It's official! Freehold, the Laurel Hester Story is now an Academy Award winner. Looks like story of a New Jersey civil rights hero just took on epic proportions. I am so excited I can't even type!!
Please share your reactions, too!
Check out the announcement and the victory speech. It's really thrilling.
Update: Cynthia was great. It's not every day you get to talk to an Oscar nominee on the eve of the awards show. Good Luck Freeheld! (we'll be watching!) - Jeff
It's Oscar weekend, and this week on Blue Jersey Radio, we're joined by Freeheld Director Cynthia Wade LIVE from Los Angeles, where she is vying for an Academy Award for her incredible documentary of the Laurel Hester story.
Freeheld chronicles one of the most courageous struggles we have ever witnessed, one that galvanized the progressive GLBT and straight communities in New Jersey.
Alternating from packed public demonstrations at the county courthouse to quiet, tender moments of Laurel and Stacie at home, "Freeheld" combines tension-filled political drama with personal detail, creating a nuanced study of a grassroots fight for justice.
And - special bonus - more than a few faces and names familiar to Blue Jersey appear on screen.
Join us LIVE Saturday morning from 10:30am to 11:00am for a conversation on politics and film, love and money, and all the glitz and glamour of the Oscars. We'll take your calls at:
(646) 652-2773
Whether the Oscar goes to this deserving film, we won't know until Sunday night. But, Laurel will always be a winner in the hearts of New Jersey progressives, as will Director Cynthia Wade for capturing it all.
And, speaking of Sunday night, if you're not already booked, why not join us really really LIVE (and in person) at Garden State Equality's Oscar Party, featuring a Free Screening of Freeheld. It's at 7pm sharp at the South Orange Performing Arts Center, and it promises to be a blast.
This is an open thread: Leave your Oscar predictions in the comments.
It's hard to believe it's been nearly two years since Laurel Hester lost her battle with lung cancer and won her battle for equality. But thanks to Cynthia Wade's cinematic handiwork, Laurel's story is properly celebrated and archived in the Oscar-nominated documentary Freeheld.
Upon learning of the nod from The Academy, Ms. Wade had some pretty profound words to share, captured here via that good ol' You Tube magic. It good for some Saturday morning introspection, but nothing too heavy.
On a much lighter note: the Oscars are officially ON and Garden State Equality is having an Oscar-watch party that same night, February 24th at the South Orange Performing Arts Center. A free screening of Freeheld is at 7pm followed by the matchless Academy Award show.
Laurel Hester's story was inspirational, and her courageous battle for equality and dignity for herself and her partner was really a struggle for greater justice, one that united all of us.
If you haven't seen this incredibly emotional and inspiring film, you really are missing out. It's great. And, you can still see it here in the Garden State on January 30 at 2p in the Library Auditorium at The College of New Jersey in Ewing.
The Oscars are Sunday, February 24th at 8pm, and with a little luck, the writers and studio execs will have reached a deal by then.
Good luck!
Update: Garden State Equality plans to throw a statewide Oscar® party on Sunday night, February 24, 2008, time and location TBA. It will be free, no tickets or RSVP required. Stay tuned for details!
Freeheld, the documentary film about Lieutenant Laurel Hester's simultaneous struggle against terminal lung cancer and Ocean County's freeholders, is one of 5 short film nominees for the International Documentary Association Award, which will be announced at the Gala Benefit at the Director's Guild of America. The film had previously won a Special Jury prize at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival.
Laurel served Ocean County as a police detective, but when she found out that she had lung cancer, the government she served for 25 years turned its back on her. The film depicts the last year of Laurel's life and her fight for justice and the right to pass on her pension to her partner, Stacie Andree, who would have otherwise lost their home.
We've written over 50 posts about Laurel - who has been called the "Rosa Parks of New Jersey gay and lesbian civil rights." You can read more about her here.
There are several screenings coming up next month in New Jersey:
November 2
Two Rivers Film Festival of Monmouth County
Monmouth County, NJ
4:30 pm http://www.tworiverf...
On the 100th day since New Jersey's civil unions law went into effect, a tear-soaked audience filled the George Street Playhouse in New Brunswick for the NJ premiere screening of "Freeheld: the Laurel Hester Story" - winner of the 2007 Special Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival - presented free by Garden State Equality.
There were tears of anger as we relived the Ocean County Freeholders' stonewalling. There were tears of joy when the film depicted Laurel's dramatic victory over intolerance. And of course, there were tears of sadness as we relived Lt. Hester's and her partner Stacie's personal tragedy.
Cynthia Wade deserves much praise for creating this documentary, which moved me beyond expectations. I was thrilled to learn during the panel discussion that followed that the film will be made available for additional New Jersey screenings. Having watched it last night, there are so many people I want to bring to see it. It was that good.
But, something else the audience learned in that panel discussion was also heartbreaking. After all Lt. Hester fought for, ultimately leading to the NJ Supreme Court's decision last fall in favor of "equal" rights for all couples - we learned the fight is still not over. There are still couples out there who are being denied justice, and at least one of those couples was a plaintiff in the NJ marriage case.
Freeheld, the documentary film by Cynthia Wade about Lt. Laurel Hester's final months and her brave fight and eventual victory over inequality, received a Special Jury Prize at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival.
"Laurel and Stacie believed that their personal story could make a difference for same-sex couples around the nation," said Ms. Wade when she learned that her film had won a Special Jury Prize.
"The Sundance prize is a testament to their faith and belief that their struggle could make a difference in the fight for equality. This award belongs to Laurel and Stacie."
Laurel would be thrilled to know what a profound impact her life has had on the world. Garden State Equality will show Freeheld in New Jersey this spring.
