Matt Shepard is a Friend of mine is out on home video

I just found out something I thought you’d want to be aware of- Matt Shepherd is a Friend of Mine is out on home video. This is the story of Matt Shepherd told by one of friends. It’s a portrait of Matt as a human being and not a symbol or martyr. It’s a very good film and now its on DVD and streaming.

Here’s the review which ran last year at DOC NYC:

Michele Josue's portrait of her friend Matt Shepard was made in an effort to make him more than just a person who died. It's an effort to make the tragedy more about a person than a symbol. The film also shows what happened in the wake of his death.Its the story of how the love of one young man changed the world (though as one friend says at the end in a way that no one really would have wanted).

This is a really good and deeply moving film about a young man who's life was cut short.

While the film can be a tad too loving, no one who knew Matt says anything bad, the film is honest enough to show all of the ups and downs of Matt's short life, we see the good things that happen and the bad. The film also doesn't shy away from dealing with Matt's death which is gone over in great detail, nor the hatred that some people express toward gay men and women.

Its a solid little film that will make you understand why Shepard became a symbol and is still a symbol of what can happen when hatred goes unchecked.