Photo Courtesy of Wolfe Video
on social media. Who were you most nervous to tell?
what the process of coming of out was like afterward. After you've told everybody—what do you do next? I couldn't really find anything out there that fit what I was looking for, so I had the idea to film my whole coming out process and create the film that I wanted to watch.
I was definitely the most nervous to tell my dad. For a gay man especially, telling your father is very intimidating. I was so worried about how my dad was going to react—I had no idea. You can see in the film the first thing my sibling ask is 'How did dad react?'
In one scene your mom asks you about a very intimate detail about gay sex. Did you get a lot of that?
Absolutely. Many straight people are fascinated about the sex aspect of being gay.
Did you have any reservations about making this documentary?
Oh yes, I had a lot of people telling me not to do it and that it wasn't such a great idea because it is such a personal process to be so public with. I also remember really early on someone saying, 'Hey, do you really want the first thing for people to find out about you when they search your name is to find this documentary that says you're gay?' That was definitely a struggle. The first time we did a test screening of it, I was probably more nervous than I had ever been in my entire life. It was terrifying sharing something so personal for the first time. There were also a lot of other personal things I didn't share in the film, so it made it more empowering for me to be open about this.
Before you did the big reveal on camera, what did your friends and family think you were filming?
I kind of grew up around cameras—my parents always had a camcorder around. When I was younger I started picking up the camera and filming holidays and vacations. Eventually, I started just making fun little videos around the neighborhood, so having a camera there was not at all foreign for my family and friends.
Throughout the film you come out to friends, family and
Photo by Paul Havern - Courtesy of Wolfe Video With my mom, you can see I tell her we are not having that conversation. With my friends, they'd ask and I would just sort of tell it like it is. If you're open to talking about it, you can look at it as a way of educating people and to give a better understanding of our community as a whole. At least that's what I ended up trying to do.
You also have a sit down with Janet Mock. What was that experience like?
The sit down with Janet Mock was incredible. She is a genius. She has like the perfect gift for