{"id":633,"date":"2024-05-01T16:20:00","date_gmt":"2024-05-01T21:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/?p=633"},"modified":"2025-12-23T15:42:28","modified_gmt":"2025-12-23T21:42:28","slug":"sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/","title":{"rendered":"Director delivers scene-stealing debut in documentary"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Coming-of-age movies can be a lot of fun to watch, admits Sav Rodgers, but less so \u201cwhen you\u2019re the one coming of age and everyone is watching you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The filmmaker and screenwriter learned this lesson when he unexpectedly became the main character in his feature directorial debut, \u201cChasing Chasing Amy,\u201d<\/a> which premiered at New York\u2019s Tribeca Festival in June 2023, followed by screenings around the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rodgers, c\u201917, launched the documentary during a TED fellowship, which concluded in 2018 with his own TED Talk, an eight-minute commentary titled \u201c<\/a>The Rom-Com That Sa<\/a>ved My Life.\u201d<\/a> He explained the comfort he found as a 12-year-old when, for the first time, he saw queer characters living authentically in the romantic comedy \u201cChasing Amy.\u201d The 1997 movie about the relationship between a straight man (played by actor Ben Affleck) and a self-identifying lesbian (Joey Lauren Adams), written and directed by Kevin Smith, helped Rodgers cope with homophobic bullying that began as he entered junior high in suburban Kansas City\u2019s Johnson County.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen marginalized people talk about the need for representation in media, they are not being hyperbolic,\u201d Rodgers said in his TED Talk. \u201cSeeing yourself on screen endows you with the feeling of existing in the world, and seeing myself on screen gave me the strength to navigate that world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Sav Rodgers (right) with inspirational mentor Kevin Smith, director of \u201cChasing Amy\u201d and a featured element of Rodgers\u2019 documentary, \u201cChasing Chasing Amy.\u201d<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Rodgers concluded by announcing he would soon direct a film exploring the divisive legacy surrounding LGBTQ representation in \u201cChasing Amy.\u201d When a video of his talk was posted online in 2019, he received praise from the film\u2019s stars\u2014and an offer to help from Smith.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Smith\u2019s vulnerability during on-camera interviews with Rodgers was a turning point in the KU grad\u2019s decision to\u2014in the middle of filming the documentary\u2014come out as a transgender man. \u201cThe initial premise that I set out to make a movie about does get answered,\u201d says Rodgers, who now chairs the KU film & media studies professional advisory board. \u201cAnd then it becomes about something totally bigger, which ends up being my life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though reluctant to focus the film on himself, Rodgers is proud of the result and audience reactions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been truly blown away by the amount of kindness from everybody across the board,\u201d he says. \u201cLGBTQ people, parents of trans kids, older trans people, people who share no life experience with me but they relate to feeling alone or depressed or discounted. … It\u2019s been really nice to see the film reach across different life experiences and have people get something out of it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He\u2019s also proud to say the film is a \u201cJayhawk production through and through.\u201d The KU connections include on-screen appearances by Kevin Willmott, professor of film & media studies, and Sarah Jen, assistant professor of social welfare. Matt Jacobson, professor of film & media studies, filmed one of several scenes in Summerfield Hall. Tyler Emerson, l\u201913, served as executive director, and Bradley Garrison, \u201921, directed photography. Several students were involved as production assistants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Rodgers, now based in Las Vegas with his wife, Riley, who co-stars in the documentary, recently landed on the 2024 Forbes \u201c30 Under 30\u201d Media List for his work as a filmmaker and founder of the Transgender Film Center to help fund transgender creators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rodgers is still working on a U.S. distribution deal for \u201cChasing Chasing Amy.\u201d In the meantime, the film began appearing in U.K. theatres May 17 through Kindred Pictures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI hope that I get to keep making fun, optimistic, daffy films that showcase the hope that I personally have for our future,\u201d Rodgers says. \u201cI want to keep telling stories that involve queer people in moments that aren\u2019t just about the worst things that have ever happened to us. I hope I get to make a lot of comedies and heartfelt films that take you on similarly emotional and fun journeys as \u2018Chasing Chasing Amy.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

MeLinda Schnyder is a Wichita-based freelance writer.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Photo by Bill Winters<\/h6>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KU graduate Sav Rodgers teamed with Kevin Smith, Jayhawk connections for \u201cChasing Chasing Amy.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":52,"featured_media":960,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14,13],"tags":[54,91],"class_list":["post-633","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-alumni","category-jayhawks","tag-college-of-liberal-arts-sciences","tag-pop-culture"],"yoast_head":"\nDirector delivers scene-stealing debut in documentary - Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"KU graduate Sav Rodgers teamed with Kevin Smith, Jayhawk connections for \u201cChasing Chasing Amy.\u201d\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Director delivers scene-stealing debut in documentary\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"KU graduate Sav Rodgers teamed with Kevin Smith, Jayhawk connections for \u201cChasing Chasing Amy.\u201d\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-05-01T21:20:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-12-23T21:42:28+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Sav-Rodgers-Kevin-Smith.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"508\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"MeLinda Schnyder\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"MeLinda Schnyder\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"MeLinda Schnyder\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#\/schema\/person\/c2a01cc0f1a5720c5ebd16abe3a99878\"},\"headline\":\"Director delivers scene-stealing debut in documentary\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-05-01T21:20:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-23T21:42:28+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/\"},\"wordCount\":680,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Sav-Rodgers-Kevin-Smith.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"College of Liberal Arts & Sciences\",\"Pop culture\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Alumni\",\"Jayhawks\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/\",\"name\":\"Director delivers scene-stealing debut in documentary - Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Sav-Rodgers-Kevin-Smith.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-05-01T21:20:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-23T21:42:28+00:00\",\"description\":\"KU graduate Sav Rodgers teamed with Kevin Smith, Jayhawk connections for \u201cChasing Chasing Amy.\u201d\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Sav-Rodgers-Kevin-Smith.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Sav-Rodgers-Kevin-Smith.jpg\",\"width\":900,\"height\":508},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Director delivers scene-stealing debut in documentary\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/\",\"name\":\"Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#organization\"},\"alternateName\":\"Crimson & Blue\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#organization\",\"name\":\"KU Alumni\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/CB-Mast_3-color_horz.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/CB-Mast_3-color_horz.png\",\"width\":1272,\"height\":239,\"caption\":\"KU Alumni\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#\/schema\/person\/c2a01cc0f1a5720c5ebd16abe3a99878\",\"name\":\"MeLinda Schnyder\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/708922186168e4f0c87b2885dbc965c1ea18603968c1fa1e3294bbb7fa5476fe?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/708922186168e4f0c87b2885dbc965c1ea18603968c1fa1e3294bbb7fa5476fe?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/708922186168e4f0c87b2885dbc965c1ea18603968c1fa1e3294bbb7fa5476fe?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"MeLinda Schnyder\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/author\/mschnyder\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Director delivers scene-stealing debut in documentary - Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni","description":"KU graduate Sav Rodgers teamed with Kevin Smith, Jayhawk connections for \u201cChasing Chasing Amy.\u201d","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Director delivers scene-stealing debut in documentary","og_description":"KU graduate Sav Rodgers teamed with Kevin Smith, Jayhawk connections for \u201cChasing Chasing Amy.\u201d","og_url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/","og_site_name":"Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni","article_published_time":"2024-05-01T21:20:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-12-23T21:42:28+00:00","og_image":[{"width":900,"height":508,"url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Sav-Rodgers-Kevin-Smith.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"MeLinda Schnyder","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"MeLinda Schnyder","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/"},"author":{"name":"MeLinda Schnyder","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#\/schema\/person\/c2a01cc0f1a5720c5ebd16abe3a99878"},"headline":"Director delivers scene-stealing debut in documentary","datePublished":"2024-05-01T21:20:00+00:00","dateModified":"2025-12-23T21:42:28+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/"},"wordCount":680,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Sav-Rodgers-Kevin-Smith.jpg","keywords":["College of Liberal Arts & Sciences","Pop culture"],"articleSection":["Alumni","Jayhawks"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/","url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/","name":"Director delivers scene-stealing debut in documentary - Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Sav-Rodgers-Kevin-Smith.jpg","datePublished":"2024-05-01T21:20:00+00:00","dateModified":"2025-12-23T21:42:28+00:00","description":"KU graduate Sav Rodgers teamed with Kevin Smith, Jayhawk connections for \u201cChasing Chasing Amy.\u201d","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Sav-Rodgers-Kevin-Smith.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Sav-Rodgers-Kevin-Smith.jpg","width":900,"height":508},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/sav-rodgers-chasing-chasing-amy\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Director delivers scene-stealing debut in documentary"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#website","url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/","name":"Crimson & Blue - KU Alumni","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#organization"},"alternateName":"Crimson & Blue","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#organization","name":"KU Alumni","url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/CB-Mast_3-color_horz.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/CB-Mast_3-color_horz.png","width":1272,"height":239,"caption":"KU Alumni"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/#\/schema\/person\/c2a01cc0f1a5720c5ebd16abe3a99878","name":"MeLinda Schnyder","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/708922186168e4f0c87b2885dbc965c1ea18603968c1fa1e3294bbb7fa5476fe?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/708922186168e4f0c87b2885dbc965c1ea18603968c1fa1e3294bbb7fa5476fe?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/708922186168e4f0c87b2885dbc965c1ea18603968c1fa1e3294bbb7fa5476fe?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"MeLinda Schnyder"},"url":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/author\/mschnyder\/"}]}},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/633","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/52"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=633"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/633\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/960"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=633"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=633"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kualumni.org\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=633"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}