Frameline is thrilled to partner with guest bloggers from the University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire during this year's festival! We've invited students from the LGBTQA Studies: San Francisco Travel Seminar at UWEC to share their experiences of Frameline and their thoughts on San Francisco's queer community. As they attend Frameline and experience San Francisco, they will be creating LGBTQ-themed documentaries, as well as vetting films for their second Eau Queer Film Festival in the fall. For more information about the contributors, click here.
I have got to say, I never cry during movies. All through out the Frameline Film Fest I have sat non-pulsed in my chair while the audience sniffles around me. Last night that was not the case. Thanks to Wish Me Away, I was teary-eyed the whole time, and especially at the end. I am so glad I went to see it, because originally I wasn’t going to. It seemed like just another documentary about someone coming out. I don’t listen to much country music, and I hadn’t really heard of Chely Wright- so I was not particularly interested. However, due to circumstances and scheduling I found myself in the upper balcony of the Castro theatre, absorbed in Chely Wright’s story.
I think what made this film so incredible was the way it connected with the viewers. So often documentaries are dry, factual, and lack that human element--which was not the case for Wish Me Away. This film added the human element through the use of personal video diaries, interviews, and images. As I watched the film I was struck again and again by how raw the material was and it blew me away to see someone make public his or her deepest and darkest moments. I doubt I could ever be that brave.
Perhaps the coolest thing about this experience was that Chely Wright actually came to the showing of Wish Me Away. She was there! In person! And because she was there to answer questions I really got an understanding about her reasoning behind how she came out, and her drive to use her experience to help others." -Katy Cobb