What did it feel like to be queer in the 1930s? In The Castro during the 1970‘s or the day Harvey Milk was shot?
If you want to feel the past not just read about it, watch the home movies and videos. Look at the community shows LGBTQ people put together. Watch the clips they saved. They go at least as far back as 1939. And those are just the ones we show in this documentary (some for the first time).
Most are still unknown in people’s closets. Soon, many may be thrown away by unknowing friends and family.
So historians are struggling to save this most telling look at a hidden history before it’s lost. That’s what this film shows. The story of queer cinema is well known, but this is the first time LGBTQ personal films and video have been the subject.

“Reel In The Closet” goes beyond the gay community in its ability to prove how each person’s day-to-day life is history. Viewers leave excited to open their own closet and delve into their own past.