"People think Hollywood and fashion are really superficial," Afonso Salcedo says in a phone interview with The Huffington Post. "But they were so affected by the HIV crisis and wanted to help when no one else would."
Salcedo is discussing his upcoming documentary film, "There Was Magic," which chronicles the combined efforts of the entertainment and fashion worlds to fight the AIDS epidemic in 1986.
Inspired by the book Heavenly Bodies: Remembering Hollywood and Fashion’s Favorite AIDS Benefit, the documentary will combine stories, interviews, archival footage and photography to revisit one of the most successful and glamorous benefits in history, where 10 ambitious and historically transformative fashion shows altered the narrative of the HIV/AIDS crisis. As Salcedo says on his Kickstarter page: "The anecdotes are real, sometimes naughty, often heart-wrenching, yet always inspiring and uplifting."
Salcedo worked for Pixar and DreamWorks studios before embarking on this project, and it seems he took the whimsical spirit of animation with him. When discussing his documentary's title "There Was Magic," Salcedo says: "You want to create a title that transmits the feeling of the film. It was just like, the theme of hope that people wanted to get when they felt like nothing was being done." He continued, "They saw all their friends dying and getting sick and they thought maybe they could get together and actually help. I thought there was something kind of magical about that."
Visit the Kickstarter page or film's website to learn more about the project.
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