NOTE: As per the filmmaker's request, "Cured" is ONLY available in NC, SC, VA, and TN.

Mentally ill. Deviant. Diseased. And in need of a cure. These were among the terms psychiatrists used to describe lesbians and gay men in the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s. According to the medical establishment, every gay person—no matter how well-adjusted—suffered from a mental disorder. And as long as lesbians and gay men were “sick,” progress toward equality was impossible. CURED chronicles the battle waged by a small group of activists who declared war against a formidable institution—and won a crucial victory in the modern movement for LGBTQ equality.

This feature-length documentary takes viewers inside the David-versus-Goliath struggle that led the American Psychiatric Association (APA) to remove homosexuality from its manual of mental illnesses in 1973. Viewers meet the key players who achieved this victory, along with allies and opponents within the APA. The film illuminates the strategy and tactics that led to this pivotal yet largely unknown moment. Indeed, following the Stonewall uprising of 1969, the campaign that culminated in the APA’s decision marks the first major step on the path to first-class citizenship for LGBTQ Americans.

While CURED is indisputably about science, medicine, and politics, at its core this is a film about activism and the process of social change. It features a diverse group of crusaders with stubborn dedication and big personalities who came together at a crossroads in LGBTQ history. Their tenacity, resourcefulness, and ingenuity brought about a change that transformed not only LGBTQ people’s perceptions of themselves, but also the social fabric of America.

“[A] striking documentary. One of the 5 best LGBTQ+ films we watched [at Outfest].”

— DAVID OLIVER, USA TODAY

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Bennett Singer & Patrick Sammon - Director's Bios

Bennett Singer is an award-winning filmmaker who has been making social-issue documentaries for more than 25 years. He co-directed BROTHER OUTSIDER, a portrait of the gay civil rights activist Bayard Rustin. Singer received a duPont-Columbia Award for his work on EYES ON THE PRIZE II, the Emmy-and Peabody-winning PBS series on civil rights history. He later co-directed ELECTORAL DYSFUNCTION, a feature-length documentary about voting in America; hosted by Mo Rocca, the film aired nationally on PBS, was featured in a four-part New York Times Op-Docs series, and won the American Bar Association’s Silver Gavel Award. The former Executive Editor of TIME Magazine’s education program, Singer is the editor or author of five books, including 42 UP (companion volume to Michael Apted’s acclaimed documentary series). He currently resides in Los Angeles.

Patrick Sammon has a mix of experience in filmmaking, broadcast journalism, and LGBTQ political advocacy. The president of Story Center Films in Washington, DC, he is Creator and Executive Producer of CODEBREAKER, a drama-documentary that explored the life and legacy of gay British codebreaker Alan Turing. Before founding Story Center Films in 2010, Sammon served three years as President of Log 9 Cabin Republicans, which advocates for LGBTQ rights in the Republican Party on behalf of its 20,000 members. Sammon started his career as an award-winning television news reporter at CBS affiliates in Northern New York and Northeast Tennessee.