Americans who are struggling with these problems."