Doug Daulton

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Lady Valor: The Kristin Beck Story

March 18, 2015 by Doug Leave a Comment

Navy SEAL. The very term says “bad ass”.

Like most folks, I was surprised when the story broke that a former SEAL had recently come out as transgender and was in the process of transitioning from male to female. My first thought was “how incredibly brave”.

Imagine that, my first reaction to the story how brave this person was; a friggin Navy SEAL, with seven combat deployments to her credit.

I never served in the Armed Forces. But, I consider myself fortunate to know and call friend many who have; especially several combat veterans from Vietnam. Their stories, of the mistreatment they experienced when returning home, have always stuck with me. As a result, while I have not always supported our wars, I have always supported our soldiers. Those men and women prepare to make the ultimate sacrifice in service to the United States. They deserve our respect and support; especially when they return home.

“Lady Valor” is the story of Kristin Beck. The film is equal parts gut-wrenching and poignant. It is clear that denying his true self was destroying Christopher Beck. At some level, it drove him to excellence as a SEAL while destroying his inner life and, ultimately, his marriage. Becoming Kristin seems to have changed much of that.

What I found most compelling was the way the folks around Beck supported her. Sure, there were and remain folks with negative reactions to her change. But, many of the folks you would expect to have the most extreme reactions (e.g. football coach father, big brother, fellow SEALs) have chosen to love and support the man they loved as a son, brother or brother-in-arms. It is clear that, in retrospect, each recognized and respected the emotional, existential turmoil with which Christopher Beck once lived. Rather than rejecting Chris as weak, they embraced Kristin; as family should.

As for the rest of us, if anyone deserves to live free … in body and spirit … in the United States, it is Kristin Beck.

“Lady Valor” is now on Netflix and absolutely worth your time to watch.

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Subjects: Commentary, documentary, Fairness, Honor, Justice, LGBT, Navy Seal, Netflix, SEAL, Service, Social Justice, Transgender, USN, Worth Watching

DOCUMENTARY: Black Rock

April 8, 2013 by Doug Leave a Comment

Capturing footage at NARA

Back in 2010, Neil Henderson, friend and frequent collaborator, approached me with an idea for a documentary. The story focuses on a formerly top secret military program. The program was declassified in the late 1990s and is now a matter of public record, mostly.

The subject matter is really compelling. Sorry conspiracy theorists, nothing to see here. No men in black are going to knock on our door. The core story really focuses on the men and women who made the program work and the considerable sacrifices they made on behalf of the program and the nation.

Still, I need to be careful about what I say about the project publicly as it is still in active development. Here is what I can safely share.

  • In the fall of 2010, Neil and I filmed over thirty interviews with most of the living participants in the program.
  • This winter, I visited the National Archives in Maryland to digitize footage for the project.
  • We have some great mentors helping shepherd us through the project’s development.
  • We have had early talks with a great crew to help us build the final film.
  • We have a plan to fund further development of the film via Kickstarter.

Neil and I are excited about the project. As I can, I’ll share updates here and, eventually, on website dedicated to the film.

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Subjects: Black Rock, doc, documentary

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