A man spends 15 minutes waiting for the results of a Rapid HIV Test.
The Mess He Made (2017)
Director’s StaTement
This is a film about getting tested for HIV in 2017 — two decades after President Clinton announced that finding an effective vaccine would be a top national priority. Five years after the FDA approved PrEP for reducing the risk of sexually acquired infection. One year after my first Grindr hookup.
This is a film about queer rituals. This is a film about grappling with gay shame. And this is a film about a man who is terrified of winding up alone, but on some level thinks he deserves to be.
I feel very lucky (and terrified) to have so many of my own demons on display in this work – it has been more personal, therapeutic and creatively fulfilling than I could have ever imagined. I’ll always be grateful to my remarkable cast and crew, who stomped into Scranton, PA with me the week after the election, when the world suddenly felt so unfamiliar, and carved out a space for this fierce little film. ~Matthew Puccini
World Premiere: 2017 SXSW Film Festival
Short of The Week — shortoftheweek.com/2017/09/29/the-mess-he-made/
Iris Prize — irisprize.org/film/the-mess-he-made/
Official Selection:
Palm Springs International ShortFest**
Flickers’ Rhode Island International Film Festival**
HollyShorts**
Frameline Film Festival
Toronto Inside Out Film Festival
NewFest
Sarasota Film Festival
New York No Limits Film Festival
Denver Film Society Cinema Q Film Festival
North Carolina Gay & Lesbian Film Festival
Jim Thorpe Independent Film Festival
Tacoma Film Festival
TWIST: Seattle Queer Film Festival
Miami Short Film Festival
24FPS International Short Film Festival
Mezipatra Film Festival
Out on Film, Atlanta’s LGBT Film Festival
YES Film Festival
New York No Limits Film Festival
**Oscar-qualifying
