James Chasse—The Documentary Film
Tuesday, February 5, 2008, BY MATT DAVIS of the Portland Mercury
Contrary to rumor I do occasionally take writing seriously. Which is why I’m working with director Brian Lindstrom and the Mental Health Association of Portland to write Alien Boy, a documentary film about James Chasse. Check out the website here. Thanks to my editors and publisher here at the Mercury for allowing me to be part of the project.
CHASSE PHOTO: Beaten, hogtied, dying…
Chasse’s beating and mysterious death at the hands of Portland law enforcement in September 2006 remains troubling for all sorts of reasons. This weekend, I interviewed Lindstrom for the Alien Boy blog and he had this to say about the movie:
“My documentaries examine people society ignores or puts an ‘X’ through. If you go deep enough into someone’s story, you begin to understand their struggles. The person’s humanity is revealed, and you find yourself identifying with them. Labels like ‘drug addict,’ ‘ex-con’ or ‘mentally ill’ fall away.”
Well, that’s the idea, anyway. It’s been fascinating to begin our research, and I hope you’ll support the project.
