Project Spectrum (working title) is a feature length documentary that chronicles a year in the lives of the members of Spectrum, a high school gay/straight alliance. The film
follows the personal experiences of these students as they grow and evolve, working for positive change within their school environment.
The group name, Spectrum, is the moniker of the Gay/ Straight Alliance
founded by three straight allies in the summer of 1998. These young people live in North Olmsted, Ohio, a predominately white, middle and working class suburb of Cleveland. Tired of hearing anti-gay epithets
and appalled at the apathetic and unresponsive school climate, the students decided to start a group that would confront the hatred and bigotry, and promote tolerance. It may seem strange to use words usually
associated with terms of war, such as “allies”, to describe teens who confront homophobic put-downs. But this is an era where hatred and bigotry have fueled misguided murderous actions such as the killing of
Matthew Shepard and the tragedy at Columbine High School. Today war metaphors seem less like an analogy than a mere reality for teens growing up in the U.S. The experience of attending “post Columbine” high
school is, as Paul Houston the executive director of the American Association of School Administrators, laments “a period of lost innocence for school people.” This trailblazing group is compromised of approximately
75% straight allies. Some of the 40 plus members may be gay, bisexual, or questioning, but identifying one’s sexual orientation is not the focus of this group. Like many of the 850 GSAs across the country,
Spectrum strives to be an inclusive group that welcomes anyone committed to creating a school that has a safe, hostile-free learning environment for all students. The documentary film, Project Spectrum, presents a
unique look at how high schoolers in Midwestern America respond to the hatred and bigotry that surrounds them. This film chronicles a year in the lives of teens defying America’s status of intolerance of any
differences in human condition by bringing a message of acceptance and respect. 
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