Peter Friedman

Prior to leaving Hampshire College in 1980, Tom was working on a 16mm film inspired by Jose Arguelles' book, The Transformative Vision: Reflections on the Nature and History of Human Expression. Shot in sync and MOS, the footage reflects Tom's interest in perception, human consciousness, and signaled his evolving interest in fusing non-fiction, experimental and dramatic genres. All the original materials for this unfinished film were stored at the LA home of Ken Levin, another Hampshire College alum who along with several other students, worked with Tom on this project, which he called the Architecture of Mountains.

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The continuing political significance of Silverlake Life is brought into clearer focus. Another friend of Tom Joslin and Mark Massi, Elaine Mayes recorded footage of Mark’s decline after Tom’s death, which is where the original version ends. It’s fitting that Mark’s own life, death, and the loss of his lover are here given the sort of attention afforded Tom’s experiences. It reminds us that AIDS is far from over.

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An extraordinary video diary about living with AIDS documenting, with guts and humor, the love and dedication of longtime companions Tom Joslin and Mark Massi, from the emotional challenge of living with a fatal illness to the frustration of maintaining daily routines,.

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Far from the sophistication and relative tolerance of urban centers, gay people are beginning to lead integrated lives in small towns throughout rural America. Danny Cooper has been upfront about his homosexuality since his teens. Now he lives openly with his lover. As the local mailman in a small Louisiana town, he has come to be accepted in a friendly and courteous manner by his neighbors. Although Danny has been through fights in school, was once fired fromhis job, and even evicted from his home, he has never failed to stand up for his right to be himself. In the end, he is changing the face of anti-gay prejudice in his town. Today, Danny is fighting his hardest battle-against HIV infection-withthe same openness and courage. And even though his T-cell countis near zero, he describes himself as "the luckiest human in the world."

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