Browse Films

In October 1998, Wyoming college student Matthew Shepard was brutally beaten and left to die. The horror of this murder pushed Laramie into the media spotlight and sparked a nationwide debate about homophobia, gay-bashing and hate crimes. Filmmaker Beverly Seckinger, who grew up in Laramie, was compelled to return to her hometown to see how this event had altered the site of her own closeted adolescence. Along the way she meets "God-hates-fags" Westboro Baptist Church Reverend Fred Phelps, who condemns Shepard and all homosexuals to a merciless eternity in hell. But Seckinger meets many more--students, teachers, parents, and clergy--wrestling with painful complexities, speaking out and taking action.

With warmth, humor, and insight, Bev Seckinger gives us a vision of Laramie that few have imagined. By documenting the strength and resiliency of Laramie's gay and lesbian residents, her film offers a complex corrective to most media depictions of her hometown. A lovely, loving testament.
Beth Loffreda
Author, LOSING MATT SHEPARD

This beautifully structured and tightly edited release is an excellent purchase for college, university, and school libraries as well as large public libraries.
Library Journal

Highly Recommended
Educational Media Reviews Online

A very personal look at the town and its people. Seckinger's film is an important addition to the narratives that help us understand what happened to Matthew Shepard, why it happened and how that community was affected by the crime.
Moises Kaufman, Screenwriter/Director
HBO's The Laramie Project

Perfect for college classroom use. By making Laramie, Wyoming a representative American college town that any of us could call home, it reveals hate crimes as never expected but unfortunately all too common in today's world. Most importantly it shows college students and townspeople coming together with bravery and courage to confront hatred and heal the social fabric.
Elizabeth Lapovsky Kennedy
Professor of Women's Studies and Anthropology, University of Arizona

More Reviews

AWARDS & SCREENINGS:

• PBS Broadcast
• Best of Arizona Award, Arizona International Film Festival
• Amnesty International Film Festival
• San Francisco Lesbian and Gay Film Festival
• Seattle Lesbian and Gay Film Festival
• Hamburg Lesbian and Gay Film Festival
• Tucson Gay and Lesbian Film Festival
• Dallas Outtakes
• Reel HeART Film Festival, Toronto