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Pray Away: New Trailer delves into the Scary History of Exodus International

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Sometimes reality is scarier than fiction.

Directed by Kristine Stolakis, the new trailer for Pray Away tells the story of the development of Exodus International. In the new footage, the trailer focuses on the damage left behind when one tries to erase another’s story. By using theology as a hammer, those involved at Exodus denied the gay community their identity and left a broken imprint in their lives.

Pray Away begins almost 50 years ago. According to the site’s description, “In the 1970s, five men struggling with being gay in their Evangelical church started a bible study to help each other leave the “homosexual lifestyle.” They quickly received over 25,000 letters from people asking for help and formalized as Exodus International, the largest and most controversial conversion therapy organization in the world.
But leaders struggled with a secret: their own “same-sex attractions” never went away.

After years as Christian superstars in the religious right, many of these men and women have come out as LGBTQ, disavowing the very movement they helped start. Focusing on the dramatic journeys of former conversion therapy leaders, current members, and a survivor, Pray Away chronicles the “ex-gay” movement’s rise to power, persistent influence, and the profound harm it causes.”

At first glance, the names Ryan Murphy and Jason Blum are the ones that may seem most surprising in their attachment to the film. Known primarily for their efforts in the horror genre, a documentary about conversion therapy doesn’t appear to fit in their wheelhouse (or Blumhouse, if you will) at first glance. However, one can certainly see these influences on display in the latest trailer. Though only a trailer, this is clearly a film that is going to delve into the terrifying and traumatic abuse of the LGBTQ+ population at the hands of the evangelical community. In this way, the film may be even scarier than American Horror Story or anything that the Blumhouse has to offer. After all, this story isn’t fiction. This is history.

Pray Away comes to Netflix on August 3rd, 2021.

To view the trailer for Pray Away, click here.

The Best of AFI Docs 2021

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Now that AFI Docs has wrapped up, it’s time to see the winners and to make note of my favorites.

Here are the award winners from the festival:

AUDIENCE AWARD: FEATURE

STORM LAKE

DIRS: Jerry Risius and Beth Levision. For 30 years, in Storm Lake, Iowa, Art Cullen and his family have been publishing a Pulitzer Prize-winning local newspaper. But, with newspapers everywhere going extinct, how long can they keep it up?

AUDIENCE AWARD: SHORT

SHELTER

DIR: Smriti Mundhra. A verité documentary that follows three young children and their families as they grapple with housing insecurity in Los Angeles.

SHORT FILM GRAND JURY PRIZE

RED TAXI

DIR: Anonymous. As protests in Hong Kong escalate, taxi drivers experience a city in upheaval driving the streets day and night. Anonymously filmed by locals.

SHORT FILM SPECIAL JURY PRIZE

THE COMMUNION OF MY COUSIN ANDREA

DIR: Brandán Cerviño Abeledo. Andrea’s First Communion ceremony lacks glamour. For Andrea, things without sparkles are meaningless.

SHORT FILM SPECIAL JURY PRIZE

S P A C E S (M E Z E R Y)

DIR: Nora Štrbová. A multi-textured animated exploration of memory as a container of identity, based on the personal story of the filmmaker and her brother who was diagnosed with a brain tumor.

I have my own personal favorites. Storm Lake was among my favorites, along with My Name Is Pauli Murrayand the episodes that were shown of 9/11: One Day in America (that one was a surprise to me).

Among the Shorts, my favorites were When We Were Bullies, and two that I think need to be paired together: Under the Lemon Tree and Mission:Hebron.

It was a very good set of films throughout the festival. My thanks to AFI and to all the sponsors for allowing me to cover the festival.

Looking Ahead to AFI Docs

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One of my favorite film industry events is the annual AFI Fest in the fall. It always has a collection of the best films of the year. The American Film Institute has another important festival each year, AFI Docs, that centers on documentary films. AFI Docs usually takes place in Maryland (close to Washington, DC, since political issues are often central to documentaries), but this year it is a hybrid festival with live screenings as well as online availability of the films.

AFI Docs is a bit shorter than AFI Fest. The program begins Tuesday night, June 22 with a showing of Naomi Osaka. A full set of films begins releasing on Wednesday, with the festival finishing on Sunday, June 27. Some of the feature films I’m planning on taking in are  The First Step, a story of the workings of the political world, Fathom, about humpback whales, LFG, focusing on the US Women’s Soccer Team’s lawsuit for equal pay, The Lost Leonardo, about a surprise discovery of a DaVinci painting, Pray Away, a look at those who try to “cure” homosexuality, and many others over a wide range of subjects.

There are also a few documentary series that will be previewed at AFI Docs. 9/11: One Day in America looks at one of the darkest days in American history. Obama: In Pursuit of a More Perfect Union looks at Barak Obama’s journey from the Illinois State House to the White House. Some of the episodes of these will be shown.

There are also industry forums that address issues facing documentary filmmakers and the changing landscape for the industry. One I’m looking forward to will speak of how documentaries can help shape the conversation about race in America.

There will also be several programs of short documentaries covering sports, science, everyday life, war and peace, and the kinds of dreams people had during the COVID-19 pandemic. Shorts can always bring incredible insights. Each day when I report of what I’ve seen, I’ll include of few notes on some of the shorts.

But wait, you don’t necessarily need me to tell you what has happened at AFI Docs. As I note above, this festival is virtual! You can watch some of these films at home. Some of the screenings and all of the industry forums are free (but you must get a ticket). Go to https://docs.afi.com/how-to-fest/ to learn more about being part of AFI Docs this year. Then we can compare notes.

Academy Awards 2021: Boseman Loss Shows Why We Still Do (and Don’t) Need the Oscars

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It wasn’t supposed to go like that.

After unexpectedly re-arranging the schedule to push Best Picture up and let the acting categories shine, the Academy clearly wanted to send a message. With the foregone conclusion that Chadwick Boseman would posthumously take Best Actor for his work in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, it was going to definitively celebrate a young man who was taken from us far too soon after losing his battle with cancer last year. 

An African-American man. 

Black Panther.

The significance of the moment was going to be a victory to end that night that would be both emotional and satisfying. After all, at a moment when Black culture is looking for heroes, a Chadwick victory would have been a symbolic statement in honour of a young man who had become a beacon of hope for many, sending viewers home with a truly feel-good moment.

Well, we all know how that went.

After Phoenix announced Anthony Hopkins as Best Actor to close out the show, the shock was palpable. The room was fairly quiet. Phoenix had to fumble through an awkward acceptance on Hopkins behalf as he was the only nominee not available. Of course, Twitter erupted. (In some ways, you almost feel bad for Hopkins. At home in Wales, even HE didn’t think he was going to win. If I were him, I likely would have slept through the ceremony as well.)

In a moment that felt like the reverse of the La La Land/Moonlight fiasco of a few years ago, the ‘feel-good’ finale completely backfired.

Within seconds, people took to their social media and responded accordingly. Outrage! Fury! Cancel! The response was completely understandable—and expected. After all, around this time, it’s almost tradition for people to take to the inter-webs to complain about the Oscars and the choices that they proclaim are ‘Best’. People decry from the rooftops that the films the Academy selects show their irrelevancy (and, sometimes, that’s a totally fair complaint). Comments like ‘this is why I don’t care about the Oscars’ flood social media with tsunami-like force.

But the irony is that same blow-up on the Twitter-verse shows that people still do care.

While people may either be happy or furious, the fact that the reactions to these awards are so strong suggests that there’s still an interest in the results. For over 90 years, the Academy Awards have been the ‘standard’ by which success in the industry has been measured. To win an Oscar is considered one of the highest honours in the industry and, even though culture has changed a lot in recent years (and continues to do so), there remains a respect for that golden statue that continues to endure. To win an Oscar still says something. 

They matter because they matter to us.

The reason people were upset about Chadwick losing the award is not because Hopkins didn’t deserve it but rather that it meant something to them. Hopkins turned in the performance of the lifetime in the role but a Chadwick victory would have felt not only poignant but powerful. With his career still reaching his potential before his death, Chadwick still felt like someone that people could relate to, especially amongst the Black community. A win for him seemed like it would have felt like another win for them.

And it might have.

But, if the awards truly didn’t matter to anyone outside the industry, no one would have cared. There would have been no outcry or frustration. It would have simply passed on from the cultural zeitgeist and landed on the entertainment pages… not the front page… 

The problem may be that we’ve given too much credibility to the Academy. Though filled with over 1000 industry professionals, with this responsibility comes the expectation that it will represent the values of the people and the time. The truth is that they don’t always. Yes, they strive for representation and want to speak the voice of a culture. That’s why these films matter as much as Marvel films or alien invasions. They connect with a heartbeat that speaks the cries of our world.

But they don’t always speak for you and I. How could they?

With this in mind, the loss by Chadwick shows that, maybe, we don’t need the Oscars to play the same role in our culture. The truth is that, while considered the highest heights of the industry, the loss to Hopkins does not take away from his performance (or career) in any way. So many of history’s best films and performances were never recognized by the Academy. Citizen Kane, Raging Bull, Do The Right Thing, Pulp Fiction and innumerable others were robbed of ‘Oscar glory’ yet remain the most influential films of the last century. (And let’s not forget Delroy Lindo from the list of snubs this year…)

Regardless of who the Academy chooses to take home the gold, Chadwick Boseman will be remembered.

He matters. And he’s as important as he was yesterday.

I admit it. I love the Oscars. I love the pageantry, the music and the speeches. Unlike many, I love the fact that winners use the platform to speak their hearts about issues that matter to them. (I mean, they’ve been given a voice. They should use it.) I even love my Oscar pool with friends.

Ultimately though, they don’t determine which films or performances matter most. Only the ones that mattered to these people. That’s why it doesn’t really matter in the end if Boseman posthumously took home the gold. His performance in Ma Rainey’s was a thing of brilliance and it will be remembered. (In fact, it should be remembered.) This year’s Oscars may have been the most diverse in the Academy’s history. Chloe Zhao. Daniel Kaluuya. Yuh-Jung Yoon. H.E.R. Soul. Jon Batiste. All of these winners from last night show that things are changing. This was not #OscarsSoWhite, even if it did feel like #OscarsSoWrong.

The loss by Boseman doesn’t change any of this… but it’s all anyone’s talking about.

Yes, it would have made an amazing story to see him cap off his young but incredible career with a win. It would have been an emotional moment for us all. But there’s a reason that they announce the winner by saying ‘the Oscar goes to…’ They don’t want the other nominees to feel as though they are someone lesser than the others.

Because they aren’t. Not Riz Ahmed. Not Boseman. None of them, regardless of category. They all achieved something great with their cinematic achievements. And, like Chadwick’s performance, their work lives on. 

The Academy knows that. We may have forgotten it.

Message received.

O Canada! Telefilm Canada launches new site devoted to Canadian film

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Telefilm’s CANADA NOW (CNW Group/Telefilm Canada)

Whether you’re aware of it or not, Canadian film is alive and well.

The truth is that, while Canadian film continues to leave an impact on the industry, it is not very well known outside of our own borders. (Sometimes, not even within them!)

In order to help spread the word about some of Canada’s more notable projects, Telefilm Canada has launched CANADA NOW, a new site devoted to providing information about and stream Canadian content. Including films ranging from recent hits like My Salinger Year and Antigone to Oscar noms like the Barbarian Invasions or Monsieur Lahzar, CANADA NOW promises to continuously add new content each month to help spread the word about what’s happening in the industry north of the border.

The following is from the press release:

“This spring, Telefilm Canada is excited to embark on a brand new initiative promoting the discoverability of Canadian content to audiences across the United States. Through a new website – www.canadanow.us – audiences can easily find where to watch their favorite Canadian films and some series as well as explore new ones along the way. This site also connects users to virtual cinema and in-theater experiences. It builds upon the CANADA NOW network in the U.S. with a curated, customizable user-experience to discover the diversity of Canadian film and television series year-round. At the core of the initiative is the CANADA NOW microsite, developed in collaboration with Telescope, that features close to 5,000 available productions across over 150 VOD platforms. CANADA NOW, powered by Telefilm, is also in partnership with the Consulate General of Canada in New York and the National Film Board of Canada. 

“Beyond Arthouse cinemas and film festivals, it is often a challenge to locate and watch Canadian film and television projects here in the US. This difficulty was the catalyst for CANADA NOW to build something new and we couldn’t be more thrilled to support it and share!”
-Khawar Nasim, Acting Consul General, Consulate General of Canada in New York   

As evidenced most recently by the outpouring of love for Schitt’s Creek, there is clearly an enthusiastic audience for Canadian content in the US. We are delighted to collaborate with Telefilm Canada and the Consulate General of Canada in New York to raise the profile of Canadian films and series even further. – Justine Barda, Founder and CEO, Telescope 

For monthly updates on new content please sign up for the CANADA NOW newsletter here. 

To check out CANADA NOW’s microsite on Telescope and its vast database of the incredible content that can be viewed in the US, click here!”