About Barnet Bain
Print Bio (150 Words)
In his new book How to Be a Friend (Wiley, 2025), award-winning filmmaker and author Barnet Bain invites readers to rediscover friendship as a spiritual and emotional lifeline in an increasingly divided world. Known to millions as the screenwriter (credited as Barnet Fishbein) of The Jesus Film—one of the most viewed movies of all time—Barnet’s career bridges faith, creativity, and consciousness. His producing credits include What Dreams May Come, The Celestine Prophecy, and Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story, and he wrote and directed Milton’s Secret based on Eckhart Tolle’s teachings.
A Columbia University and UCLA Extension educator, Barnet teaches creativity and compassion as pathways to authentic connection. His mission: to help us heal the friendship and loneliness crisis with curiosity, civility, and care.
Learn more at BarnetBain.com.
Broadcast Bio (200 Words)
Award-winning filmmaker and author Barnet Bain is helping audiences rediscover friendship as a sacred act of humanity. His new book, How to Be a Friend (Wiley, 2025), offers a timely and heartfelt exploration of connection in an age of loneliness and division.
Known to millions as the screenwriter (credited as Barnet Fishbein) of The Jesus Film—one of the most viewed and translated movies in history—Barnet’s work bridges faith, psychology, and creativity. His film credits include What Dreams May Come, The Celestine Prophecy, Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story, and Milton’s Secret, inspired by the teachings of Eckhart Tolle.
As an educator at Columbia University and UCLA Extension, Barnet teaches creativity and compassion as the foundation for meaningful relationships. His message is simple but profound: friendship isn’t something we have time for—it’s what we make time from.
He’s here to talk about how curiosity, civility, and genuine care can heal the friendship and loneliness crisis.
Suggested Question for Hosts:
You say friendship is a “spiritual practice” and not a “social skill.” What do you mean by that—and how can we start being better friends in our everyday lives?
In-Depth Bio (500 Words)
Award-winning filmmaker, author, and educator Barnet Bain is inviting the world to reimagine friendship as the heart of a healthy, humane society. In his new book, How to Be a Friend (Wiley, 2025), Barnet explores what it truly means to connect in a time when so many feel unseen, unheard, and alone.
Far from a “tips and tricks” approach, How to Be a Friend is a deep reflection on friendship as both an emotional and spiritual practice. Drawing from psychology, neuroscience, and decades of creative work exploring love and consciousness, Barnet shows that genuine friendship begins not with advice—but with awareness, curiosity, and care. “Being a friend,” he says, “isn’t about fixing or performing; it’s about being fully present.”
Barnet’s perspective is grounded in both storytelling and spiritual insight. Known to millions as the screenwriter (credited as Barnet Fishbein) of The Jesus Film—one of the most viewed and translated movies in history—he understands the universal power of compassion and faith to bridge divides. His later films, including What Dreams May Come (Academy Award® winner for Visual Effects), The Celestine Prophecy, Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story (Emmy nominee), and Milton’s Secret (based on the teachings of Eckhart Tolle), continue his lifelong exploration of love, healing, and human potential.
Through his work as a teacher at Columbia University and UCLA Extension, Barnet helps students, clinicians, and creative professionals rediscover their innate capacity for connection. His workshops and courses blend science and spirituality, helping people cultivate emotional intelligence, resilience, and the courage to meet others authentically.
At the heart of his teaching is a simple truth: friendship isn’t optional—it’s essential. Modern life, with its relentless pace and polarization, has left many people relationally impoverished. How to Be a Friend is Barnet’s answer to that crisis—a compassionate roadmap back to one another. The book explores how curiosity can replace judgment, how civility can bridge differences, and how genuine friendship strengthens not only emotional wellbeing but also physical health and longevity.
Barnet’s work has been featured in Oprah Daily, Psychology Today, CNN Health, Forbes, and The New York Times. Whether behind the camera, in the classroom, or on stage, he brings warmth, humor, and spiritual depth to every conversation—reminding audiences that healing begins not in grand gestures but in everyday acts of empathy.
A lifelong student of creativity and consciousness, Barnet believes friendship is the next frontier of human evolution. His mission is to help people move beyond isolation and performance into presence and connection—one relationship at a time.
Learn more at BarnetBain.com.