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2/16/09

'Ask Not' Film, Discussion Set At St. Lawrence

CANTON - The film Ask Not will be screened at St. Lawrence University, followed by a discussion with filmmaker Johnny Symons. Screening begins at 7 p.m. on Monday, March 2, in Eben Holden on campus; the discussion follows. Both events, part of the Contemporary Issues Forum, are open to the public, free of charge.

Ask Not is a documentary that tells the stories of closeted gay American service members, delving into the issues behind the "don't ask, don't tell" policies of the U.S. government.

Symons is an Emmy-nominated filmmaker with a 15-year history of creating documentaries about gay culture. His film Daddy & Papa (2002), about the personal, cultural and political impact of gay men raising children, premiered at Sundance, won more than 15 major festival awards, aired nationally on PBS' "Independent Lens" and received an Emmy nomination for Best Documentary. His second feature, Beyond Conception (2006), a documentary about the relationship between a lesbian surrogate and a gay male couple as they conceive and bear a child, premiered at the Florida Film Festival and aired on Discovery Health Channel. Symons teaches documentary filmmaking at Stanford University and the Art Institute of California in San Francisco.

The Contemporary Issues Forum brings experts and participants in the making of news to campus throughout the academic year.

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More: Ask Not Web site

Out at the Movies Festival 2009 Web site