Tugg on a Redhead

You've heard all the stereotypes. People with red hair are more sensitive to pain. Or they're 'wilder and crazier' than regular people. Or they're going extinct. And, be honest, when you think redheads, is it Jessica Chastain or Ron Weasley?

Ignore the title. New documentary Being Ginger isn't about being ginger per se: It's about anything that makes you feel a little different, and the awkwardness and creeping sense of self-doubt it can create. It's just that, for director Scott Harris, that difference happens to be having red hair.

A UT film graduate and two-time recipient of a Texas Filmmakers' Production Fund grant, Harris left Texas four years ago for his father's native country of Scotland. In the Lone Star State, being ginger meant he stood out in the crowd: And, like any kid who looks a little different, he got the standard amount of mockery, sniggering and misconceptions. But surely in Edinburgh, where 10% of the population is a redhead, surely he'll just be average? Instead, he found that all the same misconceptions and low-grade stereotypes abound. And when you're trying to date in a foreign country, the last thing you need is another reason for people to say no to a first date.

Harris is organizing a 30 city screening tour for his true-life rom-com, beginning with a Tugg screening at AMC Barton Creek (2901 S. Capital of Texas Highway) Monday, January 13, 7.30pm. Tugg is a theatrical-on-demand service, meaning the screening only happens if enough tickets are sold. Tickets are available now, and Harris has until Jan. 6 to confirm the Austin evening.

If you can't make the screening, the film is available for download now at www.beingginger.co.uk

You can read more about Harris' romantic misadventures in next week's issue of the Chronicle, but in the mean time, check out one of his Tales of Everyday Gingerism, a series of animated shorts about his adventures and misadventures while making the movie.

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Being Ginger at AMC Barton Creek (2901 S. Capital of Texas Highway) Monday, January 13, 7.30pm. Tickets available now.