Avondale Estates resident, Cara Consilvio, is a female director and producer of opera, film, and theater. Consilvio produced and directed mini-documentaries for the NEA Opera Honors, NEA Jazz Masters videos, OPERA America, and the American Composers Orchestra. Her latest project is “For the Love of Friends,” a documentary chronicling activist Brent Nicholson Earle’s 10,000-mile run around the country in 20 months to bring awareness to the AIDS epidemic. The documentary will be airing for the first time on Public Broadcast Stations on June 1st.
Early in the AIDS epidemic, Brent refused to watch his friends suffer due to the government’s inaction and public ignorance about the disease. His audacious response in 1986 was to embark on a run around the perimeter of the United States to draw attention to the plight of AIDS.
Consilvio was introduced to Earle by her mother-in-law, Barbara Martinez, an AIDS activist. Consilvio and Earle’s connection to theater as former NYC actors bonded them immediately; their first meeting was five hours long. Consilvio pitched Earle her concept for the film and how she would use a live theater show to dramatize key moments in his life.
“Brent had turned down filmmakers in the past who wanted to tell his story, but not in the way he wanted, so I was relieved that he trusted my vision for approaching his story,” said director and producer Cara Consilvio.
Like Brent Nicholson Earle, Consilvio overcame many obstacles while making this film. She championed and fought to bring this heartfelt film to the masses even during the COVID-19 pandemic. The opera director by day turned film director by night was resilient and never gave up trying to get the film distributed.
Interviews for the documentary were filmed in parallel with the writing and production of a stage play based on the same story. “For the Love of Friends,” blends performance rehearsal clips and interview and archival footage to highlight activist Earle’s remarkable life’s work. Brent’s activism has continued since.
