When you think of a gang, what comes to mind? Guns? Handkerchiefs? What about lipstick and heels? Check It is a documentary about the first documented LGBTQ gang, located in Washington, D.C. The members of the Check It gang are all black gay or transgender youth. Many are from single parent homes, the foster system, […]
Wedding Bells in Austin, Oct 23
On October 23 at 8pm, Stephanie Vela Anderson is marrying her dildo, “Glen Potter.” The wedding ceremony, which will take place at Mister Tramps in Austin, is part performance art and part fundraiser for Anderson’s upcoming documentary about mental illness, entitled “Heartlight.” A video of the happy couple can be found here. In an interview, […]
AGLIFF Review: Reel in the Closet
What were the lives of LGBTQ individuals like in the 1930s? The 1950s? These are questions we might normally think of as unanswerable. Dir. Stu Maddux’s new film, Reel in the Closet, shows otherwise. Reel in the Closet is an exploration of queer home movies and what they can teach us about queer history which […]
AGLIFF Review: Deep Run
Any viewers who grew up in a conservative town in the rural South will see a lot in Deep Run that is familiar. Though I am not transgender, the struggle to make ends meet, the desire for acceptance, the lack of anywhere to go to live authentically, and the pressure to go to church, repent, […]
Austin’s Fusebox Festival: The Measure of All Things
There are times when I’m reminded that performance can be a transformative event, and am honored to witness the magic uniquely found when a group of individuals come together to share their time, energy, and attention with one another. The opening night of Austin’s Fusebox Festival proved to be just such a moment. When I […]
Review: Folsom Forever
Folsom Forever is a new documentary by Mike Skiff. It tells the story of the history of the Folsom Street Fair in San Francisco. Folsom Forever combines interviews with organizers, scholars and politicians with archival footage, as well as footage and interviews from the 29th annual Folsom Street Fair in 2012. The Folsom Street Fair […]
Review: Peter de Rome: Grandfather of Gay Porn
Peter de Rome Grandfather of Gay Porn is a new documentary by Ethan Reid. It chronicles the life and work of British filmmaker Peter de Rome, who began shooting erotic gay shorts in the 1960s, at a time when homosexual sex (and pornography itself) was still illegal. What most struck me about the film was how […]
Review: Regarding Susan Sontag
Susan Sontag was an influential and renowned scholar, feminist, critic, filmmaker, and author – perhaps one of the last of a generation of public intellectuals, the likes of which are rarely seen now. Nancy D Kates’ new documentary film, Regarding Susan Sontag, is an in-depth look at the life and work of this inspiring and […]
Review: Kumu Hina
Frameline award-winning Kumu Hina (“Teacher Hina”) is a new documentary by directors Dean Hamer and Joe Wilson. Hamer and Wilson previously worked together on Out in the Silence, a film about LGBTQ individuals in rural America, and the discrimination and bigotry they often face. It was during an Out in the Silence screening in Hawaii […]
SXSW Film Review: Song from the Forest
Song From the Forest had its US premiere at Austin’s 2014 SXSW festival. Directed by Michael Obert, Song From the Forest chronicles the life and work of Louis Sarno. Sarno is an ethnomusicologist whose work with the Bayaka pygmies has led to him becoming a full member of their community and creating a life in […]