They say you can never go home again. But in Out in the Silence, Joe Wilson decided to make a brave pil grimage back to his home community in the rust belt of Western Pennsylvania, this time as an out gay man, documenting his experience with his partner Dean.

While there, they meet CJ, a teenager forced to leave his high school due to constant abuse, abuse that has escalated as every school official turns a blind eye. Despite feeling threatened in his community, CJ makes the courageous choice to be himself. Joe, Dean, CJ and CJ’s amazing mother, Kathy, support each other as they find the empowerment to begin creating the change they seek.

Across the country and the world, brave people are fighting for their right to simply be who they are, and they often have to fight twice as hard to belong to their community. And yet they accept this challenge. Out in the Silence is a truly inspiring portrait of a community that is just beginning to open its eyes to the wonderful diversity hidden in its midst.

Put This on the {Map} is a short doc about queer youth in the suburbs of Seattle as they break through the veil of invisibility to speak about their identities and journeys towards self-acceptance. The times, they are a-changin’. — PHILIPPE GOSSELIN