my guest today is american filmmaker dustin lance black. won an oscar for the film milk and has just completed a major series on the struggle for gay rights. has the time come to declare a famous victory? dustin lance black, welcome to hardtalk. thank you. thank you for having the. to what extent thank you for having the. to what exte nt d o thank you for having the. to what extent do you think that your experiences from childhood to now has a gay person have come to define your creative output? 0h, has a gay person have come to define your creative output? oh, boy. it is one of the many things about me that does define me creatively. certainly when i am teaching my students — because i teach classes in screenwriting sometimes — and i say to them, tell me about you, what is it about you that is unique, where do you come from, what are you interested in, these are the things that make you incredibly unique. and the things that make you unique could make you marketable in the competitive film isthmus. they give you that unique voice —— busine