Heartland: Driven to Save Lives

A movie about a movement, this documentary looks at the Indiana Donor Network's mission to use race car drivers to inspire people to become organ donors.

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“Driven to Save Lives” is a movie about a movement, the Driven 2 Save Lives program of the Indiana Donor Network. Its mission is to use the sport of race car driving to inspire people to become organ donors, and in the years since its formation untold number of lives have been saved by people who signed up as a result.

It was born from tragedy: the 2015 death of Indy Car driver Justin Wilson, a charistmatic figure taken too son. But his death resulted in five people receiving tissue from him that saved their lives. His kid brother, Stefan, carries the torch today as a racer and advocate for the program.

Written and directed by Aaron Winneroski, “Driven” straddles the line between education, entertainment and outreach. It’s slick, well-done stuff featuring plenty of emotional moments and interviews with some famous names, including Ryan Newman, Pippa Man, Tony Kanaan and Speedway Prseident Doug Boles.

You might think that a partnership between the Indiana Donor Network and the sport of motor racing, one of the most dangerous in the world, might seem a natural fit. But CEO Steve Johnson and especially the family of Bryan Clauson, another IndyCar driver who was killed while taking a break to return to his first love of midget car racing on dirt tracks.

Bryan’s family didn’t even know he had registered as an organ donor until after doctors them he was brain dead. They found the heart symbol on his driver’s license while going through his personal effects, and actually approached the medical team before they had a chance to bring it up. As a result of Clauson’s donation, five people are living today.

Clauson’s father, Tim, mother Diana and sister, Taylor McLean, are the driving forces of Driven 2 Save Lives, and make for empathetic ambassadors of this terrific cause. Rather than focusing on the tragedy of his death, they’ve dedicated his memory to helping others.

During the course of the documentary, we also meet people who received organs, including Danny Ernstes, who got a kidney right as this film was wrapping postproduction, and Jess Schnur, who had a rare disorder. Both now work to promote Driven 2 Save Lives.

Away from the race track, we also made the family of Cade Frey, a Hoosier who tragically took his own life at the age of 18. His father, Mike, and mother, Jennifer, obviously struggle to process how such an upbeat, regular kid could have been motivated to such an act. But his health organs helped others, and they too have become advocates for donation.

No doubt the emotional high point of the film is when Bryan Clauson’s parents get to meet the receipients of his organs. When they place their hands on the chest of the man who received the heart so they can feel it beating, I defy you not to shed tears.