Portland documentary filmmaker Brian Lindstrom, known for turning his camera on people that society had too often looked past, died on May 15 at age 65 after a brief battle with progressive supranuclear palsy, a rare and fatal neurological brain disease. On Wednesday, friends, collaborators and admirers will gather at Cinema 21 to remember him, with his wife, author Cheryl Strayed, sharing stories of their life together.
Strayed, the award-winning author best known for her memoir Wild, joined KATU to talk about Lindstrom's life and work ahead of the tribute, according to KATU. Lindstrom died after what Oregon ArtsWatch described as a brief battle with the disease, and OPB reported he died last Friday, referring to May 15, 2026, at age 65.
A Career Built on Humanizing the Marginalized
Lindstrom spent his career telling the stories of people he said society had put an X through, according to OPB's reporting, including people who were incarcerated, homeless or struggling with substance use disorder. His 2007 film Finding Normal followed people rebuilding their lives through Central City Concern's Recovery Mentor program, per oregonlive.com's account of his career. His 2013 documentary Alien Boy: The Life and Death of James Chasse examined the death of a man with schizophrenia who was killed by Portland police officers, as detailed by the same Oregon ArtsWatch remembrance.
Lindstrom described his film Mothering Inside as the third installment in a trilogy alongside Finding Normal and Alien Boy, OPB reported. That film followed women and children connected to the Family Preservation Project at Coffee Creek Correctional Facility in Wilsonville, a connection the organization itself highlights in describing his work. In a 2013 TEDx Talk, Lindstrom explained his broader mission this way: “what my films are about is that search for my grandpa's dentures: for that humanizing narrative that bridges the gap between “us” and “them” to arrive at a “we,”” he told The Rumpus.
A Partnership With Cheryl Strayed
Lindstrom met Strayed in 1995, and the two married in 1999 and had two children together, Carver and Bobbi, according to Oregon ArtsWatch. Announcing his death, Strayed reflected on their decades together, saying, “What tremendous luck it was to be his partner for more than thirty years.” The couple also collaborated professionally, co-creating the 2019 short film I Am Not Untouchable. I Just Have My Period, about girls in Nepal, as reported by oregonlive.com.
Lindstrom's academic path took him from a communications degree at Lewis & Clark College in 1984 to directing and screenwriting studies at Columbia University, the same Oregon ArtsWatch remembrance notes. He returned to Portland and began teaching film at the Northwest Film Center in 1994, building a teaching career alongside his filmmaking. Lewis & Clark College honored that dual legacy, noting that “Brian's award-winning films reduce stigma and reveal the humanity of people living on the margins.”
Mentorship Beyond the Camera
Lindstrom's influence extended beyond his own films through classes, occasional teaching and mentoring a student at a youth facility. That blend of teaching and advocacy is part of why organizers describe Wednesday's Cinema 21 gathering as both a remembrance and a celebration of his life and work.
What to Expect at the Cinema 21 Tribute
The event, titled Brian Lindstrom: A Life in Film, will feature friends, colleagues and film subjects presenting movie clips and discussing his impact as a creator, citizen and humanitarian. Organizers announced the celebration would take place at Cinema 21 on September 16, according to Oregon Confluence. The evening will close with a screening of Alien Boy: The Life and Death of James Chasse, bringing the tribute full circle to one of his most acclaimed works. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Family Preservation Project, the organization tied to the subjects of his Mothering Inside documentary.
