No Sad Songs
1985 Canadian film
- September 1985 (1985-09) (TIFF)
Running time
No Sad Songs is a Canadian documentary film, directed by Nik Sheehan and released in 1985.[1] Billed as the first documentary film about the HIV/AIDS crisis,[2] the film explored the LGBT community's early response to the issue particularly but not exclusively through the personal testimony of Jim Black, a man with AIDS who died several months after the film's release,[3] and Catherine Hunt, the sister of another person with AIDS.[1]
Several other community figures, including musician David Sereda and HIV/AIDS activist Jim St. James, also appear in smaller capacities in the film.
The film was produced by Cell Productions in conjunction with the AIDS Committee of Toronto.[4] Through much of the film and in the original promotional poster, Black wore a "Choose Life" T-shirt by artist Katharine Hamnett;[4] however, during the time between the film's production and its release, Christian evangelist Ken Campbell had registered "Choose Life Canada" as the name of an anti-abortion lobby group, and the AIDS Committee faced controversy when it chose to withdraw the posters rather than risk having them misconstrued as an endorsement of Campbell.[4]
References
- ^ a b "AIDS film defines one man's courage". Toronto Star, October 16, 1985.
- ^ "Celebrating to the max". The Globe and Mail, September 13, 1985.
- ^ "Jim Black, 37 described battle against AIDS". Toronto Star, May 10, 1986.
- ^ a b c "AIDS committee withdraws poster and upsets artist". Toronto Star, June 23, 1985.
External links
- No Sad Songs at IMDb
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