Beautifully composed landscape shots of San Francisco juxtaposed with voiceover detailing the emotional intricacies of the love affairs of a butch lesbian and the history of Golden Gate Bridge as the world's prime suicide location.

"An alchemical mix of landscape, sexuality, and suicide." — Sundance Film Festival The Joy of Life is the debut feature from acclaimed experimental filmmaker Jenni Olson (The Royal Road). This innovative feature combines stunning 16mm landscape cinematography with a bold, lyrical voiceover (performed by LA-based artist/actor Harry Dodge) to share two San Francisco stories: the history of the Golden Gate Bridge as a suicide landmark, and the story of a butch dyke in San Francisco searching for love and self-discovery. These two stories are punctuated by Lawrence Ferlinghetti's beautiful reading of his ode to San Francisco, "The Changing Light" as well as a capsule production history of Frank Capra's legendary Hollywood melodrama, Meet John Doe. The film also showcases opening and closing credits music from legendary '50s poet and writer (and probable Golden Gate suicide) Weldon Kees. The Joy of Life is a film about landscapes, both physical and emotional. Since its January 2005 premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, this innovative feature film has played a pivotal role in renewing debate about the need for a suicide barrier on The Golden Gate Bridge. The Joy of Life has taken home awards from both the New York and Los Angeles LGBT Film Festivals and the San Francisco Film Critics Circle, and has been praised by critics and audiences alike for its unique filmmaking style.

Multitalented performance artist Harriet “Harry” Dodge (By Hook or By Crook, Cecil B. Demented) brings to life this innovative story of a butch dyke in San Francisco searching for love and self-discovery. Against a backdrop of stunning landscape cinematography, this bold, lyrical voiceover film evolves from a lesbian lust story to an inventive documentary—delving into explicit descriptions of lesbian sexuality and offering up a quick look at Frank Capra’s 1941 film Meet John Doe before embarking on the fascinating and previously untold history of the Golden Gate Bridge as a suicide landmark. A true San Francisco experience, The Joy of Life also includes poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti intoning his ode to the City by the Bay, “The Changing Light” and features music from legendary poet-painter (and probable Golden Gate suicide) Weldon Kees.