Director Cassie Jaye puts a human face to the divisive issue of marriage equality in the U.S. Make that four faces: Jay and Bryan Leffew and their children Daniel and Selena. Thirteen years ago Jay Foxworthy and Bryan Leffew became good friends, fell in love and had a civil union. Along the way, they fostered and adopted Daniel and Selena. When gay marriage was legalized in California in 2008, Jay and Bryan got hitched at City Hall in San Francisco. Happy ever after, right?

That second Summer of Love was short-lived as the religious right pushed through California’s Proposition 8 to unconstitutionally ban same-sex marriage, defining marriage as one man and one woman. With a flummoxed No on 8 campaign far outspent by media conservatives and fear mongers, California voters passed Prop 8 to deny rights to their fellow citizens. What the No on 8 campaign needed was the humble, humanizing approach taken by the Leffews. To show that LGBT families are just like anybody else in terms of love and devotion, Jay and Bryan started posting home videos on YouTube and their blog Gay Family Values. Their quiet, steady activism shows the daily trials and triumphs of a typical American family.

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Hold on Tight dir Anna Rodgers 2011 Ireland 12 min

When it comes to same-sex relationships, showing your love outside of the home is sometimes a complicated personal and political choice. This short documentary moves between the public and private spaces in which lesbian and gay couples live.