''The Joy of Life'' is a 2005 experimental landscape

documentary film A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

by filmmaker

Jenni Olson Jenni Olson (born October 6, 1962) is a writer, archivist, historian, consultant, and non-fiction filmmaker based in Berkeley, California. She co-founded the pioneering LGBT website PlanetOut.com. Her two feature-length essay films — ''The Joy ...

about the history of

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

at the

Golden Gate Bridge The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean in California, United States. The structure links San Francisco—the northern tip of the San Francisco Peni ...

, and the adventures of a butch

lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...

San Francisco, California San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

. Following its January 2005 premiere at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

, the film played a pivotal role in renewing debate about the need for a

suicide barrier A suicide barrier is a structure intended to deter people from attempting suicide by deliberately jumping from a high place on a structure. Suicide barriers often consist of nets, metal screening, and fencing. Suicide barriers may be placed on tal ...

on the Golden Gate Bridge and garnered praise and awards for its unique filmmaking style. The film combines 16mm landscape cinematography with a lyrical voiceover (performed by LA-based artist/actor

Harry Dodge Harry Dodge (born 1966) is an American sculptor, performer, video artist, professor, and writer. His solo exhibitions have included works in New York, Los Angeles and Connecticut, while his group exhibitions have taken place at The New Museum, t ...

) to share two San Francisco stories: the history of the Golden Gate Bridge as a suicide landmark, and the story of a lesbian in San Francisco searching for love and self-discovery. The two stories are punctuated by

Lawrence Ferlinghetti Lawrence Monsanto Ferlinghetti (March 24, 1919 – February 22, 2021) was an American poet, painter, social activist, and co-founder of City Lights Booksellers & Publishers. An author of poetry, translations, fiction, theatre, art criticism, and ...

's reading of his ode to San Francisco, "The Changing Light", and bookended by opening and closing credits music from legendary 1950s icon (and probable Golden Gate suicide)

Weldon Kees Harry Weldon Kees (February 24, 1914 – disappeared July 18, 1955) was an American poet, librarian, painter, literary critic, novelist, playwright, jazz pianist, short story writer, and filmmaker. Despite his brief career, Kees is consider ...

. The film is dedicated to the memory of

Mark Finch Mark Finch (21 October 1961 – 14 January 1995) was an English promoter of LGBT cinema. Having founded and expanded several international film festivals he created the first LGBT film market for distributors, sales agents, and independent film ...

, who died by suicide by jumping from the bridge in January 1995.

Reception and aftermath

The film was awarded several prizes including: the 2005

Marlon Riggs Marlon Troy Riggs (February 3, 1957 – April 5, 1994) was a Black gay filmmaker, educator, poet, and activist. He produced, wrote, and directed several documentary films, including '' Ethnic Notions'', '' Tongues Untied'', '' Color Adjustment'' ...

Award (for courage & vision in Bay Area filmmaking) by the

San Francisco Film Critics Circle The San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle (SFBAFCC), formerly known as San Francisco Film Critics Circle, was founded in 2002 as an organization of film journalists and critics from San Francisco, California based publications. Included in it ...

; the 2005 Outstanding Artistic Achievement Award by

Outfest Outfest is an LGBTQ-oriented nonprofit that produces two film festivals, operates a movie streaming platform, and runs educational services for filmmakers in Los Angeles. Outfest is one of the key partners, alongside the Frameline Film Festival ...

, the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Film Festival and the 2005 Best US Narrative Screenplay Award from

The New Festival NewFest: The New York Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, & Transgender Film Festival, put on by NewFest (legal name The New Festival, Inc.), is the largest LGBTQ film festival in the United States and one of the most comprehensive forums of national and inte ...

, New York Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. January 14, 2005 the ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. ...

'' published an op-ed by writer-director Jenni Olson (an excerpt from the script of the film) calling for a suicide barrier on the Golden Gate Bridge. The following week (on January 19) the ''Chronicle ''broke the news that filmmaker

Eric Steel Eric Carl Steel (born ) is an American filmmaker and producer, best known for his controversial 2006 documentary ''The Bridge''. Career ''The Bridge'' Steel's directorial debut was the 2006 documentary ''The Bridge''. After reading about suicide ...

had been shooting suicide leaps from the bridge during the calendar year of 2004 for his film ''

The Bridge The Bridge may refer to: Art, entertainment and media Art * ''The Bridge'' (sculpture), a 1997 sculpture in Atlanta, Georgia, US * Die Brücke (''The Bridge''), a group of German expressionist artists * ''The Bridge'' (M. C. Escher), a lithograph ...

'', which would be released in 2006. A week later "The Joy of Life" world premiered at the

and video copies of the film were circulated to members of the Golden Gate Bridge District board of directors (with the help of the Psychiatric Foundation of Northern California).

External links

Official site
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Joy Of Life, The 2005 films Documentary films about lesbians Documentary films about San Francisco Documentary films about suicide Golden Gate Bridge American avant-garde and experimental films LGBTQ culture in San Francisco 2000s avant-garde and experimental films 2005 LGBTQ-related films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films American LGBTQ-related documentary films English-language documentary films