Gabrielle Schonder: Ultimately, we've got two very, very interesting men that are VP candidates this time around. They've got really unlikely backstories. There's a lot to delve into. In some cases, they're certainly lesser known than their running mates. And so, it was a real opportunity to introduce these men to the American audience.
Patrick Center: You profile each candidate. What are some of the standouts in their stances, their personalities, their character? What stands out to you?
Gabrielle Schonder: Yeah, I mean, certainly in the case of JD Vance, I mean, what a meteoric political rise, right? He, he arrives on the scene in 2016 on the heels of the success of his book, Hillbilly Elegy. And then really within a number of years becomes pretty politicized and interested in entering national politics. And goodness, here we are today in 2024, where he is sharing the ticket with a man, he previously had some pretty strong language about. So, it's just incredible. I mean, I think we've covered a lot of political stars at Frontline, but it's just really extraordinary to see someone achieve such prominence in such a short period of time. And then in the case of Governor Walz, I mean, I've been fortunate enough to cover Tim Walz since he was a congressman, and it's just extraordinary to see his rise within the Democratic Party to the level that he is now serving in and arriving at. And so, it's just, it's, I think we're just blown away as filmmakers and as reporters as to the meteoric pace of both of these men.
Patrick Center: We interviewed Michael Kirk two weeks ago before The Choice Harris v. Trump aired. And he made this interesting observation. And that is, if you go back to someone's early years when they're seven, when they're seven years old and you learn about them at that age, you can kind of see who they will become as people. Did you also come across this as you were going back in time and talking with people who knew them as children?
Gabrielle Schonder: It's a great question. I mean, we didn't delve back into backstory as early as The Choice did, but we certainly go back to in the case of JD Vance, his time in law school, it's talking to classmates and good friends at the time who remember him arriving at Yale Law School straight from Ohio State after he had served in the Marines. And he really kind of arrives in this elite institution that's just kind of unlike anything he's ever experienced. And so, it's fascinating to hear what he was like as a young law student. He took other veterans under his wing. He took several. folks who had served out for pizza to help sort of ease them into what life on campus was going to be like. And so, it is kind of fascinating to hear from close friends in the case of JD, you know, what he was like at these early periods, you know, what were sort of formative moments in young JD's life. And how did he become the man he is today? That's the blessing of the choice is that we really take you back into those stories. So, you understand sort of, all right, what were the definitive moments in each candidate's life?
Patrick Center: Who did you speak with who knew Tim Walz at an earlier stage in life and what did you learn?
Gabrielle Schonder: We talked to former students of Tim Walz's, students that had been coached by him and had been in his class. They talked to us about a teacher who was just incredibly invested in creating an atmosphere, creating a, just a special space for inquiry, also very an encouraging space for students that were struggling both academically and personally. And I think we all kind of remember those teachers from our childhood that really stood out to us, perhaps changed the course of our lives. You know, Tim Wohl's clearly had that effect on his students. And so that's a period we explore in the film. You know, we also spend a lot of time understanding what really motivated Tim Walls to run for political office at 40 years old with a young child at home, you know, after really a career in the National Guard and then a public school career as a teacher. And it was really the Iraq War, you know? And so, understanding the frustrations that Coach Walls felt at the time about the direction of the war, the impact of the war on young men. It was a real motivating point for him. He didn't like where things were headed. He attended a Bush rally at the time in Mankato, Minnesota. And, you know, he was barred from entering the rally where he was chaperoning students and he didn't like that. He didn't think that was very American, that didn't sort of sit well with him. And it really ended up being this kind of origin story for how Tim Walls decides, you know, I got to do something about this. I got to enter politics and do something about where democracy is headed.
Patrick Center: For anyone who says that, oh, the vice presidency, it doesn't really matter. What do you say to them?
Gabrielle Schonder: I really disagree. I mean, I find that both of these men are keen observers. They're incredibly intelligent. In the case of Tim Walz, he spent 12 years on the Hill in Washington. He knows how Congress works. He was a ranking member of Armed Services. I mean, there's something there that's reminiscent of the institutional knowledge that Vice President Joe Biden brought to the Obama presidency. I mean, when you have somebody who just knows how the town works, you're really primed to move things quickly and fast. There's less of a learning curve, I think. And then, you know, in the case of Senator Vance, you know, again, he's only been in the Senate for less than two years and yet has had an incredible mark. on the body. He's been responsible for trying to halt Ukraine aid, which is a real different position that the Republican Party has not sort of held. And so, you see two very active, thoughtful, engaged figures that I think will have outside influence in either administration. I think there's also been a lot of talk about what the future of the Republican Party looks like. And I think that it's very clear that JD Vance is someone who could inherit the future of the party and Trumpism beyond President Trump. It's really key that we sort of delve into the backstories and the histories of these two men to get to know them better.
Patrick Center: The scheduling of this program is interesting because we've had the debate. And typically, it flips the other way. The Choice will be on before a debate. So, for anybody who watched the debate, what should they be looking for watching this documentary?
Gabrielle Schonder: The debate in many ways seemed to harken back to a period before we had such intense…goodness, polarizing debates. I mean, debates were pretty straightforward up until recently, right? And now they've become something. completely different. And yet the VP debate was actually to me something that felt almost historical. I thought it was very cordial. I thought it was very Midwestern. You have two men that are really vying for this title of who's more authentic? And I think that in both cases, they both seem to be positioning themselves for an introduction to the American public. I am JD Vance. I am Tim Walz. This is who I am. There is a sense of we're still a bit unknown. And so, I would say if that was your on-ramp to these two men, you got to catch our film. You got to watch The Choice because it's going to take you back into those definitive informative moments in both of their lives that motivated them to enter politics initially. And, you know, it's just really key to understanding how they both ended up in these incredibly key roles with their running mates.
Patrick Center: FRONTLINE, The VP Choice: Vance vs. Walz airs tonight (Tuesday, October 8, 2024) at 10 o'clock on WGVU Public Television. Director, Gabrielle Schonder, thank you so much.
Gabrielle Schonder: Thank you so much, Patrick.