6 LGBTQI Films in the next few months We have found SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE – Lesbian, Gay, Transgender, Elder, Undocumented Immigrants, Documentary, Narrative – even one on LGBTQI Comix.Instead of having OUTwatch’s Film Festival in October in the middle of fire season, we decided to work with the Rialto Cinemas and present
6 GREAT LGBTQI films this summer and early fall.All films are at Rialto Cinemas, Sebastopol
Thursday July 15, 7 PM NO STRAIGHT LINES – THE RISE OF QUEER COMICSDid you follow Dykes to Watch Out For? Or Cathartic Comics with African American LGBT characters? Or Wendel by Howard Cruise? Or Rude Girls and Dangerous Women? Or Come Out. Comix by Mary Wings? “No Straight Lines: The Rise of Queer comics,” tells the story of five scrappy and pioneering cartoonists who depicted everything from the AIDS crisis, coming out, and same-sex marriage, to themes of race, gender, and disability. Their work is funny, smart, and profound, and provides a unique, uncensored window into LGBTQ lives from the 1970s onward, beginning at a time in which there was no other genuine queer storytelling in popular culture.
Sunday July 18, 4:15 PMI Carry You With Me. A Benefit for QAA (Queer Asylum Accompaniment)
The story of Undocumented Immigrants. Ambition and societal pressure propel an aspiring chef to leave his soulmate in Mexico and make the treacherous journey to New York, where life will never be the same. It’s based on the real life love story of Ivan Garcia and Geraldo Zabaleta, where their fresh romance is tested by the fact closeted Ivan wants to make an illegal move to the US while openly gay Geraldo is afraid to make the leap. It follows these two men as they fall in love, cross the border and struggle to carve out a piece of the American Dream for themselves.
Thursday August 12, 7 PM No Ordinary Man No Ordinary Man is an in-depth look at the life of musician and trans culture icon Billy Tipton. Complicated, beautiful and historically unrivaled, this groundbreaking film shows what is possible when a community collaborates to honor the legacy of an unlikely hero.
For decades, the life of American Jazz musician Billy Tipton was framed as the story of an ambitious woman passing as a man in pursuit of a music career. In NO ORDINARY MAN, Tipton’s story is re-imagined and performed by trans artists as they collectively paint a portrait of an unlikely hero. Together, the filmmakers join Tipton’s son Billy Jr. to reckon with a complicated and contested legacy: how do you tell the story of someone who was hiding in plain sight yet desperate to be seen?
Thursday August 19, 7 PM Swan Song
Retired hairdresser Pat Pitsenbarger is the Liberace of Sandusky, Ohio!. When he is offered $25,000 to style an estranged friend for her funeral, he does the only sensible thing: he escapes his nursing home and hitchhikes into town with a sign boasting “free beauty tips.” As Pat makes his way through his now-alien hometown shoplifting beauty supplies, he finds himself reconnecting with friends, confronting old rivals, and facing the demons of his past. This is based on Pitsenbarger’s real life.
Look for MORE Lesbian, Bisexual and Gay films during September and October.
Tickets for all the films are at the Rialto Cinemas, Sebastopol the week the film is showing.
“No Straight Lines: The Rise of Queer comics,” tells the story of five scrappy and pioneering cartoonists who depicted everything from the AIDS crisis, coming out, and same-sex marriage, to themes of race, gender, and disability. They tackled the humor in queer lives in a changing world, and the everyday pursuits of love, sex, and community. Their work is funny, smart, and profound, and provides a unique, uncensored window into LGBTQ lives from the 1970s onward, beginning at a time in which there was no other genuine queer storytelling in popular culture. Equally engaging are their personal journeys, as they, against all odds, helped build a queer comics underground that has been able to grow and evolve in remarkable ways
The Film’s director/producer Vivian Kleiman is a Peabody Award-winning documentaryfilmmaker.[1] She has received a National Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Research and executive produced an Academy Award nominated documentary. Her films include: “Families Are Forever” “Always My Son” “Out for the Count.”
In 2019, Kleiman was awarded a Eureka Fellowship of the Fleishhacker Foundation, a fellowship program for visual artists. Also an educator, she served as Adjunct Faculty at Stanford University‘s Graduate Program in Documentary Film and Video Production from 1995–2004.
“No Straight Lines: The Rise of Queer comics,” which will be screened as part of Outwatch’s Film Series Thursday, July 15th at Rialto Cinemas in Sebastopol.
Gary Carnivele: Have you always been a fan of Queer Comics and which were some of the first that you followed?
Vivian Klienman: I was a huge fan of Alison Bechdel’s Dykes To Watch Out For when it was serialized in the local women’s newspaper, Plexus. We all would chomp at the bit in anticipation of the next installment, and learn what exploits our fave characters got into. And of course, Hothead Paisan was a hoot.
GC: Did they play a part in opening up a new, big, queer world to you?
VK: Dykes to Watch Out For was so important for many of us – it was the first time many of us lesbians in the 80s actually got to see ourselves represented in comics. Goodbye to the hokey white bread romances. Goodbye funny little animal stories. Instead, it was poking fun at our real lives with elegance and insight. That was such a gift to lesbians as we were creating new networks of connection (eg bookstores, cafés, and community health care providers.)
GC: What made you decide to make “No Straight Lines” and what were your first steps to get others interested in joining you on this cinematic journey?
VK: I was approached by a colleague Greg Sirota and his friend Justin Hall (an expert in the subject) to take on the project. Justin encouraged me to attend the first Queers & Comics Conference (an international in-gathering of a wide diversity of artists) held in NYC in May 2015. It was a casting director’s dream. When I walked in and saw a young person with chartreuse-colored hair talking with an older gentleman with balding head wearing a buttoned-down collared shirt, surrounded by a panoply of gender non-binary non-conforrming (to ANY standards and assumptions), I was drawn in. And once I attended the panels over the next 3 days, and heard the remarkable stories and saw the range of artwork, I knew it would be my next film project.
GC: I can imagine you and your team did a huge amount of research. What was that process like?
GC::Did you and your team straight away know who you wanted to be in the film?
VK: I knew that I did not want to do a film that replicated Justin’s anthology of queer comics, which would be an encyclopedic history of who did what when.
Instead, I wanted to create a film that took the viewer on an experience that touched many different emotional notes: from the humorous, to the poignant, and the painful moments.
So, I limited the film to profile 5 pioneer queer cartoonists and that was a challenge: who to omit when there are so many talented and important artists to profile. Justin and I carefully deliberated that decision.
GC: How receptive were the subjects of your film to tell their stories on camera?
VK: All of the comic book artists who I met are eager to tell their stories. While they are content to have solitude and do creative work, contrary to the stereotype of a curmudgeonly artist, these folks are genuinely eager to share their work.
GC: What surprised you the most about them, their work, and their careers?
VK: I never expected this band of mischievous artists to be appealing to such a broad audience. I think it boils down to this: a well-made film about people who follow their passion. Instead of the drive to earn money, these artists are motivated to be creative in a world where there isn’t much likelihood of financial remuneration. Their passion for their work is infectious.
GC: Who are some of the artists that you weren’t aware of and what do they bring to the medium?
VK: The new generation of web artists were all new to me. I love the fact that the Internet and tech can continue to be a place where the DIY artform continues to flourish.
GC: You do a terrific job representing the doc’s subjects creative process in the film. What did you find most interesting about the development of their work?
VK: One of the important themes that I braided in the film is that of “the means of production,” as Karl Marx would say. I really enjoy taking the viewer on this historical journey not only of queer history in the U.S., but of the evolution of the art form itself. The journey starts from a pen and paper, then expands to offset printing, to Xerox machines, to major printing processes, and finally the web.
At the same time, the nature of the images evolved. After Rupert realized that he had been drawing only white people, he trained his eyes on his own experience as a Black gay man. Diane diMassa gave voice to the rage of inequality and violence against women. At the height of the AIDS epidemic, queer artists responded with comics that ranged from the tragic to the humorous.
GC: Did you have a real sense of what the film would look like or did that come about during editing?
VK: During the editing, I realized that the film felt stale. I wanted to infuse it with a vitality and with a connection to my targeted audience: queer youth. So I did an experiment: I spent a day filming “speed interviews” with a dozen Next Gen artists who were attending the 2017 Queers & Comics conference. I had exactly 10 minutes with each artist, enough time to say hello and ask them just a few basic questions. At the end of the day, I didn’t know how I was going to use that material, but I knew I had something special. Those became the “Greek Chorus” in the film, and immensely changed the tone and impact of the film.
GC: Even though the focus of the film is Queer Comics, you truly take us on a trip through LGBTQ+ history. Why was it important for you to firmly set the work on the background of the Queer experience?
VK: You know, despite the many successes in the journey towards acceptance of queers in this country and others, the statistics about attempted suicide among queer youth is by far disproportionate to the general population. This is deplorable. And our youth still need our help towards self-acceptance.
I wanted to create a film that I wish I had when I was young and struggling with coming out. And I wanted to offer young queers today who similarly are struggling with their identity, to understand that there were many who encountered similar obstacles along the way. The history of queer comics is a wonderful journey from isolation to the formation of community that I hope will inspire a new generation.
GC: You premiered the film at Tribeca and it was featured at Frameline. At what other festivals was it screened and what was the virtual film festival experience like for you?
VK: It’s an independent filmmaker’s dream to premiere at Tribeca. But No Straight Lines continued further, and reached the perfect trifecta of major venues for its launch: Tribeca, Sheffield Doc Fest (England), and American Film Institute Doc Fest in DC – this is such a joy! It’s also a testament to the amazing team of collaborators who together helped me shape a film that aimed for more than information and journalism. We all were dedicated to the art and craft of storytelling. And that infused the work with a vitality that touches a much larger audience than I set out to reach.
GC: When you were finally able to experience a live audience’s reaction, what aspects of the doc did they seem to connect to the most?
VK: I love how everyone erupts in a deep guffaw when seeing two older gay men, who have lived together and loved one another for over 40 years, sit down in front of the tv to watch the morning news with eggs and coffee on the tray. So ordinary and so unremarkably the daily experience of so many.
GC: What are you working on now?
VK: I often serve as an Executive Producer on documentary films, especially ones with a challenging subject and filmic approach. Currently, a film by Vicky Funari is in post-production. It’s a profile of a group of seniors who take an aquacize class at their neighborhood YMCA swimming pool – older bodies and souls in water.
In the Fall 2019, I was honored with a Eureka Fellowship from the Fleishhacker Foundation that I planned to start this winter. However, with the arrival of Covid-19, and the incredible loss of over 600,000 American lives, I am probably going to change the focus of that film. Stay tuned!
The documentary that brings to light the fascinating, seemingly untold story of the queer community within the comic book world. Introducing the vast achievements, as well as obstacles faced by, the queer comic-book artists featured in Justin Hall’s eponymous anthology – including Alison Bechdel, Jennifer Camper, Howard Cruse, Rupert Kinnard and Mary Wings – director Vivian Kleiman, in her first feature-length documentary, reveals the inspirations, creations and adversities unique to LGBQT+ writers. The story not only covers modern-day artists and illustrators, but the earlier “golden age” of comic books, and what issues and images were pushed to the shadows at that time.
No Straight Lines fully captures the queer comic-book experience, though it follows a fairly formulaic structure, moving between the five main featured artists and delving into their unique writing/illustrating styles. We also see their personal viewpoints of the comic world, taking a look at how the mainstream comic franchises (Marvel, DC, newspaper comics, etc.) played an integral part in inspiring each writer, even as they forced queer writers underground at their humble beginnings.
Outside of its personal reflections, No Straight Lines tackles major world events as they pertain to those in the LGBQT+ community, including the discrimination they face, overlapping themes with the “hippie” era, the AIDS epidemic, Stonewall, and many other relevant experiences. All of this content mixes together well with the informational elements of the film, as we see the emotional (even traumatic) effect the world and its historical content had on the writers profiled.
While No Straight Lines is otherwise strong, as a documentary I found it often quite repetitive. By its conclusion, the film struggles to introduce new ideas, and the freshness of the topic dwindles towards the second half. Without affecting the overall impact for the viewer, No Straight Lines starts to recycle ideas and information as it wraps up its narrative. All the same, the story is a must-see look at representation, and fits in perfectly with our modern-day push for greater inclusion.
When maverick Academy Award-winning documentary filmmaker Debra Chasnoff is diagnosed with stage-4 cancer, she faces down injustice as she always has – with her camera. With the help of her wife Nancy and their chosen family, she traces a journey through the twists and turns of the end of her life. What emerges is an emotionally raw, funny and profoundly intimate portrait of shifting relationships and identities — a story about hanging onto life, as you prepare to let it go.
The World Premiere of PROGNOSIS – notes on living will be held on June 19 in the Frameline45 San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival; followed by a special live Q&A with filmmakers (encore screening June 26).
PROGNOSIS – notes on living is a production of Citizen Film & Groundspark, is in English, and is not rated by the MPA.
ABOUT THE FILM After being diagnosed with stage-4 breast cancer, documentary director Debra Chasnoff decides to make a film about what it’s like to navigate life with a potentially terminal illness. Accompanied by her wife Nancy, her adult sons, and her LGBTQ2SIA+ chosen family, Debra sets out to capture the physical and emotional rollercoaster of treatment. Underpinned by their decision to not hear the prognosis, Debra and Nancy reveal their most vulnerable moments, as Debra struggles to reconcile her professional identity of activist social justice documentary filmmaker with that of stage-4 cancer patient. Facing the overwhelming bureaucracy and logistics of being a cancer patient, they try everything possible to stall Debra’s slowly declining health, including alternative healing methods like meditation, cannabis treatments, qi gong movement and sound-healing practices. Through it all, they lovingly work toward their common goal—Debra’s survival. With Debra at the helm, their on-camera honesty and candor offer a level of emotional access that is difficult to achieve when mediated by a film crew. They bravely put themselves on display, hoping that their experience would help others.
Debra Chasnoff and executive producer Carrie Lozano initiated the film project in 2015. The world-renowned UCSF Carol Franc Buck Breast Care Center granted Debra full access to filming her medical treatments. From there forward, Debra and an intimate circle of family and friends collectively recorded over 200 hours of footage. In a unique co-creation, filmmakers Carrie Lozano, Lidia Szajko, Joan Lefkowitz and Kate Stilley Steiner completed the film with her wife Nancy Otto and editor Mike Shen. The team progressively assumed the roles of co-caregivers as well as co-creators, determined to carry Debra through to her final act, and her film through to completion.
ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS Debra Chasnoff Academy Award–winning documentary filmmaker Debra Chasnoff was a nationally recognized champion of using film as an organizing tool for social justice campaigns. A pioneering leader, she was at the forefront of the international movement working to create safe and welcoming schools and communities. Debra’s highly acclaimed documentaries addressing youth and bias issues, including the groundbreaking film It’s Elementary, are widely hailed by educators and advocates as among the best tools available today to help open up dialogue and activism around many of the most challenging issues affecting young people’s lives and school environments. Her first film, Choosing Children, explored the once unheard of idea that lesbians and gay men could become parents after coming out. She won the 1991 Academy Award for Best Documentary (Short Subject) for her film Deadly Deception: General Electric, Nuclear Weapons and Our Environment. She was also the founder of GroundSpark, and served the organization in a directing capacity from 1982 until her death in 2017.
Kate Stilley Steiner Kate Stilley Steiner is a documentary filmmaking producer, director and editor. She also is a co-founder and co-director of Citizen Film, the documentary non-profit media organization she started in 2001 with Sam Ball and Sophie Constantinou. Her most recent producing credits include American Creed. The CPB-funded feature-length documentary premiered in 2018 in the PBS primetime core schedule and was one of 2018’s most widely carried documentaries. Debra Chasnoff’s long-time collaborator, Kate edited several films with her, including two in the Respect for All series. They also co-produced several titles together, including Let’s Get Real, It’s Still Elementary and One Wedding & a Revolution.
ABOUT OUR PARTNERS & CAMPAIGN PROGNOSIS – notes on living, in partnership with Bay Area organizations the Koret Foundation, Breast Cancer Action, J-Sei, and San Francisco Village, as well as national organizations International End of Life Doula Association (INELDA), and SAGE(Advocacy & Services for LGBT Elders), will spark discussion around the often challenging topics of serious illness, end of life care, and death. The film is designed to invite audiences to consider their mortality and discover ways to live more fully in the present.
MICHAEL BARNETT’S thought-provoking documentary about the trials and triumphs of trans teenager athletes was made in the Trump era where society was encouraged to express rampant transphobia. In fact, violently oppose everything that was not about white cis-gendered men.Whilst the topic of trans sportsmen and women may surface in the media quite often, it is being confronted by the reality of what they face on a daily basis helps us understand how very serious it all is. And that’s exactly what this documentary does Barnett follows three teen trans in different US States. That in itself is important as each State has different rules of what these teenagers can and cannot do. In Texas where MACK BEGGS a high school wrestler lives, he is forced to wrestle girls even though he is very much a boy.Beggs is being raised by his very loving grandparents. Whilst his elderly grandpa still struggles with Mack’s pronouns, his Grandma. a devout Christian, Republican, and a gun-totting Sherriff’s Deputy could not be more supportive of her grandson. She confesses to studying the bible at great length and when she found that God would acceptMack without question, she decided to do the same.
Even living in an accepting household like this, Beggs must still deal with the hostility hurled at him …. mainly by adults, … when he is out competing. His grandmother tells Barnett that she feels if they had not fully accepted Mack he would definitely have been part of the 40% of trans teens in the US who commit suicide or attempt it, every single year.
Begg’s very supportive Coach suggests that the whole subject of being a champion is what irritates people most, they would be more willing to accept him if he didn’t win every time.
In New Hampshire, trans SARAH ROSE HUCKMAN gets to ski with the other female skiers. She talked about often holding back from winning her events to avoid the inevitable outcry of ‘unfair’. The very articulate Huckman becomes an activist and a major force in the movement who successfully get the State to pass legislation to level the playing field and stop discrimination.Huckman’s actions are a gamble and could have backfired. Most trans would prefer to remain under the radar and out of the glare from the (mostly reactionary) media, yet she was actively encouraging it.The third athlete that Barnett features is a champion runner ANDRAYA YEARWOOD. After one of her runs, she is met by a woman screaming and accusing Yearwood of single-handled undoing women’s rights that she had fought for. Every adult who vents such anger at these teens likes to suggest that the basis of their complaints is what they allege is the unfairness of (the success of) trans athletes but you can sense it is based in a much deeper inbred hatred.One of the school Principals summed up her own attitude very succinctly She claimed that it is impossible to accept these teens transitioning in everyday life, but then demand they revert back when it comes to playing sports.In a world where coming out as gay has gotten much easier, we now need to turn our attention to support trans kids living their true identity We have an incredibly long way to go to ensure that no teen again is ever so unhappy, that they end their own lives. Getting rid of Trump is only the first step.
SURVIVING THE SILENCE Dir: Cindy L. Abel Feature In the early 1990s, a highly-decorated colonel was forced to expel an Army hero for being a lesbian. What no one knew at the time was that the same colonel was herself a closeted lesbian. Decades later, this truth is exposed in all of its complexity, and the three women involved come together again to contemplate those events and their impact. Producer Marc Smolowitz lives in San Francisco.
WORKHORSE QUEEN Dir: Angela Washko Feature By day, Ed Popil worked as a telemarketer. By night, he transformed into drag queen Mrs. Kasha Davis, a 1960’s era housewife trying to liberate herself from domestic toil through performing at night in secret. After seven years of auditioning to compete on RuPaul’s Drag Race, Ed Popil was finally cast onto the TV show and thrust into a full-time entertainment career at the late age of 44. Workhorse Queen explores the complexities of reality television’s impact on queer performance culture.
ONCE A FURY Dir: Jacqueline Rhodes Feature Once a Fury profiles former members of the Furies, a notorious 1970s lesbian separatist collective that published a national newspaper and planned to seize state power. Featuring interviews with 10 of the original 12 Furies, excerpts from their iconoclastic writings, and other archival materials such as photography by Joan E. Biren, the film explores their model of collective leadership, organizing, and foregrounding of a lesbian politic while also pinpointing the shortcomings of their approach.
YELLO Dir: King Yaw SoonShort Short In this colorful and moving animated documentary, we follow Michelle, a young lady as she prepares to fly at the airport. Narrated by Michelle herself, this film offers an honest look at fear and connection in an era marked by uncertainty.
MAKING SAMANTHA Dir: T Cooper, Allison Glock-Cooper Short “I Am Samantha,” by singer-songwriter Benjamin Scheuer, was inspired by his friend, Samantha Williams. Director T Cooper and Allison Glock-Cooper gathered 27 trans actors to make the music video, and to tell the story of the universal human journey to find identity, acceptance and love.
I AM EVA Dir. Nata Zverovich Short “I Am Eva” is a first-hand story of a person who identifies as gender neutral and looks into what it is like to exist other than male or female while living within a lack of legal gender recognition.
###
Announcing the 20th SF Documentary Festival (SF DocFest) June 3 – 20, 2021 The 20th San Francisco Documentary Film Festival (SF DocFest) will be held June 3 – 20, 2021. SF DocFest will screen 40 features and 38 shorts across 6 different short programs. All films will be available to view on demand anytime during the festival, and 36 of the films will also be shown at the Roxie Theater. The majority of the in-person screenings held at the Roxie Theater will also include live Q&A sessions.
With the iconic San Francisco theater announcing their reopening for May 21st, SF DocFest will be the first film festival to screen again at the Roxie Theater. “We’re looking forward to finally getting arts and arts fans in the same room again,” says Festival Director Jeff Ross. Additionally, Ross adds that “in support and celebration of the Roxie Theater reopening this year, we are donating 100% of ticket sales from our screenings back to the theater.”
For those who are unable to attend in person, the festival may also be attended virtually through on-demand screenings and online Q&A sessions. The full festival program may be found at sfindie.com. The following are a few highlights of this year’s SF DocFest program.
OPENING NIGHT SUMMER OF SOUL Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson In his acclaimed debut as a filmmaker, Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson presents a powerful and transporting documentary—part music film, part historical record—created around an epic event that celebrated Black history, culture and fashion. Over the course of six weeks in the summer of 1969, just one hundred miles south of Woodstock, The Harlem Cultural Festival was filmed in Marcus Garvey Park. The footage was never seen and largely forgotten – until now. SUMMER OF SOUL shines a light on the importance of history to our spiritual well-being and stands as a testament to the healing power of music during times of unrest, both past and present. The feature includes never-before-seen concert performances by B.B. King, Nina Simone, Sly & the Family Stone, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Stevie Wonder and more.
OPENING NIGHT PARTY: SUMMER OF SOUL ROLLER DISCO Church of 8 Wheels, 554 Fillmore Street (@ Fell) Thursday, June 3rd, 8-10pm Signal the reopening of the city and the return of live events by strapping on some skates. Jam to SUMMER OF SOUL tunes at the roller disco with other film festival goers and documentary fans after watching the award-winning opening night film. This event is open to the public.
Film+Party tickets are $30 and available at sfindie.com. Party Only tickets are $15 and may be purchased at the venue until sold out. Skates will also be available for rent for $5/pair. CLOSING NIGHT
KID CANDIDATE Jasmine Stodel KID CANDIDATE tells the story of Hayden Pedigo, a 24-year old experimental musician, and his unlikely run for Amarillo city council after his Harmony Korine-inspired spoof campaign video went viral. CENTERPIECE THE SPARKS BROTHERSEdgar WrightHow can one rock band be successful, underrated, hugely influential, and criminally overlooked all at the same time? Edgar Wright’s debut documentary THE SPARKS BROTHERS, which features commentary from celebrity fans Flea, Jane Wiedlin, Beck, Jack Antonoff, Jason Schwartzman, Neil Gaiman, and more, takes audiences on a musical odyssey through five weird and wonderful decades with brothers/bandmates Ron and Russell Mael celebrating the inspiring legacy of Sparks: your favorite band’s favorite band. NON-FICTION VANGUARD AWARD KEITH MAITLAND SF DocFest prides itself on recognizing those unconventional, creative risk-taking filmmakers that are redefining the cinematic form and are someone to watch. Keith Maitland is the latest filmmaker the festival has recognized.
Keith Maitland began his career on the streets of New York, working on the fiction side of the industry as a DGA Trainee and Assistant Director. After 7-seasons with NBC’s Law & Order, and working on a variety of features, Maitland was inspired by his documentary-photographer wife, Sarah Wilson, to try his hand at non-fiction storytelling.
On the heels of TOWER, an animated school-shooting documentary, Variety named Maitland one of “10 Documakers to Watch.” TOWER won multiple festival awards, as well as the Emmy for Best Historical Documentary.
As a filmmaker, Keith Maitland pushes artistic boundaries and redefines the cinematic form, especially with his eagerly anticipated new hybrid documentary, DEAR MR. BRODY, which uses a mix of some psychedelic animation, live-action re-enactments, and archival footage. DEAR MR. BRODY Keith Maitland A psychedelic journey into the heart (and bank account) of Michael Brody, Jr, the hippie-millionaire who offered the world peace and caused a frenzy when he publicly announced a $25 million giveaway to anyone in need. A gesture that immediately put Brody and his wife into the spotlight also caused mobs of people to camp on their lawn and flood their mailboxes. Fifty years later, 12 boxes of these letters pleading for Brody’s help were discovered—unopened.
FESTIVAL PREMIERES
WORLD PREMIERE KEEPER OF THE FIRE David L. Brown, Raymond Telles, Louis Dematteis KEEPER OF FIRE explores the life and work of activist poet Alejandro Murguia, a writer passionately involved with the struggles of his times. Following in the footsteps of Beat poets and inspired by the rich tradition of Latin American literature, Murguia fights for social justice with his words and his deeds. One of the celebrated Mission Poets, he has championed revolutions in Latin America, led cultural and educational programs in San Francisco, and campaigned against rampant gentrification nationwide all while winning two American Book Awards and becoming the first Latino to serve as Poet Laureate of San Francisco.
SKATE OR DIE Ryan Ferguson Seventeen-year-old Leonardo Castillo uses skateboarding to help escape gang life and generational poverty in his Chicago neighborhood. When a gunshot wound threatens to take away his passion, Leo must face the world as an adult.
THE LUCKY ONES Debra A. Wilson THE LUCKY ONES is a poignant Bay Area based love story of Alexander and Timothy (daughter of writer Ishmael Reed), a married couple diagnosed with schizophrenia. Their life together gives a glimpse into what it means to survive with a mental disorder and how one unexpected event can upend their already precarious world. US PREMIERE THE FACE OF ANONYMOUS Gary Lang Commander X (a.k.a. Christopher Doyon) spent time on the streets around the world hiding from the FBI, but this infamous hacktivist feels most at home on the internet where he gained notoriety. Through his affiliation with Anonymous, the purposefully elusive online network responsible for corporate takedowns and political disruption, Commander X had a platform to espouse his beliefs and befriend powerful figures like Julian Assange. He takes credit for crippling credit card companies that were attempting to sideline Wikileaks and claims a role in the Arab Spring as well. It’s completely reasonable to be skeptical as to why an outspoken Doyon wants to spill the beans about his exploits and expose a group that safeguards its secret identity. But in an era when online conspiracies proliferate widely despite being under immense scrutiny, there may not be a better time to hear from someone who’s been at the vanguard of this information age.
GREEN BANK PASTORAL Federico Urdaneta Since the 1950’s wireless signals have been banned in Green Bank to protect its radio telescope from interference. With no cell phones and no wifi, the small Appalachian town has attracted a number of people that claim to suffer from Electro Hypersensitivity seeking respite from the modern world. This is the story of the peculiar relationship between these people, the small town folk, and the massive radio telescope in the middle of it all, aimed at the sky above.
LOST AND FOUND IN PARIS Laura Lamanda It’s a never-ending flow. All day long, people come to the reception desk at the Lost and Found Office. They want to retrieve their belongings. They’re in a hurry. But, finding what has been lost is not an easy task. It requires time. The time it takes to wait for their turn and fill out the paperwork at reception. Time to explain what has been lost. Time to find the item in the warehouse and send it back with the freight elevator. It’s best to surrender to the wait and indulge in the telling of what kind of setback, accident or misfortune has caused our loss, and brought us to this place.
SEMENTARA Joant Úbeda, Chew Chia Shao Min Amid the noisy spectacle of Singapore’s golden jubilee celebrations in 2015, filmmakers Chew Chia Shao Min and Joant Úbeda conduct casual interviews with people from different walks of life, each with their own set of values and beliefs.
Inspired by Chris Marker’s brilliant Le Joli Mai, SEMENTARA, which is Malay for “temporary”, weaves together scenes of profound subjectivities and societal structures to present a compelling yet sensitive portrayal of Singapore.
THE TASTE OF DESIRE Anja Dziersk Desire is the most powerful source in human life. Desires, however, are also the biggest source of frustration. In THE TASTE OF DESIRE, the oyster symbolizes our desires in life. Through captivating characters, this film examines the complexity of human desire: our relationship to the world around us and ultimately what lengths we will go to find satisfaction.
ZAHO ZAY Georg Tiller, Maéva Ranaïvojaona A young, female prison guard, works in a hopelessly overcrowded jail in Madagascar. Her observations of the realities of prison life interlace with her daydreams about her unknown father, who disappeared after murdering his own brother when she was still a child. Secretly hoping that one day her father will be washed up as a prisoner, she bypasses time by imagining his criminal career. In her fantasies, he becomes a mythical serial killer, who is obsessed with playing the dice to decide the fate of his victims. Her prison routine is suddenly torn apart when a new inmate arrives who claims to know her father.
TICKETS AND PASSES Individual tickets for virtual shows are $10 each.
Individual tickets for screenings at the Roxie Theater are $15 each.
Opening Night Film+Party tickets are $30 each.
5Film vouchers are $45. 10Film vouchers are $85. 5Film and 10Film discount vouchers are only available and only redeemable at sfindie.com for virtual screenings.
Virtual All Pass is priced at $150. This pass provides access to all festival films via online on-demand screenings.
Whole Shebang Pass is priced at $500 and includes both on-demand access to all festival films online, and reserved seating for all festival films screening at the Roxie Theater from June 3-17.
DOCFEST 2021 STAFFFounder/Director: Jeff Ross; Programming: Chris Metzler, Kayla Myers, Sarah Flores, Jeff Ross; Publicity: Larsen & Associates; Graphic Design: Meghan Ryan
The full festival program and additional information is available at sfindie.com. You may also contact DocFest at 415-662-FEST, or by emailing [email protected]. ### San Francisco Documentary Film Festival (SF DocFest) Since 2001, SF DocFest has brought the most weird and wonderful aspects of real life to the big screen. What started as a three-day event in an empty church in Union Square has become a two-week long festival across different venues in the Bay Area. Presented each year by SF IndieFest, the 20th San Francisco Documentary Film Festival (SF DocFest) will take place from June 3rd through 20th both online and in theaters this year. More information is available at sfindie.com. You may also contact DocFest at 415-662-FEST or via email at [email protected].
Today, Frameline announced the full program for Frameline45—the world’s largest LGBTQ+ film festival—taking place Thursday, June 10 through Sunday, June 27, 2021. Slated to be the largest and most attended festival in Frameline history, the 17-day festival will feature a hybrid of in-person and virtual offerings, including four drive-in screenings, two screenings at Oracle Park in partnership with San Francisco Pride and the San Francisco Giants, as well as over 50 virtual film screenings. In addition, in-person screenings return to Frameline with a series of special screenings at San Francisco’s historic Castro Theatre and Roxy Theater.
This year’s Frameline45 virtual offerings are available to ticket holders nationwide. Tickets ($8–$12 per screening) and passes (starting at $95) are available now at frameline.org/festival. For the first time, Frameline will offer a Festival Streaming Pass, which gives which gives ticket buyers the opportunity to unlock all virtual festival content, including film screenings and other unique programming. To ensure maximum flexibility, ticket holders will be able to tune in live to each screening or stream nearly every film at any time beginning Thursday, June 17, 2021.
“We are beyond thrilled to present the world’s largest LGBTQ+ film festival,” says Frameline Executive Director James Woolley. “The past year has shown us the value and importance of connections with one another. As the world begins to reopen and revitalize, so too is Frameline45 with a unique combination of in-person and virtual events. We look forward to celebrating the power of queer storytelling and sharing in a collective experience together.”
“The theme of this year’s festival is ‘All Kinds of Queer’ and our lineup certainly reflects that,” adds Frameline Director of Programming Allegra Madsen. “Representing 30 countries—from Argentina, Egypt, and India to Nigeria, Taiwan, and South Africa— this year’s slate of films will touch on themes ranging from the American Dream and gentrification to trans resilience and gender and race identity. Through these films, we believe we can cultivate a more compassionate and empathetic world.”
MOVIE NIGHTS AT ORACLE PARK
For the first-time ever, Frameline and San Francisco Pride will present Pride Movie Nights at Oracle Park. A natural extension of Frameline and SF Pride’s decades-long, mutually advantageous relationship, this socially distanced and ticketed event (subject to state-mandated capacity limits) is further strengthened by a partnership with the San Francisco Giants and support from the City and County of San Francisco.
IN THE HEIGHTS Friday, June 11 at 6:30 p.m. PDT DIR Jon M. Chu | USA The creator of Hamilton and the director of Crazy Rich Asians invite you to a cinematic event, where the streets are made of music and little dreams become big… In the Heights.
Lights up on Washington Heights… The scent of a cafecito caliente hangs in the air just outside of the 181st Street subway stop, where a kaleidoscope of dreams rallies this vibrant and tight-knit community. At the intersection of it all is the likeable, magnetic bodega owner Usnavi (Anthony Ramos), who hopes, imagines, and sings about a better life. In the Heights fuses Miranda’s kinetic music and lyrics with director Jon M. Chu’s lively and authentic eye for storytelling to capture a world that is very much of its place, but universal in its experience.
EVERYBODY’S TALKING ABOUT JAMIE Saturday, June 12 at 6:30 p.m. PDT DIR Jonathan Butterell | UK/USA Inspired by true events, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie is the film adaptation of the award-winning West End musical about Jamie New (Max Harwood), a teen in a blue-collar English town dreaming of becoming a fierce, proud drag queen. His BFF Pritti (Lauren Patel) and loving mum (Sarah Lancashire) shower him with support as drag legend Miss Loco Chanelle (Richard E. Grant) mentors him toward his stage debut. But it’s not all rainbows for Jamie as his unsupportive dad (Ralph Ineson) and an uninspired career advisor (Sharon Horgan) attempt to rain on his aspirations. In rousing musical numbers, Jamie and his community inspire one another to face adversity and step into the spotlight.
Everybody’s Talking About Jamie will launch exclusively on Amazon Prime Video on September 17, 2021 in over 240 countries and territories.
DRIVE-IN MOVIES
Frameline45 will feature four Drive-in screenings—one at Concord’s West Wind Solano Drive-In (1611 Solano Way) and three at San Francisco’s Fort Mason Flix (2 Marina Blvd.).
FANNY: THE RIGHT TO ROCK Thursday, June 10 at 9 p.m. PDT DIR Bobbi Jo Hart 2021 | Canada West Wind Solano Drive-In, Concord | Also streaming Deemed “one of the most important female bands in American rock” by David Bowie in Rolling Stone, Fanny kicked down the door for women musicians by being the first all-woman rock band to release an album with a major record company. As the band members reunite to record new music, we follow Fanny’s trailblazing rise and unfortunate plateau mired by sexism, racism, and homophobia.
POTATO DREAMS OF AMERICA Tuesday, June 15 at 9 p.m. PDT DIR Wes Hurley | USA Fort Mason Flix, San Francisco | Also streaming A wonderful blend of camp, melodrama, and earnest coming-of-age fable, Wes Hurley’s semi-autobiographical new film is the charmingly wild tale of young Potato, a sensitive closeted kid in the splintering Soviet Union whose only joy is watching pirated American movies. Desperate for escape, his mother Lena becomes a mail-order bride, and the two set sail for America to live with her eccentric new husband on a strange and beautiful adventure.
SUMMER OF 85 (ÉTÉ 85) Wednesday, June 16 at 9 p.m. PDT DIR François Ozon | France In French and English with English subtitles Fort Mason Flix, San Francisco Two teenage boys find themselves fatefully linked together following a boating accident in this sun-kissed tale of summer flings, first love, and the thin line between passion and obsession. With a soundtrack featuring hits from The Cure and Bananarama, the latest from French provocateur and Frameline Award winner François Ozon takes a sexy, nostalgic trip back to the mid-1980s on the Normandy Coast.
AILEY Thursday, June 19 at 9 p.m. PDT DIR Jamila Wignot | USA Fort Mason Flix, San Francisco In this special screening to mark Juneteenth, the life and work of genius choreographer Alvin Ailey take center stage. Charting his trajectory from dance student to globally lauded creative force to his untimely death from AIDS in 1989, this expansive documentary weaves in candid testimonials from the artist’s closest collaborators with breathtaking dance footage from his most revelatory work. Showcasing one of the 20th century’s singular Black artists, Ailey celebrates the enduring legacy of his work while illuminating his against-the-odds achievements for a new generation.
IN-PERSON SCREENINGS
Theatres are back! Frameline will be hosting a handful of regular, in-person screenings at both the Castro Theatre and the Roxie Theater. Some of these films will not be available for streaming and will be exclusively screened at these two iconic San Francisco cinemas.
GENDERATION Sunday, June 20 at 3 p.m. PDT DIR Monika Treut | Germany Roxie Theater, San Francisco Twenty years after the queer classic Gendernauts (Frameline23) illuminated the shifting nature of gender through the eyes and lives of unapologetic, iconic San Franciscans, director Monika Treut returns to see where life has led her original pioneering subjects. Genderation finds Annie Sprinkle, Sandy Stone, Susan Stryker, Stafford, and Max Wolf Valerio still breaking the mold as gender visionaries, even as they grapple with a changing city and the challenges of aging in America.
BALONEY Sunday, June 20 at 6 p.m. PDT DIR Joshua Guerci | USA Roxie Theater, San Francisco Come experience titillating and charming story behind San Francisco’s first and only all-male gay revue. A melding of theater, dance, and burlesque, Baloney has become a nightlife staple, interrogating the local, modern queer experience with humor and fantasy. In-depth interviews with the co-creators and their colorful, sultry cast provide engaging insight into the world of Baloney’s tantalizing and hilarious performances.
FUN IN SHORTS (SHORTS) Saturday, June 26 at 11 a.m. PDT Castro Theatre, San Francisco Need a lift? How about a sweet smile? What would you say to an actual laugh? Our signature selection of light-hearted, smile-inducing, joyful short films couldn’t come soon enough after the year we’ve had. Everybody’s welcome to have some FUN IN SHORTS!Coming Out DIR Cressa Maeve Beer | USAEarly to Rise: Episode 1 DIR Alec Cohen | USAFrom A to Q DIR Emmalie El Fadli | UKHow Moving DIR Owen Thiele | USASunday Dinner DIR Kevin Mead | USAThe Test DIR Jessica Smith | AustraliaThank You for Being Here DIR Elizabeth Archer | USAVirgin My Ass DIR Adar Sigler | IsraelThe Wash (In Love) DIR Ibon Hernando | SpainINVISIBLE Saturday, June 26 at 3 p.m. PDT DIR T.J. Parsell | USA Castro Theatre, San Francisco Contemporary country music is finally coming out of the closet. Some of the greatest hits sung by the likes of Willie Nelson, Reba McEntire, Johnny Cash, and more are the work of gay women writing, producing, and persevering in a traditional corporate industry that requires most to keep their authentic selves secret. Featuring interviews with Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris, and Pam Tillis, Invisible reveals these talented women and their singular voices at last.
JUMP, DARLING Saturday, June 26 at 6 p.m. PDT DIR Phil Connell | Canada Castro Theatre, San Francisco Aspiring actor Russell tries to make it big on the Toronto drag scene, but after (literally) falling flat, he flees his rich boyfriend and holes up with his grandmother, played by the inimitable Cloris Leachman, in her final starring role. This affecting family drama, filmed in the bucolic Canadian wine country, also features real acts from the Toronto drag scene.
HOMEGROWN (SHORTS) Sunday, June 27 at 11 a.m. PDT Castro Theatre, San Francisco Celebrate our Bay Area neighbors with these local documentaries. You’ll meet Jok, the beloved children’s scientist and leather-clad AIDS activist, as well as Penny, a Filipino immigrant and restaurateur working through the pandemic. Wherever you live, these six, unique portraits from our community are sure to resonate.Bayanihan & Resilience DIR Jocelyn Tabancay Duffy | USABeakman & Jok DIR Kolmel W. Love | USABlackness Is Everything DIR Alba Roland Mejia | USADennis: The Man Who Legalized Cannabis DIR Brandon Moore | USASensorium DIR Elliot Mercer 2021 | USASurviving Voices DIR Jörg Fockele 2021 | USAFIREBIRD Sunday, June 27 at 2:30 p.m. PDT DIR Peeter Rebane | UK/Estonia Castro Theatre, San Francisco Blending a Cold War thriller and a true story of a secret love, Firebird begins with the steamy passions of gay romance in an environment where expressing it is lethal. Young private Sergey (Tom Prior) begins a passionate affair with ambitious fighter pilot Roman (Oleg Zagorodnii) while stationed at an air force training base. When they are reunited years later, their reignited love risks being revealed to the Soviet military.
NO STRAIGHT LINES: THE RISE OF QUEER COMICS Sunday, June 27 at 6:30 p.m. PDT DIR Vivian Kleiman | USA Castro Theatre, San Francisco From Tom of Finland to Dykes to Watch Out For, comics and zines have been firmly embedded in queer culture since before Stonewall, through the AIDS epidemic, and continuing through today’s modern obsession with superheroes. But this deeply queer artform finally gets its true moment in the limelight thanks to Peabody Award winner Vivian Kleiman’s extensive documentary that explores over 70 years of history.
VIRTUAL SCREENINGS
Ranging from narrative features and documentaries, to episodics and shorts programs, Frameline45 will feature over 50 virtual screenings, including 16 world premieres, nine international premieres, nine North American premieres, and seven US premieres.
Highlights include:
LANGUAGE LESSONS DIR Natalie Morales | USA In English and Spanish with English subtitles Spanish lessons lead to emotional revelations in this richly touching, character-driven first feature. Well-off Oakland resident Adam (Mark Duplass) is at first put out by his husband’s gift of online sessions with cheerful Costa Rican Cariño (director Natalie Morales), but a shocking event right before their second tutorial, followed by some mysterious bruises on Cariño’s face, lead to conversations that go deeper than the difference between “ser” and “estar.”
CHARLATAN DIR Agnieszka Holland | Czech Republic/Ireland/Poland/Slovakia In Czech and German with English subtitles Based on the incredible true story of Czech herbalist and healer Jan Mikolášek, Charlatan is veteran filmmaker Agnieszka Holland’s handsomely filmed biopic of a little-known icon of 20th century Europe. With great skill and a vivid, cinematic eye, Holland weaves the personal and the professional in Mikolášek’s life, from teenage flashbacks and his passionate clandestine affair with his hunky assistant to his trials under the Communist regime in the 1950s.
CAN YOU BRING IT: BILL T. JONES AND D-MAN IN THE WATERS DIRS Rosalynde LeBlanc & Tom Hurwitz | USA This exhilarating and moving dance documentary celebrates the work of acclaimed choreographer Bill T. Jones, who with his partner Arnie Zane founded their iconic dance company in New York during the ravages of AIDS. As a young dance troupe mounts a new production of one of the company’s signature pieces, we witness a new generation discovering the strength of art in the face of tragedy.
PROGNOSIS: NOTES ON LIVING DIRS Debra Chasnoff & Kate Stilley Steiner | USA In what was perhaps her bravest act as a filmmaker, Academy Award-winning documentarian and LGBTQ+ activist Debra Chasnoff (It’s Elementary, Frameline Award) responded to her diagnosis of stage-4 breast cancer by turning the camera on herself to chronicle the journey that lay ahead of her. Clear-eyed and unsentimental, intimate and honest, the film is an unforgettable, present-tense diary of a life fiercely lived. This world premiere free screening will stream on Saturday, June 19 beginning at 4 p.m. PDT, followed by a live conversation and Q&A with the filmmaking team. An encore screening with recorded Q&A will replay on Saturday, June 26 at 4 p.m. PDT. Reserved ticket required.
SUMMERTIME DIR Carlos López Estrada | USA In an increasingly gentrified LA, one question gets more and more difficult to answer: How do you find a good burger at a decent prize? A poetry-infused valentine to Los Angeles in all its queer and BIPOC glory, director Carlos López Estrada delights with this sophomore effort. Slam poetry-style recitations erupt like musical numbers, as the film uses language to create a portrait of a changing Los Angeles populated by a generation demanding to enter adulthood on their own terms.
NELLY QUEEN: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF JOSÉ SARRIA DIR Joseph R. Castel | USA Pride parades, out politicians, the Imperial Courts: how many people know that the existence of all three have Jose Sarria to thank? This sweeping documentary follows the public personas and private losses that shaped the life of the unapologetic, influential, and often overlooked queen of San Francisco queer culture, history, and rights.
SWAN SONG DIR Todd Stephens | USA Based on an outlandish true story, a flamboyant hairdresser (screen legend Udo Kier) escapes from his nursing home to come out of retirement for one last hairdo. When Pat is offered $25,000 to style his estranged friend at her funeral, it’s an opportunity he can’t pass up, forcing him to confront the demons of his past as well as the changes of his small Ohio town. Jennifer Coolidge, Linda Evans, and Michael Urie also star.
MA BELLE, MY BEAUTY DIR Marion Hill | USA In English and French with English subtitles The rolling vineyards and sun-washed French villages may be ancient, but the shifting dynamics of a polyamorous relationship are fresh and tingling in this contemporary romance set in the picturesque South of France. As newlywed Bertie struggles to adjust to country life, her husband encourages a visit from her American ex-girlfriend, hoping to recapture the free-spirited relationship that they all used to share. New and old intimacies and complications ensue in this luminous Sundance award winner. Proudly sponsored by Bloomberg Philanthropies.
For a complete lineup of virtual screenings, visit www.frameline.org.
FOCUS ON TAIWAN
Focus on Taiwan is supported by Ministry of Culture, Taiwan (R.O.C.) and Taiwan Academy in Los Angeles
AS WE LIKE IT DIRS Chen Hung-i & Muni Wei | Taiwan In Mandarin with English subtitles Boasting an all-female cast, this queer spin on one of the Bard’s classics is a striking reworking of Shakespeare’s comedy As You Like It, involving cross-dressing, kidnapping, mysterious disappearances, and family feuds. With her uncle poised to control the family business, Rosalind sets out to locate her missing father with the help of her cousin Celia. But things get complicated when Rosalind, disguised as a man, finds herself falling for the charming Orlando.
DEAR TENANT DIR Cheng Yu-Chieh | Taiwan In Mandarin with English subtitles Winner of three awards at Taiwan’s prestigious Golden Horse Film Festival, Dear Tenant is a moving portrait of unconditional love, gay identity, and the ties that bind—centering around a trio of people who form their own chosen family within the confines of their apartment building. Blending a slowburn family drama, courtroom intrigue, and an impassioned plea for LGBTQ+ equality, writer-director Cheng Yu-Chieh finds the perfect balance between a compassionate character study in the vein of Taiwanese master Edward Yang (Yi Yi) and a good old-fashioned tearjerker in this box office hit.
WILL YOU STILL LOVE ME TOMORROW? DIR Arvin Chen | Taiwan In Mandarin with English subtitles Come rediscover this infectiously charming Taiwanese queer classic from director Arvin Chen, a graduate of UC Berkeley and former Bay Area resident. Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow? takes a breezy and playful look at modern love as it clashes against longstanding tradition. This ensemble comedy centers around family man Wei-chung, whose long-repressed gay urges are reawakened by a young flight attendant named Thomas.
TAIWAN SHORTS Frameline is pleased to present a free program of shorts showcasing Taiwan’s next generation in film talent. Catch a brief document of Taipei Pride 2020; a coming-of-age tale about self-discovery, dating apps, and first crushes; a sweet portrait of modern millennial queer life; and a cruisy short set during martial law in 1979.Hidden DIR Kuo Hsuan-Chi | TaiwanTaiwan Pride for the World DIR Larry Tung | TaiwanUndercurrent DIR Weng Yu-Tong | TaiwanUnnamed DIRS Gao Hong & Chang Chun-Yu | Taiwan
FRAMELINE TALKS
Frameline has curated a series of exclusive talks supported by Variety, set to debut over the course of the Festival’s 18 days. These talks will be free to stream nationwide through Frameilne’s Facebook and YouTube channels, as well as their streaming platform.
Highlights include:
YOUTH ON SCREENS Thursday, June 17 at 5:30 p.m. PDT Television is currently on the forefront of queer representation and identity expression, and leading the charge are images of young people. Each generation challenges what is taken for granted by the previous. Currently, through the medium of television, ideas of gender and sexuality are being expanded right in our living rooms. Moderated by IndieWire’s Jude Dry, panelists include Jordan Seamon (HBO’s “We Are Who We Are”), Daniel Barnz (Co-creator of HBO Max’s “Generation”), Javicia Leslie (CW’s “Batwoman”), and Crystal Moselle (HBO’s “Betty”).
TWO-SPIRIT: INDIGENOUS VOICES IN QUEER CINEMA Saturday, June 19 at 5:30 p.m. PDT Indigenous filmmakers and storytellers explore the complexities of gender and sexuality as seen in spiritual traditions and creation stories. This talk will center on creatives exploring the boundaries of gender expression and sexual identity in the context of Indigenous tradition, culture, and belief. Panelists will explore the importance of Two-Spirit Native representation onscreen that centers an Indigenous point of view. Featuring a chance to reconnect with Sherente, the focus of Frameline45 documentary Being Thunder. Proudly sponsored by Gilead.
SUGAR IN MY BOWL: AFRICAN AMERICAN REPRESENTATION IN QUEER CINEMA Sunday, June 20 at 5:30 p.m. PDT The African American queer experience is abundant, varied, multi-dimensional, and also underrepresented in queer cinema, festivals, and media. This panel is a conversation aimed at taking stock of where queer African American representation is. This is also an opportunity to look forward and chart the future of African American representation in queer cinema. This conversation is the beginning of a longer process to create the groundwork to support queer Black filmmakers in telling queer Black feature-length stories. Panelists include Clay Cane, Brittani Nichols, Elegance Bratton, Kat Blaque, Maisie Richardson Sellers, and Nathan Hale Williams. Variety’s Film & Media Reporter, Angelique Jackson, will serve as moderator.
WOMEN IN ROCK Friday, June 25 at 5:30 p.m. PDT A talk with talent and producers from Frameline45 docs FANNY: The Right to Rock and Invisible focusing on the unbelievable talent of women in the music industry and the struggle for recognition. Fanny kicked down the door for women musicians by being the first all-woman rock band to release an album with a major record company. Invisible highlights the work of gay women behind some of country music’s greatest hits. These music powerhouses will talk about persevering in the corporate music industry that requires most to keep their authentic selves secret. Proudly sponsored by National Center for Lesbian Rights.
WILSON CRUZ IN CONVERSATION WITH RAFFY ERMAC Saturday, June 26 at 5:30 p.m. PDT Few actors have pushed LGBTQ+ representation on television as far as Wilson Cruz. From his breakthrough role as Rickie Vasquez on the 1990s teen drama My So-Called Life, Cruz was the first openly gay actor to play an openly gay role on a TV series. In the years since ‘Rickie’ and Cruz made their mark on a generation of queer youth, he has carried his talent and activism into recurring roles on 13 Reasons Why, Party of Five, and Noah’s Arc, as well as executive producing the doc series Visible: Out on Television. As ‘Dr. Hugh Culber’ on Star Trek: Discovery, things have come full circle, in a sense, for the actor playing a happily partnered gay man and father figure to a non-binary human close to 30 years after his indelible debut. In conversation with Raffy Ermac, editor-in-chief of the LGBTQ+ youth-oriented entertainment website Pride, Cruz traces his television legacy from ‘Rickie’ in 1994 to showcasing queer representation all the way into the 23rd century as ‘Dr. Culber.’
For a complete lineup of Frameline Talks, including a list of participants, visit www.frameline.org/talks.
The Center for Asian American Media is pleased to showcase LGBTQ+ works as part of CAAMFest 2021. With a broad spectrum of themes, these projects convey the multifaceted intersections of sexuality and identity.
Showcases and features include:
HAPPY TOGETHER, directed by Wong Kar-Wai Saturday, May 15, 6:30 p.m. at FORT MASON FLIX In this seminal and gorgeous film, Ho Po-Wing (Leslie Cheung) and Lai Yiu-Fai (Tony Leung) are lovers who fight to keep their relationship together.
SEE YOU THEN, directed by Mari Walker Friday, May 22, 7:00 p.m. on CAAMFest.com Filmmaker Mari Walker masterfully directs this grounded and touching story of two individuals, who have felt pain in the past. Actors Pooya Mohseni and CAAMFest favorite Lynn Chen showcase their talent with two outstanding and brave performances. Preceded by F1-100, directed by Emory Chao Johnson Art, animation, archival footage, and digital video are interwoven in this transnational meditation through time and space of an international art student carrying a heavy burden.
CLOSING NIGHT PARTY: “FOLX” DANCE PARTY WITH H.P. MENDOZA Sunday, May 23, 7:00pm on CAAMFest.com This thrilling conclusion of CAAMFest includes the world premiere of FOLX, H.P.’s new music album featuring Lex the Lexicon and Anna Ishida (I AM A GHOST). In a time of anxiety, join us as we come together to celebrate, laugh and dance the night away.
Shorts and Shorts Programs with LGBTQ+ themes: OUT/HERE CAAMFest’s OUT/HERE shorts program has been a staple of our festival for over a decade now. In this program, we showcase and celebrate the unique and bold stories from the LGBTQ+ diverse communities. From lesbian vampires to a gay relationship in turmoil, OUT/HERE is a real treasure of stories and storytellers. DUET, directed by Shae Xu In this sensual and dream-like film, an unspoken romance inevitably resurfaces when a high school music teacher meets an old colleague again and decides to perform together for the first time as piano duet partners after they’ve long since drifted apart from each other. SUMMERWINTERSUMMER, directed by Thy Tran Struggling to deal with Martin’s disappearance, Duy resorts to anonymous hook-ups to escape the emptiness. THE LEAF, directed by William J. Zang THE LEAF is a personal, poetic, documentary film about Director Will J. Zang’s experience as both a filmmaker and a gay immigrant during this pandemic. LOVE X BITES, directed by M. Noe, Yupar Momo During Covid19 outbreak, two women enter the quarantine at a hotel and share a room. CLUB QUARANTINE, directed by Aurora Brachman Every night during the Covid-19 lockdown, hundreds of people from around the world gather in a massive queer dance party known as ‘Club Quarantine’. DRIVING WITH THE TOP DOWN, directed by Edward Gunawan A touching film by filmmaker Edward Gunawan explores his family’s intergenerational trauma and intersectional struggles as a queer Chinese Indonesian in this intimately personal video essay. HOW TO DIE YOUNG IN MANILA, directed by Petersen Vargas (DON’T SCREAM Shorts Program) In this evocative, dream-like story a teenage boy follows a group of young hustlers, thinking one of them may be the anonymous hook-up he has arranged to meet for the night. SYNCHRONIZED, directed by Corinne Manabat Cueva (SELF | PORTRAIT Shorts Program) An experimental documentary short that embraces 5 women of color as they collectively reflect about their experiences living and thriving in Oakland. SWINGIN’, directed by Shang-Sing Guo (DIRECT TO TAIWAN Shorts Program) When sixth-grader boy Qiu is bullied in school for having gay dads, his stepfather Howard, a flamboyant Jazz trumpet player, must confront his own nightmares of childhood bullying before he can provide his son a feeling of security.
Additional LGBTQ+ Filmmakers include: BREATHE (HINGA) by Sammay Dizon (HE(ART)BEATS Shorts Program) A performance ritual film and time capsule honoring the sacred grief, life force, and resiliency of the Bay Area Pilipinx community during COVID-19. TO LIVE HERE (sống ở đây) directed by Melanie Ho (WE LIVE HERE Shorts Program) Exploring the intimacy of the mundane, sống ở đây | TO LIVE HERE focuses on the lives of Vietnamese shrimpers and elderly farmers in New Orleans, understanding the reverberations of the past, present in day to day labor. For more information and to purchase tickets for CAAMFest, please visit www.caamfest.com.
About CAAMFest CAAMFest, formerly the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival (SFIAAFF), celebrates the world’s largest showcase for new Asian American and Asian film, food, and music programs.
About CAAM For 40 years, the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM) has been dedicated to presenting stories that convey the richness and diversity of Asian American experiences to the broadest audience possible. As a nonprofit organization, CAAM funds, produces, distributes, and exhibits works in film, television, and digital media. For more information about CAAM, please visit www.CAAMedia.org.
Local cinephiles/filmmakers Gary Carnivele and Jane Winslow present and discuss OUTwatch’s newly minted “30 Best American LGBTQIA Documentaries.” In a conversation shaped by the selections, the duo examine films about LGBTQIA history and issues, activism, gender studies, as well as profiles of noteworthy individual. They will also explore queer documentary style and take a closer look at the work of 3 pivotal auteurs: experimental filmmaker extraordinaire Barbara Hammer, and filmmaking partners Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman, whose films are not only iconic in queer cinema, but have had widespread mainstream appeal. The conversation concludes with a discussion of films being co-presented by OUTwatch at SDFF 2021. OUTwatch producer Gary Carnivele is a film critic, screenwriter and director. In addition to co-directing and managing SDFF, Jane Winslow is a filmmaker, film professor and frequent festival judge. OUTwatch’s list of the 30 Best American LGBTQI Documentaries is available on OUTwatch and gaysonoma.com.
Ballot Measure 9 was an anti-gay amendment proposed to Oregon voters in 1992 by a conservative group. This documentary goes behind the scenes of the fight to stop Measure 9. It contains portions of anti-gay videos as well as news clips and interviews with the people who successfully fought passage of Measure 9. 1995 Director: Heather MacDonald. 72 min.
Before Stonewall
New York City’s Stonewall Inn Riot is regarded by many as the site of gay and lesbian liberation stared on June 27-28, 1969. This documentary uses extensive archival film, movie clips and personal recollections to construct an audiovisual history of the gay community before the Stonewall riots. 1984 Directors: Greta Schiller, Robert Rosenberg 87 min.
The Celluloid Closet
A documentary surveying the various Hollywood screen depictions of homosexuals and the attitudes behind them throughout the history of North American film. Based on the book of the same name by gay film historian and critic Vito Russo. 1996 Directors: Rob Epstein; Jeffrey Friedman 107 min.
The Cockettes
On New Year’s Eve, 1969, a flamboyant ragtag troupe of genderbending hippies took the stage of San Francisco’s Palace Theater and The Cockettes were born. For the next 2 1/2 years, these talented performers created 20 shows and many underground films.
2002. Directors: Bill weber; David Weissman. 100 min.
Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt
This film recounts the lives and deaths of various victims of AIDS who are commemorated in the AIDS quilt. It is a massive cloth collecting each piece as a memorial for each victim of the disease to both show the death toll and to show the humanity of the victims to those who would rather demonize them. 1989. Directors: Rob Epstien; Jeffrey Friedman. 102 min.
Complaints of a Dutiful Daughter
An exploration of the tenacity of love and the meaning of memory, Hoffmann chronicles her growing understanding of her elderly mother’s struggle with Alzheimer’s disease with witty confessional-style narration. The film examines a timely subject: as Americans live longer, more and more people are faced with the life-altering challenge of caring for an elderly parent. 1995. Director: Deborah Hoffman. 44 min.
The Death and Life of Marsha P Johnson
Victoria Cruz investigates the mysterious 1992 death of black gay rights activist and Stonewall veteran, Marsha P. Johnson. Using archival interviews with Johnson, and new interviews with Johnson’s family, friends and fellow activists. 2017 Director: David France.
107 min.
Forbidden Love: The Unashamed Stories of Lesbian Lives
Ten women talk about being lesbian in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s: discovering the pulp fiction of the day about women in love, their own first affairs, the pain of breaking up, frequenting gay bars, facing police raids, men’s responses, and the etiquette of butch and femme roles. 1992. Directors: Lynne Ferbie; Aerlyn Weissman. 85 min.
A Great Ride
A documentary about lesbians aging with dynamism and zest for life. Sally Gearhart, 80-plus retired women’s studies professor and activist, lives in a rustic cabin nestled in the Northern California woods. Although surrounded by the beauty of nature, she also faces several challenges to her independence. 2018. Directors: Deborah Craig; Veronica Duport Deliz. 33 min.
Holly Near: Singing for Our Lives
A documentary revisiting the career of a feisty activist musician, who never quite achieved the same recognition as her similar contemporaries Joan Baez and Joni Mitchell. 2018. Director: Jim Brown. 63 min.
How to Survive a Plague
In the early years of the AIDS epidemic, the disease was considered a death sentence affecting communities, like the LGBT ones, whom many in power felt deserved it. This film tells the story of how militant activists like ACT-UP and TAG pushed for a meaningful response to this serious public health problem. 2012 Director: David France. 100 min.
I Am Divine
The story of Divine, aka Harris Glenn Milstead, from his humble beginnings as an overweight, teased Baltimore youth to an internationally recognized drag superstar through his collaboration with filmmaker John Waters. Spitting in the face of the status quos of body image, gender identity, sexuality, and preconceived notions of beauty. 2014. Director: Jeffrey Schwartz. 90 min.
Intersexion
This groundbreaking film sets out to “de-mystify” intersex, looking “beyond the shame and secrecy that defines many intersex births”. Interviewing intersex people around the world, the film explores how they “navigate their way through childhood, adolescence, relationships and adulthood, when they don’t fit the binary model of a solely male and female world.” 2012 Director: Grant Lahood. 68 min.
It’s Elementary: Talking About Gay Issues in School
The groundbreaking film that addresses anti-gay prejudice by providing adults with practical lessons on how to talk with children about lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered people. Part of The Respect for All Project. 1996. Directors: Debra Chasnoff; Helen Cohen. 80 min.
Killing Patient Zero
Gaetan Dugas was openly gay. In early 1980s he contracted what was termed “gay cancer”. He provided blood samples and 72 names of his former sex partners. Dugas was demonized for his promiscuity and wrongfully identified as patient zero by the media, including San Francisco journalist Randy Shilts. 2019. Director: Laurie Lynd. 100 min.
Lover Other: The Story of Claude Cahun and Marcel Moore
French Surrealist lesbian sisters, Claude Cahun and Marcel Moore collaborate creating gender-bending photographs, collages, and writing. During the WWII Nazi occupation they perform heroic and imaginative acts of Resistance are captured, imprisoned, and sentenced to death. 2018. Director: Barbara Hammer. 55 min.
Man Made
This documentary explores the world of transgender bodybuilding, tracking the path of four hopefuls as they prepare for the Trans FitCon competition in Atlanta, Georgia. 2018. Dorector: T. Cooper. 93 min.
Mom’s Apple Pie: The Heart of the Lesbian Mother’s Custody Movement
While the fight for LGBTQ Civil Rights movement was gaining momentum, the 1970s witnessed horrific custody battles for lesbian mothers. Mom’s Apple Pie: The Heart of the Lesbian Mothers’ Custody Movement revisits the early tumultuous years of the lesbian custody movement through the stories of five lesbian mothers and their four children.
2006. Directors: Jody Laine; Shan Ottey; Shad Reinstein. 61 min.
No Secret Anymore: The Times of
Del Martin & Phyllis Lyon
No Secret Anymore shows Del and Phyllis creating coalitions that took on the prevailing belief that lesbians were illegal, immoral and sick. Phyllis and Del did the groundbreaking work on lesbian mothers, sex education, family violence, and more. Always working both from within and outside the institutions they sought to change, Del and Phyllis were able to advance the rights of LGBT folks. 2003. Director: Joan E. Biren. 57 min.
Paris Is Burning
A chronicle of New York’s drag scene in the 1980s, focusing on balls, voguing and the ambitions and dreams of those who gave the era its warmth and vitality. 1991
Director: Jeannie Livingston. 71 min.
Portrait of Jason
The highlights of a 12-hour interview with Aaron Payne, alias Jason Holliday, a former houseboy, would-be cabaret performer, and self-proclaimed hustler who, while drinking and smoking cigarettes and pot, tells stories and observations of what it was like to be black and gay in 1960s America. 1967. Diector: Shirley Clarke. 105 min.
The Rest I Make Up
Cuban-American playwright Maria Irene Fornes created astonishing worlds onstage. When she stops writing due to dementia, a friendship with a young writer reignites her visionary creative spirit, triggering a film collaboration that picks up where the pen left off. 2018. Director: Michelle Memran. 79 min.
Screaming Queens: The Riot at Compton’s Cafeteria
Documentary about transgender women and drag queens who fought police harassment at Compton’s Cafeteria in San Francisco’s Tenderloin in 1966, three years before the famous riot at Stonewall Inn bar in NYC. 2005. Directors: Victor Silverman; Susan Stryker. 57 min.
Southern Comfort
Southern Comfort documents the final year in the life of Robert Eads, a transgender man. Eads, diagnosed with ovarian cancer, was turned down for treatment by two dozen doctors out of fear of treating him. By the time Eads received treatment, the cancer was too advanced to save his life. 2002. Director: Kate Davis. 90 min.
The Times of Harvey Milk
San Francisco Board of Supervisors Harvey Milk and SF Mayor George Moscone were assassinated by recently resigned Supervisor Dan White on November 27th, 1978. Milk’s life, his successful efforts to politically represent SF’s LGBT community, and the city’s reaction to the assassinations are documented with news film and personal recollections.
1984. Director: Robert Epstien. 90 min.
Tiny and Ruby: Hell Drivin’ Women
This profile of legendary jazz trumpeter Tiny Davis and her partner of over 40 years, drummer-pianist Ruby Lucas weaves together rare jazz recordings, live performances, vintage photographs, and narrative poetry by Cheryl Clarke. Tiny’s contribution to jazz history is documented and the 78-year-old demonstrates that her chops and humor are both intact. 1996. Director: Greta Schiller. 28 min.
Tongues Untied
Marlon Riggs, with assistance from other gay Black men, especially poet Essex Hemphill, celebrates Black men loving Black men as a revolutionary act. The film intercuts footage of Hemphill reciting his poetry, Riggs telling the story of his growing up, scenes of men in social intercourse and dance, and various comic riffs. 1988. Director Marlon Riggs. 55 min.
Trembling Before G-D
Built around intimately-told personal stories of Hasidic and Orthodox Jews who are gay or lesbian, the film portrays a group of people who face a profound dilemma – how to reconcile their passionate love of Judaism and the Divine with the drastic Biblical prohibitions that forbids homosexuality. 2001 Director: Sandi Simcha Dubowski. 94 min.
We Were Here
A deep and reflective look back at the arrival and impact of AIDS in San Francisco, and how the City’s inhabitants dealt with that unprecedented calamity. It explores what was not so easy to discern in the midst of it all – the parallel histories of suffering and loss; community coalescence and empowerment. 2011. Directors: David Weissman; Bill Weber. 90 min.
Word is Out
26 men and women of various backgrounds, ages, and races talk about being gay. Their stories are arranged in loose chronology: early years, fitting in (which for some meant marriage), disclosing their sexuality, establishing adult identities, and reflecting on how things have changed and how things should be. All see social progress as they reflect.
1979. Directors: Nancy Adair; Peter Adair; Andrew Brown; Rob Epstein; Lucy Massie Phenix; Veronica Selver. 164 min.
Most titles are available for purchase. Many titles are available on DVD through Sonoma County Public Libraries. Some are available from Netflix, Amazon Prime, and other streaming services.
For her latest feature film, Spanish queer filmmaker RUTH CAUDELI continues with her fixation with ‘navel-gazing’ which was the topic of her sophomore movie SECOND STAR ON THE RIGHT.
Leading Ladies, filmed in Colombia, is the tale of five young women who have gathered together for a celebratory dinner for one of their number who has been away for the past two months. They have no idea why Marce (MARCELA ROBLEDO) disappeared suddenly without warning and it soon appears that they will not necessarily believe or accept her explanation anyway.Caudeli films the dinner party that ensues from each of the participant’s perspectives, and each time the ‘story’ starts all over again, we learn more of the unspoken currents going on. Each of the women has their share of secrets and regrets too which they are very reluctant to expose.
Being truthful is a major issue here, and where some of the lies are new, others have been held for some years. It spreads confusion even over matters that concern each of the women’s sexualities.Very impressively, Caudeli puts great trust in her actresses as she films them without a script. It’s a gamble the pays off as it gives such authenticity to how finely tuned friendships really are as they balance to survive or just falter. Who is actually honest with each other or themselves is not at all clear, but then it seems not to be too relevant in the telling of the stories.
What makes the film really work, is that all of us can personally connect with at least one of these characters on what we want to share with our friends. And maybe even more than one of them.
