(Originally Published on Moviefone and The Huffington Post on 11/19/2012)

With Laika Studios releasing ParaNorman on 3D Blu-ray combo pack, Blu-ray combo pack, DVD, On Demand and digital download on Nov. 27, I decided to catch up with my old friend (and ParaNorman creator/director) Chris Butler. We chatted about his dream project coming to life, how this movie of his is changing the world, and why everyone needs to watch it at least twice.

Logan: Hey, Chris. Thanks so much for chatting with me today. For you, what is ParaNorman about?

Chris: I think mainly it’s about tolerance. It’s about how judging people is often misjudging people. The original seed of the idea was something as simple as “how cool would it be to make a stop-mo-animated zombie movie for kids?” and I think that had more to do with growing up on a gleeful diet of Ray Harryhausen creature features and cheesy horror movies. But then beyond that I started thinking that all the best zombie movies are really social commentary — zombies as metaphors. I had the lofty ambition of trying to do that on my movie, only making it a social commentary for kids. I think by far the hardest issue I faced as a child was “fitting in.” I was different, and when you’re a kid, “different” is considered “bad.” The world isn’t a tolerant place for people who don’t conform to the accepted norm. When I embraced that as the heart of the movie, the story really clicked. I wanted to juxtapose the fictional horror of the walking dead with the very real horror of what it is to be 11 years old and different.

Logan: Oh, God. Seriously. How long had this project been in the works?

Chris: I started writing it about 15 or 16 years ago. I kept returning to it over the years. There was something about it that just wouldn’t die, which I guess for a zombie movie is pretty appropriate.

Logan: Aww, it’s your baby!

Chris: This truly is my baby, from initial idea through first draft of the script to the finished movie. It’s a very personal project to me.

Logan: Clearly. I was also struck by the craft of it all. In a world of mass production and CGI, to see something so labor-intensive come to life is a real treat. Was it hard to convince people to come on board with your way of doing things instead of taking an easier animation route?

Chris: We’re an odd bunch in the stop-motion world. We live, breathe and fight for our medium. We love what we do, and for that reason this type of animation will always be around and will always attract amazingly talented people. I think there was a degree of passion among the crew for this project in particular that I don’t think I’ve seen before. Obviously, I’m biased, but I genuinely think people wanted to give this their all.

It was always conceived as stop-motion, right from day one. As soon as I saw the skeleton fight in Jason and the Argonauts as a kid, I knew that stop-motion was the best way to bring the dead back to life!

Logan: It’s really special, Chris. And clearly, Casey Affleck’s ginger character is based on me. If one of the characters in the film were based on you and your experience in the world, who would it be? Read the rest of this entry »

The pre-order for the charity record I produced Comp 175 – A Benefit for Queer Programs & Services in the Pacific Northwest went live today via Bandcamp. 36 bands, 45 songs, 15 dollars. 100% of the proceeds go directly to Q Center, which runs the LGBTQ Community Center and the Sexual & Gender Minority Youth Resource Center (SMYRC) in Portland. Order your copy now and get the first 10 tracks instantly! The full record comes out wherever music is sold on Tuesday, November 27th.

Click HERE to get down with the pre-order!

“Comp 175 – A Benefit for Queer Programs & Services in the Pacific Northwest” Tracklist:

1. Deluxe – An Evening Alone
2. Matt Alber – Tightrope
3. Logan Lynn – Do You Want Me Or Not?
4. Scream Club, Peaches, Shunda K, and Nicky Click – Billionaire (Remix)
5. Atole – Tonya
6. God-Des & She – God, I Know You Love Me
7. Magic Mouth – Wash It Off
8. Christeene – Tropical Abortion
9. Kimono Kops – A Shotgun Cottage
10. Jeremy Gloff – Outsiders
11. Kerry Hallett – Easy Go
12. Bobby Jo Valentine – Home
13. Jana Fisher – If I Ever Break Your Heart
14. A Million Tiny Architects – Lost In Oscillations
15. Jeb Havens – Parachute
16. Mattachine Social – Star Box
17. Tom Goss – Seems Like Yesterday
18. Logan Lynn – Turn Me Out (Modern Remix)
19. Kelly Moe – Collide Into You (Bovine Remix)
20. L10 – Oh Yeah!
21. Brett Gleason – Polarity
22. The Sexbots – Solar Power
23. Magic Mouth – Hush
24. Houston Bernard – 14 14 LUV
25. Noah Daniel Wood – Joshua
26. Jonny – The Gay Canon
27. Microfilm – B.F.F.
28. Blue Redder – Seahorse
29. Jeb Havens – Wake Up Call
30. Logan Lynn – Alone Together (Boy In Static Remix)
31. Bobby Jo Valentine – Gunshot
32. Katrina Skalland – Kiss You
33. Towering Trees – Brandy Alexander
34. Barbi Crash – Talk Shit
35. Atole – Maximal Techno
36. Matthew Mercer – Swallowing Stars
37. Kerry Hallett – Hating Nothing
38. Marshall J. – Damn It All
39. Stephan Nance – Firecracker
40. Noah Daniel Wood – Eli Wants A High Five
41. Mattachine Social – Lovers
42. Brett Gleason – Unruddered (Dead Red Velvet Remix)
43. Houston Bernard – Love (Matt Moss Vocal Mix)
44. Logan Lynn – Tramp Stamps and Birthmarks
45. Alternate Destination – July

(Originally Published in the November 2012 Issue of Just Out Magazine)

“In the Trenches: The Closet Trip”

My partner and I took a trip to South Dakota this past summer to celebrate my grandfather’s 100th birthday. Before the trip began, we talked about how my extended family on my mother’s side had always been very accepting of me (and my gayness) in theory, but that I had never taken a man “home” and been around all of them while in relationship to test it out. Somewhere in me I knew that everything would be fine with all of them, just as it has been with my immediate family for years, so I didn’t think much more of it.

Almost immediately upon our plane landing in Rapid City, it was clear that we were not in Portland anymore. The woman at the rental car place made some snide comment about how only I could drive the car unless we were “married or domestic partners” which then made her laugh out loud. Imagine – two men married to each other? Ha!

By the time we arrived at the hotel we were exhausted and it was late. We chatted with my parents for a bit and then went to sleep. The next morning we woke up early and traveled to the Badlands, where we spent most of the day. The land was magical and our interaction with people was sparse. We hung out, took photos, and tried not to touch the very cute prairie dogs (which carry plague, come to find out).

We spent the weekend hanging out with all the people who have ever loved me in the world. It was really great for me to get to share them with the man I love, and him with them. My family all celebrated our relationship and welcomed him into the fold without batting an eyelash. It was extraordinary.

Family aside, I could tell some of the hotel staff and patrons were either afraid of my floral bike cap or the anal sex it implied, but Read the rest of this entry »