At one point, multiple distributors were interested in acquiring Straight Up, but none of them would accept the film in its intended aspect ratio of 4:3. James Sweeney was instructed to deliver in 16:9, excise 25 percent of the frame. He refused to give up his creative vision and eventually found a distributor who agreed.
Writer/director/star James Sweeney had the idea for this film's topic from a college class about LGBT history that examined "gayness" as a political identity and how that can be somewhat limiting in terms of the sexuality spectrum.
All of Tracie Thoms's scenes were shot in one day.
On the topic of self-directing, James Sweeney told Filmmaking Magazine: "I think it's easier to act and direct if you're just playing yourself, but with Todd, I really felt like I was slipping into a character -- so if I caught myself saying a line too much like James, I'd ask for another take. The answer was always yes."