Queer/Trans/Activism
Join us for the Opening Night of the first annual Toronto Queer Film Festival for this program of queer and trans activist films!
We are pleased to announce that the CaribbeanTales International Film Festival is co-sponsoring this night of programming. CaribbeanTales will kick off our festival with the launch of their new DIY short film challenge designed to support queer and trans people of color in producing their own films. TQFF is thrilled to support CaribbeanTales in this endeavor, and we look forward to showing the work of new filmmakers fostered by this program in the future!
Visit the CaribbeanTales website for more info on this exciting initiative: www.caribbeantales.ca/CTFF.
Special guests include Nalo Hopkinson on behalf of CaribbeanTales, and filmmakers Thirza Cuthand, John Greyson, and Vijay Patel will also be in attendance.
Partners
Films
LET ME BE ME, NOT A MAN, NOT A WOMAN, BUT A HIJRA
Matteo Vegetti
From the impossibility of practicing religion outside the accepted definition of man and woman, to the struggle of being accepted by society or having access to fundamental rights, Katha, a hijra activist, fights against the hurdles she and her community have to fight on a daily basis.
Directed by Matteo Vegetti, the co-founder of Silent Storm Productions, an independent production company based in Italy.
PHORIA
Forrest Lotterhos
Shot entirely on black and white 16mm film and hand processed, Phoria is an intimate view of five AFAB (assigned female at birth) trans* people with dysphoria, re: chest.
Directed by Forrest Lotterhos, a demiurgic artist who dabbles in a variety of mediums. His visual work includes experimental techniques in 16mm film, animation, and digital cinematography.
COMING OUT
Vijay Patel
The artist merges an audio recording of when he “came out” to his parents with a self-recorded sexually explicit video clip.
Directed by Vijay Patel, who’s current practice highlights and celebrates the diversity of queer gender sexual identities and their place in the British Indian imagination.
JIZZ ENVY
James Diamond
An adult oriented mock fairy tale where (“female”) ejaculation combined with true love brings a happy ending to a trans-male narrative.
Directed by James Diamond, a director, producer, writer, and a mentor in the fields of communications and multi-media. His film Mars-Womb-Man won the Best Experimental work at imagineNATIVE in 2006.
BULLDOZER BRONFMAN
John Greyson
Legendary queer filmmaker John Greyson brings his trademark mix of musical parody and satire to challenge anti-Palestinian campaigns directed towards a mural hanging in the student centre at York University.
* Presented with subtitles.
Directed by John Greyson, a Toronto film/video artist. He is an associate professor in film production at York University and was awarded the Toronto Arts Award for Film/Video in 2000, as well as the Bell Canada Video Art Award in 2007.
WHEN AIDS WAS FUNNY
Scott Calonico
Recordings of press conferences at the Reagan White House reveal the shocking indifference, and sometimes outright derision, which the administration dealt with the growing AIDS epidemic.
Directed by Scott Calonico, who holds a BSc in Radio/TV/Film from the University of Texas and an MA from City University, London in International Journalism. In 2014, his short The Silly Bastard Next to the Bed received the audience award for best short doc at the Full Frame Film Festival. Currently, he resides in Leith, Scotland.
2 SPIRIT INTRODUCTORY SPECIAL $19.99
Thirza Cuthand
Don’t worry if you are just coming out as a 2 Spirited person, we have just the introductory special for you!
Directed by Thirza Cuthand, who was born in Saskatchewan and grew up in Saskatoon. Since 1995 she has been making short experimental narrative videos and films about sexuality, madness, youth, love, and race, which have screened in festivals internationally.
GUYANESE TRANSGENDER VISIBILITY
Ulelli Verbeke
A montage of portraits taken by photo/video artist Ulelli Verbeke as part of the “Stand Against Transphobia” Photo-Exhibition 2014, held to commemorate International Transgender Day of Visibility.
From SASOD, the Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD), is a human rights organisation and movement dedicated to achieving equality and justice for all Guyanese, especially those suffering discrimination based on their sexuality, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression. www.sasod.org.gy.
TRANS LIVES MATTER! JUSTICE FOR ISLAN NETTLES
Seyi Adebanjo
A powerful and intensely moving document of a community vigil for Islan Nettles, a transgender Womyn of Colour, concerning her spirit and life.
Directed by Seyi Adebanjo, a Queer gender-non-conforming Nigerian artist. Seyi is a media artist who raises awareness around social issues through digital video, multimedia photography, and writings.
RED LIPS [CAGES FOR BLACK GIRLS]
kyisha williams
Red Lips explores black/racialized/criminalized/queer/trans/ identity and its relationship to the prison industrial complex, articulating links between interpersonal and systemic violence while celebrating the (sexy) ways in which we survive and celebrate ourselves.
Directed by kyisha williams, a Black, queer, radical, high femme, sex positive, vibrant, survivor, healer, writer, dancer, actor and filmmaker. kyisha is a community organizer and health promoter working in Black/ queer/ trans/ racialized/ criminalized/ HIV+/ HCV+ communities.