Friday, November 24, 2006

Queer City Cinema Community Programming

• small town gay bar Panel Discussion
  To accompany screenings on Thursday, November 23 at the GLCR What's is like living and loving as a queer in smaller towns and urban centres in Canada? Is the absence of a plethora of queer activities, events, bars, clubs, and other queer individuals and groups (that would come with big city living) the downside of being in a place where these things are few and far between? Is one's queer identity better nurtured in larger centres? Is there a sense of 'missing out' in a smaller centre? or does the sometimes ghetoized queer environments of larger cities create a false sense of belonging and community? Is it the challenge of being comfortably queer in smaller places part of the attraction or does it perpetuate feelings of intolerance and unacceptance? Or is all of this 'sizing up' a non-issue and has no bearing on the quality of life in these smaller and perhaps conservative environs? Four filmmakers/artists will provide some insight and perhaps debate on the challenges faced by and the advantages of choosing to remain in small but not necessarily inadequate towns and cities that some of us call home.
  
  Panellist Bios
  
  Tori Foster
  Born in Barrie, Ontario, Tori moved to Toronto at age 19 to begin her degree in New Media at Ryerson University. Until her graduation in 2005, Tori focused mainly on issues of gender and identity, working in a wide range of mediums including installation, print, and video. These works included Ladies and Gentlemen, an installation highlighting the inadequacies of contemporary public washroom icons; Move, a video following a young man through the streets of Toronto as he fights with chronic anxiety; and Personally Identified. Personally Identified, a book that compiles the stories of six queer women asked to identify themselves using images from their past, was in many ways the precursor to 533 Statements. It was the first time Tori had worked in a documentary format, and it also sparked her fascination with personal narrative. Tori, now 24, is living in Toronto and is working on her next documentary about the positive aspects of dyslexia.
  
  David Geiss
  David Geiss is a freelance / independent filmmaker and also spends time working in the local film industry. His latest endeavour is a 45-minute documentary Queen City, which won the Best Documentary award at the Canadian National Youth Film Festival, and recently had its broadcast premiere on SCN in November 2006. David also steps in front of the camera on occasion, appearing in short / independent films, and on the CTV series Corner Gas. David grew up on a small Saskatchewan farm and has since grown to love the province of Saskatchewan, its geography, and its people. These themes sometimes come across in a not-so-subtle manner in his work. He holds a BFA in Film & Video Production from the University of Regina, and spends a lot of time volunteering for things like the Saskatchewan Filmpool Cooperative's Board of Directors and Splice Magazine.
  
  Malcolm Ingram
  A lifelong interest in film led him to The Toronto International Film Festival at the tender age of 21. After a four year stint working himself up to Press Office Manager, Ingram left the organization to pursue a writing career with the influential Film Threat Magazine. It was while on assignment that Ingram met his mentor, Kevin Smith (Chasing Amy, Dogma, Clerks 1 & 2) who financed his first film Drawing Files. Drawing Files was shot in Vancouver, BC in the summer of 1995, starred rising talent Jason Lee and had a successful run on the festival circuit. The next opus, Tail Lights Fade, featured a high profile and talented cast including: Denise Richards, Jake Busey, Elizabeth Berkeley and Margot Kidder. After two disastrous kicks at the can and a failed attempt as a stock boy at WalMart, Ingram delved into his psyche and decided to make something meaningful. Fortunately, it was at the same time that he realized he had a fondness for dudes. The end result is small town gay bar, filmed in the Deep South in winter 2005.
  
  Matt Thomas
  Matt Thomas is a young filmmaker, writer and curator living and working in Toronto, born on the prairies and raised on the coast. Trained in Film and Video Production as well as Music and Pop Culture History at York University, several of his short films as well as his work as a cinematographer have played in queer film festivals all over North America and Europe. Writing for magazines and newspapers like Toronto's infamous Wavelength series, Xtra!, Broken Pencil, as well as a once regular feature column for Fab Magazine, Thomas continues to explore the trashy loose ends of fringe queer culture. Often he likes to start fights, mosh with queer punks and has wet dreams about Harry Hay, James Dean and Quentin Crisp. His new babies are a short film for the Bravo Network and Backalley Jukebox the world's first travelling queer music video program and it's coming to make a mess in your house.
  
  Moderator - Elizabeth Curry
  Elizabeth Curry, just weeks ago, finished her degree in Music Performance. Growing up on a farm south of Wynyard, her experience as a queer artsy kid in a small town led her to seek refuge in the musical world of Regina, which she is forever indebted to. To pay off that debt, she plays her Double Bass in many fun groups, ranging from the RSO to the electro-hippie band Intergalactic Virgin. In addition to her life of music, she loves to do anything that blurs the boundaries between the fine arts, and between fine arts and social and political activism. In that respect, Elizabeth is overjoyed to be participating in Queer City Cinema.
  
  

• Fag
  (Heather DiPinto, Canada, 2005, video, 7 min.)
  Heather DiPinto sets out to ask people what the word 'fag' means to them
  
  
• 533 Statements
  (Tori Foster, Canada, 2006, video, 75 min.)
  
  In the summer of 2004, Ryerson student Tori Foster packed her tent, skateboard and Panasonic camera in a second-hand car and set out to make a documentary about queer women from every province across Canada. She had with her a list of women who had volunteered to be interviewed after reading about her project on websites like gayCanada.com or hearing about the project through word of mouth.
  
  Foster's goal was to show the huge impact geography plays in shaping identity, both physically and psychologically. She connects interviews of individuals from each province with extensive driving scenes between these locations, illustrating how the vast size of the country both unites and separates us from one another.
  
  The director poses a series of questions that reveal the individuality as well as the similarities of the interview subjects. What do you call yourself: lesbian, queer, gay, dyke, and why? What's it like being mistaken for a man? Do you ever worry about going into women's washrooms? What's it like to transition while still a youth? Did you have a favourite toy as a child? What are your favourite books? What's it like being gay in Cormack, Newfoundland? What's the lesbian community like in Ottawa?
  
  The answers to these and other questions are fascinating, and Fosters' subjects are genuine, articulate and endearing. The result is a unique portrait of Canada and queer identity. Director in attendance
  
  

• School Boy Art
  (Erica Cho, USA, 2004, video, 12 min.)
  Angelino, a cute graffiti sketcher, wants to transfer to art school. But is he good enough to get in? After his potential professor gives him a very intimate sketching lesson, he just might be successful.
  
  
• Fat Girls
  (Ash Christian, USA, 2006, video, 83 min.)
  
  'You don't have to be fat, to be a fat girl. You don't really have to be a girl. It's a state of mind. An unspoken club.'
  
  For Rodney Miller, life is difficult. He's gay, terribly misunderstood and a high school senior stuck in a very small Texas town. What Rodney really wants to do is move to New York and become a Broadway star. But for now, he'd just settle for a boyfriend.
  
  With the assistance of his best friend and fellow outcast Sabrina (newcomer Ashley Fink), Rodney must navigate the tricky world of small town life. And this is a very grim town indeed. His mother is a fundamentalist Christian, his classmates are less than kind and bullies are everywhere. Really, there is no future for him here.
  
  Fortunately for Rodney he has some allies too. His cousin Bobby acts as his guardian angel and Joey, the hot English exchange student, has agreed to be his date to the school dance. He also gets encouragement from his theatre teacher Mr. Cox (Jonathan Caouette from Tarnation). With the help of his friends, Rodney is able to cope with coming of age in less than ideal circumstances.
  
  At only 20 years of age, writer, director and star Ash Christian has created a poignant and often hilarious feature debut. Without pulling any punches, Fat Girls is a delightfully dark and funny story for the fat girl in all of us. Welcome to the club.
  
  

• Queer As Fuck
  Just when you thought you'd seen it all, these pickins' reassure you that queerness and the boundaries of reality and fiction can collide in a luxurious offering of silliness and sanity.
  
  
  • Guy 101
    (Ian W. Gouldstone, UK, 2005, video, 9 min.)
    A man hears the story of a hitchhiker from the other side of the Internet.
    
    
  • Bad Boy
    (Velveeta Krisp, Canada, 2005, video, 5 min.)
    Bad this, bad that, bad boy.
    
    
  • Liquid Lunch
    (Jaimz Asmundson, Canada, 2004, video, 4 min.)
    It's lunch time and the suits are looking for something with a little more spice. A dominatrix helps them discover that inner thirst.
    
    
  • Pup
    (Antonia Kao, USA, 2005, video, 23 min.)
    Pup follows Master Skip and Pup Tim, two out, gay, Christian leathermen, as they prepare to compete in the International Puppy Contest, a leather title for human canines and their handlers.
    
    
  • Dirtyglitter 1: Damien
    (Aron Kantor, USA, 2005, video, 14 min.)
    A sexy and strung-out hustler finds photographs of himself in a gallery and sets out on a cross-town mission to find the mysterious artist. Just how much impact will the man have on Damien's own salvation/demise?
    
    
  • Dog Eat Dog
    (Charles Lum, USA, 2006, video, 12 min.)
    Meet Sparky, the feral star of this dog and pony show. See for yourself how a dog's life can be filled with fun, frolic and the true love of man for beast.
    
    
  • Poppy
    (Sophie Boord, Australia, 2006, 16mm, 12 min.)
    In a world of enchantment and illusion, two cowboys encounter the Black Rider. A surreal take on the classic western with tinges of horror.