Over eight years, HIFF’s SummerDocs series has become one of the Hamptons’ signature summer events. Don’t miss our first documentary of the season, featuring a story that proves truth is indeed stranger than fiction.
AUTHOR: THE JT LEROY STORY
Saturday, July 9, 7:00 pm
Tickets
New York magazine’s October 2005 issue sent shockwaves through the literary world when it unmasked “it boy” wunderkind JT LeRoy, whose tough prose about his sordid childhood had captivated icons and luminaries internationally. It turned out LeRoy didn’t actually exist. He was dreamed up by 40-year-old San Francisco punk rocker and phone sex operator Laura Albert.
AUTHOR: THE JT LEROY STORY takes us down the infinitely fascinating rabbit hole of how Laura Albert—like a Cyrano de Bergerac on steroids—breathed not only words, but life, into her avatar for a decade. Albert’s epic and entertaining account plunges us into a glittery world of rock shows, fashion events, and the Cannes red carpet, where LeRoy becomes a mysterious sensation. As she recounts this astonishing odyssey, Albert also reveals the intricate web spun by irrepressible creative forces within her. Her extended and layered JT LeRoy performance still infuriates many; but for Albert, channeling her brilliant fiction through another identity was the only possible path to self-expression.
Director Jeff Feuerzeig (THE DEVIL AND DANIEL JOHNSTON) will be in attendance for a conversation led by series co-curators Alec Baldwin and David Nugent. Find tickets.
AUTHOR: THE JT LEROY STORY is an Amazon Studios/Magnolia Pictures release.
Candescent Films returns to sponsor the Audience Award for the 2016 SummerDocs series. Candescent Films supports documentaries that illuminate social issues. Join the conversation @CandescentFilms.
