BY MANDY BOLEN
Key West Citizen
A jocular band of kilt-wearing filmmakers has been preserving Key West on film for the past two months, planning to peel away the layers of the small town and show the rest of the world how a tiny island can have a huge personality, and how a large-scale event affects the small-town atmosphere.
The crew, easily recognizable in kilts, T-shirts and straw hats, began their project when asked to film a documentary about the evolution and unfurling of the world's longest rainbow flag spanning the length of Duval Street during PrideFest, which celebrates diversity among straight, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered individuals.
Although time was not on the crew's side, and they have been working against the clock as it counts down to Sunday's unfurling, a group of interested Key West residents came together in the spring with money to produce the film.
Local hotels, airlines, restaurants and other businesses helped keep the film budget low by providing services at no charge for the crew.
"The film itself is about the impact of a large event on a small town, and the years of diversity in Key West, because diversity is more than just gay and lesbian," director Talmadge Heyward said. "It's also turning into a film about where the passion is, where the heart of Key West beats because there's another magical layer here."
That layer doesn't come from a one-day event highlighting diversity and tolerance, but stems from centuries of it, and the filmmakers experienced their share of it while wandering around town with microphones, cameras and easygoing personalities that make people comfortable around a camera.
"Everyone has been so warm and welcoming and open," said editor Chad Newman. "But they don't cover it up with fluff."
The honesty of Key West has fascinated producer Chad Slagle, who said the film has taken on a life of its own because people from all over the world know about Key West.
"People are fascinated by Key West," Heyward said. "Combine that with a symbol of diversity like a mile-and-a-half long rainbow flag."
And those who aren't yet familiar with Key West will have the opportunity to learn when the film, entitled "Key West, City of Colors: From Sea to Shining Sea," is unveiled in November.
After an opening premier party in both Key West and Los Angeles, the film will embark on a film festival circuit that includes Sundance in Park City, Utah in January.
A promotional team has already been assembled to travel to various Pride celebrations throughout the country this summer telling people in advance about the film.
Following the festivals, the men are hoping to take the film on tour before it is available to be aired on television. They are producing a 90-minute version and a 44-minute version for television.
Bravo channel has learned of the project and could be showing the film.
"We're hoping to finish shooting June 19 and have a rough cut of it by October, Heyward said, adding that the people in town who donated money to make the film possible will get their money back from any profits made.
Additional profits will be donated to a special fund to pay for a downtown building that would house the Gay and Lesbian Community Center and a gay visitor center, said Steve Smith, who is handling sales and marketing for the film.