On April 28, 2015, six couples from Kentucky walked into the U.S. Supreme Court with plaintiffs and attorneys from four other states to argue their right to marriage equality. Iowa-based documentary maker Alex Schuman was with those couples, and on that date, he was filming every moment.
“It almost started as an accident,” he says. “I was a TV reporter in Louisville, Kentucky, and I wasn’t aware this case was happening at all.”
He was assigned to start following the case, and over his time reporting, he got to know the plaintiffs and their attorneys, and he set out to tell their story.
“I am very much of the millennial generation where I don’t really understand why some people get so upset over people’s personal lives. But, as I started to meet people and hear their stories, it’s profound how difficult it was.”
“Despite the big columns and the black robes and everything that is used to make the court system feel cold and analytical,” he says, “It’s still a very human process.”
During this hour of Talk of Iowa, he talks with host Charity Nebbe about making the documentary and the impact it’s had.
“I had one person close to me who was opposed to same sex marriage and then watched this and came away from it saying ‘Okay, I see why they won. They should have won, now that I understand the legal arguments.’”
The film is available for streaming on Amazon and iTunes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyIDgcTSglo
