Trailer for Big Joy: The Adventures of James Broughton which will premiere at the 2013 SXSW Film Festival.
Years before the Beats arrived in San Francisco, the city exploded with artistic expressions – painting, theatre, film, poetry. And at its center was the groundbreaking filmmaker and poet James Broughton. “Big Joy” explores Broughton's life and art where he weaves the quirky, bizarre, sexual and charming - all with a sprinkle of spirituality. His remarkable story spans the post-war San Francisco Renaissance, escape to Europe during the McCarthy years, his special film prize at Cannes, his consorting with the Beats, making films celebrating the human body, meeting his soulmate at age 61, becoming a bard of Gay liberation, and dying a conscious death.