photos & story courtesy of chasingcapri.com
Filmmaker Caleb Holland has released his documentary film Chasing Capri. The film captures the coming of age story of teen trans activist Capri Culpepper, best known for her 2015 triumph over the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles. Culpepper had been denied a driver’s license based on her appearance. The DMV at first insisted that she could not put ‘female gender’ on her license, but a court has since ruled that a person may put on their license the gender identity that matches the way that they dress most of the time.
Chasing Capri also documents the struggles currently facing the broader LGBTQ community in the southern United States, including the infamous ‘bathroom bills’ (which failed in Tennessee) and the aftermath of the Orlando Pulse Nightclub shooting.
Chasing Capri has been released online, in time for Memphis Pride, and is available via Vimeo at chasingcapri. com. Holland hopes to have a series of screenings of his movie across the country to benefit various LGBTQ charities.
Speaking on his motivation for creating the film, Director Caleb Holland said, “I grew up gay in the same town as Capri. I was afraid to be myself. I was drawn to her story because I recognized many of her struggles from my own journey.
It’s important to me that as few young people as possible grow up as we did, expecting to have to leave their hometown in order to be accepted. I hope this film provides an opportunity for conversation and opens the doorway to cooperation between individuals of all different backgrounds.”
Chasing Capri captures the coming of age story of teen trans activist Capri Culpepper, and the cultural
transition unfolding across the south.
Chasing Capri has garnered notable contributors including Chad Griffin, President of the Human Rights Campaign, Shakina Nayfack who appears in Amy Poehler’s Difficult People, viral trans activist Corey Maison, Orange County mayor Teresa Jacobs, and Orlando City Commissioner Patty Sheehan. At age 23, this film represents filmmaker Caleb Holland’s first feature length documentary.
See a preview of the movie at youtube.com/watch?v=Fpa6VauAtZc
