Tethered

"Tethered" was a labor of love and dislike. Love, in that the subject matter was very personal to me, and a departure from my prior comedic films. Dislike, in that it took me about five years to finally complete it. I work full-time as a university professor, so the summers would usually be my only time I could devote to the film.

The concept for "Tethered" came to me in late 2009. I had been racking my brain for weeks trying to come up with a new film idea. The process was not organic and I was forcing it. One day, it just dawned on me. I needed to take my own advice I was constantly giving my students. “Write from life. Write from YOUR life. This is your time to say something. What do you want to tell the world?” I decided to write about my past. From junior high until high school graduation, I was constantly physically and mentally bullied and was called gay, faggot and plenty of other similar names. Though I’m not actually gay, the bullies in my school looked at me as an easy target. I was short, very young looking for my age, my voice hadn’t change (which it never really did), and I cared about my physical appearance. I guess in their minds that meant I was gay. I was treated that way and felt the same (or similar) abuse those that are gay have had to endure. Because of the torment I suffered in school, I later became a champion for gay rights once I got to college.

Drawing upon those feelings of the past, Tethered soon began to take shape. The creatures, or “Ids” as I call them, are manifestations of those that do the abusing, oppressing and bullying. The balloons are me and anyone else that feels trapped in their current situation. Just as balloons are, we can be fragile. After constant mental torment, the spirit begins to break. The fight is gone. The balloons just accept their lot in life. Daily abuse is all they know. Why even bother to fight back? I took it a step further and had the Ids suck out the air/life of the balloons. They took everything and left nothing.

In the end, it was one red balloon that mustered up the courage and strength to take a stand against the mistreatment and literally and metaphorically let go of the negativity. The string wasn’t tied to the hook. It was just wrapped around the hook. The power to float away was its all along. The power was always in its grasp. It just takes bravery.

This film has grown beyond just a film for LBGT rights. It’s for any group or person that has ever been oppressed, abused or bullied. This is the core to "Tethered" and my message. You don’t have to accept things the way they are. You have the power to make a change and take a stand.