HBO Docs Premieres ‘Case Against 8’

“The Case Against 8,” airing on HBO Documentaries, manages to build suspense around events leading up to the legal battle over California’s ban on same-sex marriage, even though we already know the outcome.

The film is a nice behind-the-scenes examination of the people and arguments for and against Proposition 8, the first federal marriage equality lawsuit to reach the U.S. Supreme Court.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOyhv91Ygz8&feature=youtu.be

It’s interesting to learn why two high-profile attorneys who fought on opposite sides of Bush v. Gore in 2000, teamed up to argue the case for “8.”

Political consultants Kristina Schake and Chad Griffin, founders of American Foundation for Equal Rights, are the ones responsible for liberal attorney David Boies and Ted Olson, former solicitor general in the George W. Bush administration teaming up. Olson was for same-sex marriage because, he insisted, “marriage is a conservative value.”

The film reveals that it was their legal strategy that asked, “who would same-sex marriage harm?” that left even opposing witnesses conceding that the ban was unfair.

Written and directed by Ben Cotner and Ryan White, the film collected a directing prize from Sundance Film Festival, and was the opening night film for Frameline 2014.

For more details about the film, see www.thecaseagainst8.com.