The story of a gay couple's love cut
short by tragedy will premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival in New
York City.
Bridegroom documents the lives
of Shane Bitney Crone and Tom Bridegroom, who met in 2005 and vowed
to marry one day, if it became legal.
While Shane's family completely
accepted the couple, Tom's family refused to accept that he was gay.
Two years ago, Tom died in a tragic
accident and Shane was threatened and banned from the funeral.
“My love story is tragic,” Shane
said in a statement. “When I lost Tom, my best friend and
boyfriend of six years to a tragic accident, I had no legal standing
to defend myself against his – I could not just move on as if Tom
and I never were. Though I will never truly be over the loss of Tom,
I felt the best way to ensure that Tom's legacy and our love survives
is to make sure other couples don't have to face the same persecution
as we did. I hope that our story, though tragic, will help others
realize that love is love, regardless of race, religion and
especially, sexuality. And I hope that one day soon, love and
marriage, will be a gift to all, and not limited.”
(A trailer for the film is embedded on
this page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)
Bridegroom premieres at Tribeca
on Tuesday, April 23.