The Men's Center

I haven't posted here in a while because I've been too busy making the movie to talk about the movie. But there's lots to talk about.

This is an image from a Mankind Project-Minnesota Council meeting, where we went to formally ask for their sign-on to the film project. They voted "yea" on some kind of resolution of support, purely symbolically, but the gesture was much appreciated.

On the right, in the photo, is David Kaar, the leader of the weekend, who was shocked when we actually got permission to film from the executive committee of MKP. He handled the whole situation with incredible grace, in my opinion - more on that later.

But mainly, it occurred to me, looking at this photo, that I want to talk about the Men's Center in Minneapolis. It's a venerable institution, it's been around for over 30 years, since the very beginning of what was called the "Men's Movement" in the '70s. They offer classes and support groups, amazing services that have helped many thousands of people, over the years.

And, it's quite possibly the ugliest space I've ever seen. It's a suite of three or four rooms in the basement of a low, grim-looking building (at 33rd and Hennepin in Uptown), with no windows, horrible fluorescent lighting, and falling apart chairs that probably, literally, date back to the '70s. The walls are decked with the kind of posters I remember from the guidance counselor's office at my junior high school.

It's utterly depressing (speaking for myself, of course), going in there. There are probably a bunch of reasons that the space was chosen, once upon a time, and it's probably cheap to rent and maintain - but, to me, it sends a clear message: Men's Work is dark, shameful stuff to be hidden away in a windowless basement.

Now, aesthetics are probably not the primary concern of the men who run the center, or its clientele. But as a filmmaker, I think that these are relevant considerations: how does the space actually look and feel, and what message does that communicate to the outside world?

So far I've been the recipient of some great, vocal support for this project from many of the men involved in this discussion thus far. I think this is a damn good question, worth asking and worth answering: if this work is so great and important and powerful, why is it so hard to share it with people? Part of the point of this project for me is to get these ideas out of the basement, and into the light of day.