Tonight: Montana PBS to Air Inlaws & Outlaws!

Some good news for Montana- Inlaws and Outlaws will be screened on Montana PBS tonight.

From the director, Drew Emery:

Montana friends!
Set your DVRs for Sunday night 6/9 10:30 pm: your local PBS station is airing our marriage documentary Inlaws & Outlaws — along with our story update: Just Marriage.

If you believe in love… and equality, please do pass on the word to friends & family!

Drew was in Montana last year, sharing the film with audiences in Helena and Bozeman. It’s an opportunity to see what love looks like up close.

Grab your peeps and watch this- it’s amazing.

Big Sky, Big Money

Oct30 by D Gregory Smith

Tonight at 8:30 pm on Montana PBS:

In a special investigation in collaboration with Marketplace, FRONTLINE travels to the remote epicenter of the campaign finance debate for a tale of money, politics, and intrigue. How has the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision changed campaigns in America? Ask Montana, which has tried to challenge the ruling in court, is investigating alleged campaign abuses, and is playing host to a bitter race that could decide control of the U.S. Senate.

FRONTLINE correspondent and Marketplace host Kai Ryssdal reports.

Hopefully, some light will be shed on the mysterious meth house documents…

Trailer is here.

Watch Big Sky, Big Money, an investigation with Marketplace on PBS. See more from FRONTLINE.

Should Campaign Donors Be Disclosed? (pbs.org)
Nonprofit that sued to extend Citizens United ruling to states may have misled IRS (rawstory.com)
Did the Dark Money Group that Spurred a Landmark Ruling Mislead the IRS? (propublica.org)
Documents Found in Meth House Bare Inner Workings of Dark Money Group (crooksandliars.com)
Mysterious Docs Found in Meth House Reveal Inner Workings of Dark Money Group (pbs.org)

Tonight: “Love Free Or Die”

Oct29 by D Gregory Smith

Tonight on many PBS stations airs “Love Free Or Die”, the story of ‘the first openly gay bishop in Christendom’, Gene Robinson:

Tonight on Independent Lens. Montana PBS airs it at 9pm.

Inlaws & Outlaws On Public TV!

Oct27 by D Gregory Smith

Delightful news from our friends at The True Stories Project:

WE MADE IT! We set a fundraising goal of raising $50,000 to bring Inlaws & Outlaws to public television – and thanks to over 120 of our supporters, we raised over $50, 246 – enough to launch us onto public television!

As of today, Inlaws & Outlaws is not ony available to 350+ PBS and public television affiliates around the US – but 15 stations have already scheduled the film in the next few weeks!

Thank you to everyone who contributed to make this happen!

We especially want to express our gratitude for the major support we received from our Executive Producer Bob Lemon, the Faygele ben Miriam Fund and four of our favorite outlaws – Jane Abbott Lighty & Pete-e Petersen and Frank Chaffee & John Gliessman. You put us over the top – and on TV.

Changing Hearts + Minds…

We’re still presenting screenings of Inlaws & Outlaws as part of ourHearts + Minds Campaign, including here in Washington where we’re using the film to support Referendum 74, but we’re about to reach a whole heckuva lot more people when the film is presentedFriday during primetime on KCTS 9 (Seattle) and KYVE (Yakima ).

Together, these stations reach over 75% of Washington residents – one of the reasons we were so determined to reach our goal of bringing Inlaws & Outlaws to public TV before Nov. 6th…

Wondering where else the film is being shown on public TV? Colorado, Ohio, Oregon, Illinois, West Virginia, New York… And we’re only just beginning.

Our new video: Just Marriage, from Outlaws to Inlaws…

Premiering Friday night following the film is our new 14-minute video short featuring director Drew Emery updating audiences on many of the stories in Inlaws & Outlaws.

It’s Just Marriage: from Outlaws to Inlaws, a snapshot of how far we’ve come. Check out the Sneak Peek of the video here.

Exciting times, yes? We think so. This is a critical time for marriage equality in the US – and the election will only raise the stakes even more. So we’re determined to bring our stories that much further to reach more hearts and minds, whether it’s with one of our community screenings in a school, church, temple or community center, or whether it’s on public tv. We’d love to have you on board!*

And to all the folks who made this big leap possible, we have nothing but love & gratitude.

*If you want to support our our Hearts + Minds Campaign, we welcome your tax-deductible donations. You can either donate safely online or send us a check. Your support makes all the difference in the world!

Help Inlaws & Outlaws Make It To Public TV! (dgsmith.org)
Tonight on KCTS: Inlaws & Outlaws (slog.thestranger.com)
Inlaws and Outlaws (sapphospeaks.wordpress.com)

Two Spirits: Coming To Montana PBS

Jun8 by D Gregory Smith

Two Spirits, a film by Lydia Nibley, is coming to PBS this Sunday, June 12th at 10:30 pm through the program Independent Lens– and I want to encourage you to watch it.

It is an amazing film which “interweaves the tragic story of a mother’s loss of her son with a revealing look at a time when the world wasn’t simply divided into male and female- and many Native American cultures held places of honor for people of integrated genders.”

I’ve talked about this remarkable film before. My friend and collaborator Gregory Hinton gave an excellent introduction to the film when it was screened at the Autry as part of our Out West series last summer. Part of his memorable remarks were these:

The city and the country have a lot to catch up on. We have much to teach each other. To protect our rural kids, and our rural elders, our community must be visible, like a porch light streaming into the western night sky.

And now, to Lydia and Russell, the filmmakers of Two Spirits, thank you for your advocacy by flipping on the switch.

Two Spirits is the story of Fred Martinez, a Navajo boy who was also a girl. It is also the story of Pauline Mitchell, the mother who loved him, who prayed every night for his safe return.

It speaks to the prescience of the Navajo culture. Imagine a time where Two Spirit children were adored, their talents cultivated, their spirits revered.

The World Premiere of Two Spirits was sponsored by the Matthew Shepard Foundation in Denver. I recently told Judy Shepard that in addition to experiencing bias as a gay man, I have also experienced bias as a rural westerner. I asked her if Matt loved Wyoming. Judy told me he stayed in Laramie because it was home and he loved the out of doors.

The love of mothers and courage of sons astonishes.

Stay home if you want. Be who you are. This is the mission of Out West.