Filmmakers capture those ‘ah ha’ moments — when gays first felt radically different from friends and family

TEACHER’S PET: As a Wyoming schoolboy, Chuck Browning had a major crush on his science teacher, Mr. Leonard.

If coming out stories are a dime a dozen, “When I Knew” crams almost enough of them into half an hour to buy a gallon of gas. Dozens of gay men and lesbians give at least partial answers to the question implied by the title: When did you first know you were gay?

Inspired by Robert Trachtenberg’s book and produced and directed by partners Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato (“The Eyes of Tammy Faye”), “When I Knew” moves quickly and covers a lot of territory. It’s not all talking heads. There are old photos, home movies, reenactments of pivotal moments and some visual surprises.

While some subjects claim to have been aware of their orientation at birth, others cite nearly every age between five and 17 and grades one to eight. One woman shows a picture of herself at age three with the girl doll she was obviously in love with.

Others had crushes on friends, teachers, “the man on the Doan’s Pills box” and “Grizzly Adams.” For some there was an instant when “everything just clicked” — a boy was aroused by seeing penises in a documentary about pygmies; a woman had an epiphany hearing Goo Goo Dolls sing “Iris” (“I’d give up forever to touch you …”) — while for others it was more of a process.

Some spent time in the closet, others came roaring out while still others tiptoed, telling one friend or family member at a time. At the end, the filmmakers express the hope that the window between “When I Knew” and when I came out will continue to get smaller. Their work in film and television can’t help but narrow that gap, giving us gay role models to emulate and putting our lives in a positive context.

Grade: B Premieres June 25 at 7:30 p.m. on Cinemax.

This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition June 20, 2008.