wfn.org | [UCC NEWS] 'Call Me Malcolm' accepted into prestigious SF film

[guessb@ucc.org]

United Church of Christ
United Church News
The Rev. J. Bennett Guess, News Director
216/736-2177, guessb@ucc.org

April 14, 2005

UCC's 'Call Me Malcolm' accepted into prestigious San Francisco film
festival

The UCC-produced, feature-length documentary "Call Me Malcolm" has been
accepted into the 2005 Frameline San Francisco International Gay and
Lesbian Film Festival.

Touted as "the nation's oldest and largest celebration of LGBT cinema," the
Frameline Festival announced on April 13 that Call Me Malcolm ? the story
of a transgender seminarian's struggle with faith, love and gender identity
? will be included in its June 16-26 screening schedule.

Held at San Francisco's historic Castro Theatre, Frameline is said to offer
the largest cash prizes on the LGBT film festival circuit.

Acceptance by prominent film festivals, such as Frameline, is viewed as the
most-promising way of finding a willing distributor for the film ? the
ticket to wide theatrical release, says director Joseph Parlagreco of
Filmworks, Inc., which co-produced the film.

In addition to Frameline, the church's film is being seriously considered
by other major festivals, according to the Rev. Michael D. Schuenemeyer,
the UCC's minister for LGBT concerns.

Call Me Malcolm ? described by Parlagreco as a "labor of love" ? debuted in
February at the Riverside (Calif.) International Film Festival and, in
March, at the Cleveland International Film Festival. In both instances, it
received broad audience acclaim, prompting the need for additional
screenings. In Cleveland, Call Me Malcolm played to a sell-out crowd and
was judged by festival goers to be the audiences' second-favorite film
out
of nearly 100 in the festival.

The 90-minute documentary tells the story of Malcolm E. Himschoot, then a
third-year student at Iliff School of Theology, who was eventually ordained
in 2004 by the UCC's Denver Metropolitan Association.

Schuenemeyer says Call Me Malcolm is unique among documentaries that deal
with transgender issues "because it focuses on gender identity as it
relates to matters of faith, spirituality, vocation and human personhood."

"In the film, Malcolm does not propose easy answers to the questions that
arise," Schuenemeyer says, "but with enormous heart, integrity and
sensitivity shares his own struggles and listens compassionately to
[others], as he comes to terms with who he is and God's claim on his life."

Kierra Chase, the film's editor, says it was important that the film be
respectful of Malcolm's story ? and the church's story.

"People will rise to the standard that you set before them and so it was
very important to us, as filmmakers, to always be taking the high road,"
she says. "Because this is such a 'hot topic' and this kind of film is
always going to inspire conversation and debate, by simply telling
Malcolm's story and not sensationalizing it, I hope it will encourage
respect and sensitivity and a new openness within the people who see this
film."

Parlagreco says the documentary is more than an examination of Malcolm's
life or the struggles of the transgender community, but a film that all can
relate to, because it's about discerning, discovering and celebrating one's
identity.

"This is not the first film to take on the subject of transgender issues
and it certainly will not be the last," Parlagreco says, "but most
transgender films tend to focus on the physical and exploit the conflict. I
wanted to do a different kind of film. This is a film about identity."

"Malcolm's struggles are all of ours ? 'Who am I?' 'Where do I fit in?'
'What am I doing with my life?'" the filmmaker says.

Parlagreco, an award-winning cinematographer whose directing credits
include work for ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, PBS and VH1, says the UCC has served
as a "minister to the film."

"Imagine," Parlagreco muses, "a church producing a feature documentary
for
film festivals ? about a transgender minister. People are always amazed
when I mention that the UCC is our partner in this film."

View the film's trailer at <callmemalcolm.com>.
Learn more about the Frameline Film Festival at <frameline.org>.

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