Moises Serrano is the voice of his generation.  Supporting Forbidden is a vote for change and a vote against hate. We need your help to bring his vision to life. 

YOUR SUPPORT WILL HELP WITH:

WHO IS MOISES SERRANO? 

If you are an undocumented queer immigrant living in the United States amidst this turbulent political climate, you are not safe and your future is at risk. When Moises Serrano was just a baby, his parents risked everything to flee Mexico and make the perilous journey across the desert in search of the American dream. After 23 years growing up in the rural south where he is forbidden to live and love, Moises sees only one option — to fight for justice.

Forbidden is a feature length documentary about an inspiring young man whose story is exceptional, although not unique. Moises is like the thousands of young people growing up in the United States with steadfast dreams but facing overwhelming obstacles. Our film chronicles Moises’ work as an activist traveling across his home state of North Carolina as a voice for his community, all while trying to forge a path for his own future.

FORBIDDEN IS NOW

This film is relevant and urgent. It is 2016 and we have all seen the rise of Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee.  Trump spews hateful rhetoric toward immigrants, particularly Mexicans. This March, the North Carolina legislature rapidly passed House Bill 2 (HB2), a ugly discriminatory law forcing transgender people to use the bathroom of their biological gender. Now labeled as the notorious “bathroom bill,” HB2 has caused public outcry across the country and triggered Loretta Lynch, the U.S. Attorney General, to sue the state on grounds of civil rights violations and called the bill “state-sponsored discrimination.” Forbidden humanizes the issues and demonstrates how a loving family has the power to combat these destructive and ill-informed narratives. This is a story about love conquering hate.

Forbidden illustrates the intersection of queer and immigrant issues and addresses the realities facing LGBTQ minorities who have grown up in the rural south surrounded by white faces and homophobic attitudes. The threat is real — the KKK still holds weekly meetings not far from Moises’ hometown of Yadkinville, and he has found dead rats in his mailbox and white crosses on his front porch. Not everyone in the United States is treated equally or given a fair chance. Moises’ story demonstrates courage, conviction and an unyielding desire to succeed. Our goal with Forbidden is to motivate viewers to take action and inspire young people to speak out so that a story like Moises’ is not simply seen as remarkable, but is seen as normal.

BIG NEWS

We have VERY BIG news! We are slated to premiere the film this summer at Outfest Los Angeles, one of the leading LGBTQ Film Festivals in the country and the largest film festival of any kind in LA. Forbidden will screen alongside 200 feature and short films in 9 venues amidst a crowd of 40,000 people! Being able to premiere our film at this prestigious festival is a huge honor and very affirming for our team. This means more festivals on the horizon, more people viewing the film, and more people feeling inspired to speak out, get involved, and make change. Our ultimate goal is to secure a distribution deal so Forbidden can reach an even larger audience.

TAKE ACTION

Contributing to our campaign is an ACT of ACTIVISM. It is a tangible way to do something, to put your money toward spreading the word about the positive side of immigration and the complete normalcy of LGBTQ lifestyles (duh!). It is a way to STOP Trump. We must combat these damaging attitudes and raise serious awareness about these issues. We must STOP the hate.

MEET THE TEAM

Tiffany Rhynard, director and producer

I met Moises almost four years ago by a sheer stroke of serendipity; stories for documentaries tend to find me! Filmmaking has served as an act of necessity and I am inspired to make films that bring a human face to social justice issues and encourage viewers to take action. My first documentary, Little House in the Big House, chronicles the lives of four women incarcerated at a Vermont State prison participating in a construction program so upon release they can earn a living wage. The film won best documentary at the Central Illinois Feminist Film Festival. As a trained dancer and choreographer, my eye is honed to focus on the inherent meaning of the body and the intimate nuances in human behavior. My dance for the camera films have screened at film/video festivals such as the Dancing for the Camera at the American Dance Festival and at ScreenDance Miami 2015 where I won First Prize for my film Invisible Queens.

www.sistersunitepro.com

@sistersunitepro

Heather Mathews, editor and producer

Tiffany and I have been close friends since high school, remaining in each other’s lives across great distances. Two years ago, when Tiffany was in production on Forbidden, we were talking on the phone – she lives in Florida and I’m in Los Angeles – when she was lamenting the amount of work that lay ahead. I was so moved by Moises’ story and shocked by how little I knew about this subject, I immediately volunteered my services as an editor. I became so entrenched in the project over the past two years that I also took on a role as producer. I felt it a necessity to get this story out to as wide an audience as possible. I’ve been involved in film in various capacities for over 20 years. I’ve worked in David Fincher’s coveted Special Projects division at Anonymous Content where I got to work with such director’s such as Wong Kar-wai, Alejandro González Iñáritu and John Frankenheimer. I’ve worked in development for Robert Redford and Gary Ross and as a production coordinator for Tony Scott. In 2007 I went back to school to get an MFA in editing at The American Film Institute. Since 2009, I have edited narrative and documentary films, including the award winning Miss This At Your Peril and Sundance Festival favorite Spoonful.

www.heathermathews.com

@HeatherEditor

Moises Serrano, activist and storyteller

Moises Serrano is an undocumented activist who has lived most of his life in Yadkin County, NC. His journey as an organizer began in 2010 when he decided to publicly reveal his immigration status in order to highlight the need in our communities for the passing of the DREAM Act. After the failure of the DREAM Act he became a part of the National Coordinating Committee for United We Dream whose campaign in 2011 and 2012 was Administrative Relief or Deferred Action. Since the first moment he “came out of the shadows” he has relentlessly shared his story across the state to try to dispel the myths around the undocumented community. As a publicly gay man, Moises’ mission is to unite the immigration and LGBTQ movements, seeing them both as a struggle for human rights.

RISKS & CHALLENGES

We have a hard deadline and we MUST raise $30,000 in order to premiere the film at Outfest in July. Time is of the essence. We have locked picture (made all final editing decisions) and we turned the film over to the sound editor, composer, and color house. Post-production is one of the most IMPORTANT and EXPENSIVE aspects of filmmaking; this final process is what makes films look and sound amazing. These services are invaluable and necessary; if not done by professionals, the film has no ability to convey the value of its content. The result will elevate the story and help us communicate the most vital aspects of these issues and bring emotional intensity to Moises’ story. It is very important that we raise these funds; no one will color correct this film for free. NO ONE!

We make this point because we (the core team) have been working for free and contributing personal savings to produce this film. We are proud of how much we have accomplished as a small team, but we are operating on a shoestring budget without big studio or commercial backing. We are not only trying to meet the financial demands of making an independent film, but we are also tackling the challenges of securing funding for a film that deals with highly contentious political issues.

This is a PASSION project. We have survived this far on sheer commitment (endless hours and sleepless nights) and contributions from generous individuals like yourself. Money raised from a successful Indiegogo campaign will help cover post-production costs but will also go toward paying licensing fees for crucial media clips from NBC and National Geographic, and translation services to have Spanish subtitles throughout the film.

To date, we have successfully raised the majority of our budget through crowd sourcing, private donations, and fundraisers — but we need this last push to pay the final bills. We know we can make this film successful with your support. Please share this with your social networks and spread the word about Forbidden. Thank you for joining the fight. WE MUST ALL BE ALLIES.  

HERE are ways to get involved:

·  CIRCULATE this page to your social networks, friends, family, and neighbors.

·  USE the Indiegogo SHARE tools

·  USE hashtags: #forbiddendoc #moiseserrano

·  JOIN our mailing list: http://www.forbiddendoc.com

·  LIKE our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/forbiddendoc/

·  FOLLOW us on Twitter: 

o  @forbidden2live

o  @Moises89

o  @HeatherEditor

o  @sistersunitepro

·  MAKE a donation! 

THANK YOU!!!!!