Preview
FAIRY TALES GAY AND LESBIAN FILM FESTIVAL
June 3 to 5
Globe Cinema
By all appearances, Fairy Tales is finally coming out.
Or at least, coming into its own. For five years, Calgary’s annual gay and lesbian film festival has shared the spotlight with the Calgary Society for Independent Filmmakers (CSIF), who co-ordinated the three-day event. Last year, Fairy Tales found a new home at the Globe for screenings and this year, has finally become its own entity via the Fairy Tales Presentation Society.
"I don’t think we’ll feel a strong difference this year," says board president Gordon Sombrowski, "but this should bring the festival more into the public. There’s more bodies, more interaction with other organizations, and more contact in general. It’s a huge leap for better funding and distribution rights."
Sombrowski, a past president of the Gay and Lesbian Community Services Association, has kept ties with CSIF and the Calgary International Film Festival (CIFF) via representation on the new board, along with members of Herland, community groups and local filmmakers such as Michelle Wong, whose video One Dyke Wore White debuts this year. Brenda Lieberman continues on as festival producer.
"There’s a good cross-section of people on this new board," says Sombrowski, whose partner, Kevin Allen, originally founded Fairy Tales. "These people are dedicated to their art and we’re seeing a really positive vibe in the air."
Along with collaborating with other festivals like Herland and the CIFF this year, Fairy Tales held a successful fundraiser at Vicious Circle recently to spread the hype and has hooked up with U of C’s ongoing Movies That Matter series to pre-open this year’s festival with the international documentaries Juchitán: Queer Paradise and Dangerous Living: Coming Out In The Developing World. If last year’s feature lineup leaned towards European films, most of this year’s features hail from Canada and the U.S. As Sombrowski notes, there’s also a less sombre tone.
"I think this year has slicker films and higher production values," says Sombrowski. "The features are more accessible to the public at large. And over all, people in our own community can come away and see themselves in a more positive light."
That "feel-good" atmosphere extends to this year’s lineup of shorts, including Heterosexist Clothes by local filmmakers Cameron May and Nathan Berko. The comedy explores queer life in Calgary before descending into a rapidly edited rant on how opposite-buttoning clothes define gender roles and confuse homosexuals.
"It’s based on a rant I wrote," describes May, who also created the film’s music score. "It’s a farce, and I wouldn’t take it up as an activist cause. But the film is a good way to discuss more serious issues like heterosexism."
May, a psychology grad from U of C, takes his first step into filmmaking at Fairy Tales this year, with plans for further projects in the years ahead, including a lengthier short on systemic racism. Fairy Tales has given him a chance to keep exploring his abilities and Heterosexist Clothes has already been courted by other gay and lesbian film festivals, including Toronto’s Inside/Out, who debuted the film this past week.
"Filmmaking has sort of been an extension of my own artistic goals," says May. "I’ve been a musician for a while and I wanted to express myself in different ways. I’m amazed at the response so far."
Calgary’s other local short is Breakfast In Bed by Christopher Hutchens, a bizarre story of a husband who poisons his wife – with a twist. As usual the shorts offer a variety, including everything from coming-of-age flicks and spoofs on The Sopranos to J.J. Sedelmaier’s successful animated series The Ambiguously Gay Duo.
If all goes well for Fairy Tales’ future growth, filmmakers like May might start seeing workshops at Fairy Tales aimed towards emerging artists, along with an increase in the number of screenings and overall duration of the festival.
"We see ourselves now with the ability to hold another fundraising event throughout the year," says Sombrowski, "and special guests dealing with some of the issues presented in the films. With this new board, we’ve opened up doors for funding that were not otherwise available and competing less for funds. The ball is rolling."
Advance tickets are available at Rainbow Pride Resource Centre (1230a - 17 Ave. S.W.) and The Globe for $9 per evening screening or $7 per matinee screening (Saturday at 2:30 & 5:00 only). Festival programs are available throughout the city or visit www.fairytalesfilmfest.com. |
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