BLEEDING HEARTS Documentary on CHAPARELLE to Premiere at TIFF
Filmmaker Andrew Morgan follows musicians Zella Day and Jesse Woods through their first year as a couple.
A documentary centered on the Texas-based alt-country band CHAPARELLE is set to make its World Premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. Titled BLEEDING HEARTS and directed by Andrew Morgan, the film follows real-life couple Zella Day and Jesse Woods, the musicians behind CHAPARELLE, as they navigate the first year of their relationship while pursuing a shared career in music.
The festival runs September 10–20, 2026.
Directed by Andrew Morgan, the documentary is a rare look at two working musicians choosing to be fully seen, revealing an intimate, unvarnished portrait, not a highlight reel, of what it costs to chase something real with someone you love.
TIFF doc programmer Thom Powers said: “There's Bleeding Hearts, which is I think going to be a real discovery of both the filmmaker [Andrew Morgan] and the alternative country band Chaparelle, who's featured in this film. You don't get that many documentary love stories, but this is truly one in its portrait of the two main figures in Chaparelle, Zella Day and Jesse Woods. There are times watching this that I felt like it could have been a season of TV's Nashville, watching a young Rayna and Deacon on their journey in music.”
The official synopsis: A music-driven love story about real-life couple Zella Day and Jesse Woods, the musicians behind the emerging band Chaparelle. Following their first year together, the film captures the joy and uncertainty of chasing a shared dream while navigating pressures that could spark their breakup—or their breakthrough.
According to the film's synopsis, BLEEDING HEARTS captures the joy and uncertainty of pursuing a shared dream amid pressures that could lead to either a breakup or a breakthrough for the couple. TIFF documentary programmer Thom Powers described the film as a love story centered on Zella Day and Jesse Woods, comparing their journey to that of characters on the television series Nashville.
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