Sarasota – Just in time for Valentine’s Day, locals can show support for both independent film and recent marriage equality wins by attending “The Perfect Wedding.”
The themed fundraiser is a partnership between The Sarasota Film Festival and Equality Florida and features two weddings—one on screen and one in person.
Guests at “The Perfect Wedding” will catch a screening of The Perfect Wedding film and then see former Sarasota Commissioner and Equality Florida state board member Ken Shelin marry his longtime partner, Steve.
The Perfect Wedding was produced by Sarasota residents Suzanne Brockmann and Ed Gaffney, along with their son, Jason Gaffney of Los Angeles. Wolfe Distribution, the leading LGBT movie distributor in the nation, was the film’s distributor. The Sarasota Film Festival screened The Perfect Wedding in 2012 and, according to development director Charlie Syprett, it was so popular that the festival sold out three screenings.
Syprett described the film as “a story about getting everything right.”
The story takes place over Christmas weekend at the Fowler’s home where Alana Fowler is planning her wedding. Alana’s wedding planner, Roy, once dated her brother Paul. Not wanting Paul to know he is still single, Roy brings his friend Gavin as his “boyfriend” and the two inadvertently fall in love. Shelin said the theme “translates a dream and hope to reality.”
A special bonus: guests will have the chance to meet a live cast member at the event!
“Speaking as a representative of the festival, I’m most excited about the fact that we showed this film in 2012 and we are now seeing how film can plant a seed, an idea, for discussion and dialogue that ultimately leads to a change in views and history,” Syprett said. “I see it as a part of history.”
Shelin’s wedding is evidence of this change. He and his partner of 38 years met through mutual friends in Detroit. The couple bought a house in Sarasota in 1990 and moved to the area full-time in 1996.
“Sarasota matched the vision I had in my head of where I wanted to retire someday,” Shelin said. However, he said he never thought he would see the day where he was able to get married in Sarasota. Shelin said he always hoped and worked for it, and figured it would happen eventually, but not quite this soon.
“Gay marriage has been an issue regarding the traditional definition of marriage, but I don’t think people understand how marriages have worked over the years,” Shelin said. “There are all sorts of marriages—marrying for political alliance and marrying multiple partners, for example. But really, it’s an intimate commitment of one person to another.”
Syprett attributed the event’s success to Sarasota Film Festival president Mark Famiglio and the festival’s board.
“I think it starts at the top, and it’s our leadership that allows and encourages us to screen films that are politically what some may consider provocative,” he said.
The gala event will take place Thursday, Feb. 12 on the rooftop of 1289 N. Palm Ave. The night will kick off at 6 p.m. with the ceremony to follow at 6:30 p.m. General admission tickets are $45 per person and include a complimentary champagne toast, light bites, wedding cake, film, cash bar, silent auction and a seat at the wedding. Patron tickets are $100 and include all the general admission benefits plus VIP seating and a name or logo on all event signage. Guests may purchase tickets at SarasotaFilmFestival.com. The proceeds will be divided between Sarsota Film Festival and Equality Florida.
