‘Tru Loved’ to Premiere at Sedona Film Festival

Filed Under GLBT Parents, Gay Entertainment, Gay Events, Gay Film, Gay Students, LGBT Youth | February 5th, 2008 

Tru Loved a new film by Stewart WadeHOLLYWOOD, “Tru Loved” will have its U.S. festival premiere at the 2008 Sedona International Film Festival on February 28, 2008. The film is the second feature from writer/director Stewart Wade, and is produced by Wade and Antonio Brown through their company, BrownBag Productions. Eric Borsum and Eric Miller are serving as executive producers; the Director of Photography is Howard Wexler.

The cast of “Tru Loved” features Najarra Townsend (from festival favorite “Me And You And Everyone We Know”), Jake Abel (”The Lovely Bones”), Joseph Julian Soria (from Sundance smash “Hamlet 2″), Nichelle Nichols (”Star Trek”), Alec Mapa (”Ugly Betty”), Bruce Vilanch (”Hairspray”), Jane Lynch (”Talladega Nights”), Alexandra Paul (”Baywatch”), Jasmine Guy (”A Different World”), Matthew Thompson (”Drake and Josh”), Cynda Williams (”Tales of the City”) and Marcia Wallace (”The Simpsons”). David Kopay, the NFL’s first openly gay pro-athlete, has a cameo.

In “Tru Loved” sixteen-year-old Tru is uprooted by her lesbian moms from her comfortable gay-friendly home in San Francisco and moved to a conservative, suburban community in Southern California. Her only friend is a closeted football player – and even that friendship is jeopardized when Tru starts the school’s first Gay-Straight Alliance.

The film also features an exciting and eclectic soundtrack from legendary musicians such as Melissa Etheridge, Rufus Wainwright, Janis Ian and Roslyn Kind, as well as up-and-comers like Sheva and Lanky. Emmy Award-nominated composer and music supervisor, Barry Coffing, rounds out the list with his own original compositions (including a brand-new song written for the film, sung by Ms. Kind).

Wade’s first feature, “Coffee Date” starring Wilson Cruz, Jonathan Silverman, Sally Kirkland and Deborah Gibson, was voted Best Feature Film by audiences at the Sedona International Film Festival in 2007; that film successfully played over 30 international film festivals, was released theatrically by Film and Music Entertainment, was distributed by TLA Releasing for the home entertainment market, and recently had its world television premiere on Logo TV. At Outfest 2006, Wade was chosen as one of their “Five in Focus” – directors chosen as “the next wave of hot new talent.”

“I’m thrilled that ‘Tru Loved’ will have its festival premiere at Sedona,” said Wade. “We had such a fantastic experience there last year with festival organizers and audiences alike; we’re really looking forward to it.” Added Brown, “Premiering this film at a mainstream festival speaks volumes about our goals to connect the family-friendly themes of ‘Tru Loved’ to the many kinds of families that make up today’s world.”

Due to the film’s timely themes of gay parenting and marriage, and the treatment of LGBT students in schools – not to mention the talented cast – “Tru Loved” formed early partnerships with a number of national organizations including the ACLU, PFLAG National (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays), the GSA Network (Gay-Straight Alliance), and the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center. Cast members took time from the busy production schedule to shoot TV and radio PSAs for these and other organizations, all to help promote awareness of the film’s important themes and issues.

During production, PFLAG’s Executive Director, Jody M. Huckaby, visited the set of the film and presented the “Focus On Equality” award to Wade, strongly supporting the message that “Tru Loved” brings to the screen. “Seeing positive, healthy images of LGBT people and their families, along with the many challenges that they face, is critical in transforming hearts and minds,” said Huckaby. “‘Tru Loved’ does this perfectly, and shows how, alongside our straight allies, we all can create real change.”

“Tru Loved” will screen twice in competition at the festival.

Related Links:

- Tru Loved – Official Site

- Sedona International Film Festival

Related Posts:

- Tru Loved – A Recipe for a Successful LGBT Family Movie

- Review of Coffee Date