Aurora Brachman (co-director, cinematographer and editor) and LaTajh Simmons-Weaver (co-director and co-editor) are the makers behind the film “Hold Me Close.”
The short documentary had its world premiere on Saturday, Jan. 25 at the Sundance Film Festival. With a run time of just under 20 minutes, the film’s story is focused on the love Tiana and Corinne — two queer, black women — share. It studies the patience and experience these two share through the cycles of life.
A Tale of Two Lovers
“It’s our first time in a relationship with another black woman, and I think we didn’t know how to navigate hard to have conversations around it,” Brachman said. “We were looking for examples of how to love another black woman. And there aren’t any out there.”
Simmons-Weaver explained that they had never seen a film like this one at Sundance. They wanted to provide a space where people and the community could come together and experience a story of being human. Brachman added that documentaries are usually depressing and make people worry for the world. That wasn’t the intention of this film.
“There’s so many filmmakers of color who come to Sundance … and they are not seeing themselves represented on screen,” Simmons-Weaver said. “[With this film here] they get to watch this and see themselves and see people appreciating a story like this.”
Cultivating This Unique Story
During the process, Brachman and Simmons-Weaver kept intention at the center of the story. It was filmed on 16mm film and was recorded with live mics that Tiana and Corinne used and recorded themselves from every day for a month.
“Part of our intention with the film was to show the way that a relationship between two queer black people can become a unique kind of safe haven against the struggles that exist outside, because you understand each other in such remarkable and distinct way,” Brachman said.
When tying the story together, it was important to them that the characters took a lot of creative direction. While they had certain tones they wanted for the film, Tiana and Corinne were given the freedom to explore the space and naturally move with each other.
“These spaces are so sacred for us when we can cultivate them,” Brachman said. “It was a delicate balance of what we were willing to show and what we needed to hold back for safety and protecting their space.”
This Film is True to the Human Experience
The story of “Hold Me Close” is so raw and tells a human story. It’s an incredible view of queer identities, which story isn’t seen on screen often. Simmons-Weaver explained that a lot of queer stories are over politicized and that’s not what they wanted with this film.
“We wanted a film that was showing a beautiful blueprint of what a healthy form of love looks like,” she said. “It wasn’t even so much about race or gender of those people. It was just more about, ‘this is what we can relate to.’”
“Hold Me Close” has a few screenings left with Sundance. It will be playing Jan. 28 at Broadway Centre Cinemas in Salt Lake City and Feb. 1 at Redstone Cinemas.
“We want people to feel sort of bathed in the warmth and the beauty and the patience of the love that they have,” Brachman said.
