From Director David Weissman: I first encountered Michiel when I was co-programmer of Portland’s QDoc Film Festival. It was a curated film festival—we did not have open submissions—but Michiel emailed info about his new documentary (his first) GAME FACE. After viewing a very impressive trailer, we asked him to submit the film for consideration, and ultimately, we selected GAME FACE as our opening night film! Both a friendship and a professional relationship evolved from that initial meeting, and a couple years later, when Michiel mentioned that he was between projects, I asked if he’d be interested in editing one of the GAY ELDERS episodes. Our collaboration on the Kerby Lauderdale episode was so fruitful, and he happened to be available subsequently to edit Paul Chin as well. Michiel has maintained a sweet friendship with both Paul and Kerby.
From editor Michiel Thomas: I’ve had the pleasure to have known David since late 2014, when he started mentoring me during the release of my first documentary feature GAME FACE. While sharing precious professional advice, we also had countless talks about life, which quickly resulted into a beautiful friendship. In 2016 David approached me about the CONVERSATIONS WITH GAY ELDERS project and I felt honored he asked me to be part of it. As a gay man, and native Belgian who moved to the USA in 2008 at the age of 22, I was intrigued to learn about the coming out experiences of previous generations.
Listening to David’s original 3-hour conversation with the wonderful Kerby Lauderdale was eye-opening in so many ways. Not only did I absorb so much information about gay history and pivotal events, but I also learned a variety of life lessons. By Kerby sharing his most intimate moments of this highest and lowest moments, it has helped me to put certain aspects of this journey called life into perspective. Till this day, I still replay some of his stories to help me understand and cope with my own daily life situations.
Collaborating with David also was a true blessing. I will forever cherish our week of intense editing at his home in Portland. Those 7 days were a beautiful mixture of work and sharing quality time. During that visit I also got the chance to finally meet Kerby in person. Luckily, that wasn’t the last time, because I saw him twice more during the unforgettable screenings in Portland and Los Angeles. I’m glad we remained friends and are still in touch.
After such a fruitful experience on so many levels, David asked me to edit a second conversation, this time a talk with the one and only Paul Chin. I was more than happy to take this task on as well. While listening to Paul’s heartfelt stories, I gained a lot of relationship advise from Paul’s connection with his husband Chuck. The beauty of this project is that you get to learn a variety of perspectives from gay men coming from different walks of life… I got the chance to meet Paul at the day of the premiere in San Francisco and during a delicious Thanksgiving-like meal that he hosted at his cozy home. Such a sweet, funny and generous man!
I can write a book about everything that I have gained from this journey, but for now… these 4 paragraphs will do 🙂 Thank you David for this enlightening opportunity!”
Michiel’s website is www.michielthomas.com