Gay couples have children. And two
documentaries premiering this week at Newfest, New York's gay & lesbian film festival, spotlight the highs and lows of gay parenting.
Director Tom Keegan's Out In India:
A Family's Journey follows a gay American couple with two small
adopted children as they set out for 9 months to live in India.
The couple, David Gere and Peter
Carley, decide they can make a difference in the fight against
HIV/AIDS in India. Both have a passion for advancing the fight
against AIDS through art. Gere says in the film, “I want to
believe the arts can stop AIDS. Not just help a little, but stop the
disease. Stop. Finished. Over!”
The couple moves to India to organize
Indian artists to fight AIDS.
Can two gay dads from America make a
difference in the global fight against AIDS?
Out In India: A Family's Journey
has its world premiere on Saturday, June 14th.
Four gay men follow diverging paths to
reach their dreams of fatherhood in Director Julia Ivanova's
Fatherhood Dreams.
The documentary, shot in British
Columbia where gay marriage is legal, tells of the joys and
challenges faced by gay dads. It also brings into view the options
gay men have in pursuing parenting.
Randy and Drew are a gay married couple
who have adopted a baby boy. Stephen co-parents two daughters with a
lesbian couple. And Scott's parenting chores are just about to
begin. He has twin children about to arrive through surrogacy.
The film brings to light the many
obstacles and prejudices gay men face in raising children. Will the
children of gay fathers feel isolated? Different? Unhappy? Will
they 'turn' gay?
And what about single dads. Steve, the
father of two by co-parenting says, “Having children has probably
kept me single. Gay male culture, at least in Canada, is not suited
for men with children.”
Is a gay man any different as as father
than a straight man?
Fatherhood Dreams has its US
premiere on Sunday, June 15th.
For information on the festival, visit
www.newfest.org
Gay Entertainment Report is a feature
of On Top Magazine and can be reached at ontopmag@ontopmag.com.