BALLOT MEASURE 9 (1995) | Dir: Heather Lyn MacDonald This film changed my life. A documentary about the fight to stop the anti-gay Measure 9 in Oregon, it won the Audience Award at the @sundanceorg film festival, the Teddy in Berlin and many others. I saw the film at @Newfest in New York at the Public Theater and when it opened at @filmforumnyc, I recruited a small group of my (mostly straight) friends to see it together. It was 1996. I decided I wanted my parents to see this film. They had been struggling with my coming out and this film explained the struggle better than I was able to. One summer afternoon, while I was visiting them in North Carolina, we gathered in the den and watched a VHS copy. Ninety minutes later, they said, “Okay, we get it.” We went into the kitchen, made lunch, and talked about anti-gay legislation, about me, my struggle, their struggle, people in the film, stories of Oregon, Jesse Helms. My Dad revealed that one of his favorite uncles was gay — something even my mother had not known. Watching the film was a tipping point toward their understanding of my life and the larger LGBTQ fight. I immediately wrote Heather a note of thanks, telling her how important her film had been to me and my life. To my surprise, she wrote me back. We met for coffee and 25 years later she is one of my closest friends. Over the years, my parents’ home became known as a safe space for LGBTQ people and parents of queer kids, a place where they could find support and unconditional love. If you ever hear anyone ever say movies can’t change lives, please tell them this story. And see BM9 on @kanopy or @vimeo. Unfortunately, it is more relevant than ever.