Pay cabler HBO will debut VITO,
the documentary on the life of gay activist Vito Russo, on Monday,
July 23 at 9PM.
VITO, which had its world
premiere at the 2011 New York Film Festival and will open the 2012
Outfest Film Festival in Los Angeles on July 12, documents the life
of Vito Russo, one of the most outspoken and inspiring gay rights
activists.
Award-winning director Jeffrey Schwarz
(Wrangler:
Anatomy of an Icon) uses period footage and interviews with
Russo to paint a touching portrait of the activist.
“If you're going to talk about the
gay-rights movement, you're going to talk about Vito,” said
journalist David Ehrenstein.
Russo was an early member of the Gay
Activists Alliance (GAA), a co-founder of the Gay & Lesbian
Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), and a co-founder of the AIDS
Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP).
Featured in the film are gay rights
activists Larry Kramer and Arthur Evans; film scholar Jon Gartenberg;
and writers Michael Schiavi and Gabriel Rotello. VITO also
offers personal accounts from friends Lily Tomlin and Bruce Vilanch.
(A trailer for the film is embedded in the right panel of this page.
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