4th Annual Ft. Lauderdale Gay and Lesbian Film Festival

Hot on the heels of the upcoming fall and winter resort season, the Fort Lauderdale Gay & Lesbian Film Festival is gearing up to present a compelling selection of almost 40 films for the 2012 season from October 4-7. In addition to the roster of screenings, this year’s festivities will include an opening party at Revolution, a jazz brunch at Dapur with a live performance by jazz bassist Jennifer Leitham and a closing night pool party at the Royal Palm Hotel.

The mission of the Ft. Lauderdale Gay & Lesbian Film Festival is to produce events and programs that bring the LGBT community together through film.  Coming into its fourth year as an independent festival, the 2012 FLGLFF made a conscious decision to expand its schedule to include food and music components as well as more short films, documentaries and feature films by, about, and of interest to, the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.

“We are delighted to announce this year’s exciting event schedule that has been diligently pieced together with our audiences in mind,” said Franc Castro, executive director of the festival.  “The festival offers a comprehensive roster of films from across the globe where movie-goers will be whisked away on a four-day journey that will definitely influence perceptions and stimulate the imagination. This community-based event has grown significantly over the past few years and we are excited to welcome the South Florida community as well as out of town visitors to our events.”

Here is the schedule of films being screened:

 

Thursday, Oct. 4^th, 2012

 

OPENING FILM

“Cloudburst”

Director: Thom Fitzgerald

Adapted from the award-winning play, Thom Fitzgerald’s “Cloudburst” starring Olympia Dukakis and Brenda Fricker, tells the tale of a lesbian couple who have been together for 31 years. When Dot is committed to a nursing home by her meddling granddaughter, her partner Stella comes to Dot’s rescue. Together, they escape from a Maine nursing home and head to Canada to obtain a marriage license and have their relationship legally recognized. Along the way, they pick up a sexy, shirtless hitchhiker and the familial plot thickens and evolves.

7:30 p.m.

 

Friday, October 5^th, 2012

“Jobriath A.D”

Director: Kieran Turner

Jobriath was to be the gay American David Bowie and the unapologetic “True Fairy” of Glam Rock in the 1970’s. What could have been a turning point for music instead became a cautionary tale as audiences and critics rejected the flamboyant performer. Director Kieran Turner painstakingly traces Jobriath’s fascinating life from his childhood to his untimely death, using archival footage and interviews with the singer’s closest friends.

*Preceded by the short film “Blink”

5:00 p.m.

 

“Call Me Kuchu”

Director: Katherine Fairfax Wright & Malika Zouhali-Worrall

Call Me Kuchu depicts the last year in the life of David Kato, a courageous Ugandan activist whose achievements were not fully recognized until after his brutal murder. While heartbreaking, this documentary takes you beyond the chronicle of victimization depicted in international news media: it tells the nuanced story of David and Kampala’s kuchus (a word used for LGBT people in Uganda) as they work to change their fate and that of other kuchus across Africa.

*Preceded by the short film “The Arrival”

5:30 p.m.

 

“About Cherry”

Director: Stephen Elliot

The child of tremendously dysfunctional parents, Angelica, played by Ashley Hinsaw, disappears to California turning to erotic photo shoots for quick money. Barely 18, she adopts the stage name “Cherry” and with the help of her lipstick lesbian mentor, played by Heather Graham, the shoots soon evolve into a full-fledged adult film career. When a wealthy lawyer played by James Franco introduces her to a glamorous life of expensive clothing, lavish parties and sheer excess, Angelica must decide when too far is far enough.

7:30 p.m.

 

“The Men Next Door”

Director: Rob Williams

Doug has just celebrated his 40th birthday and finds himself falling for two very different but equally lovable men – Jacob, a secure 50-year-old, who came out later in life and Colton, an adventurous 30-year-old who literally is the boy next door. As it turns out the two men are, in fact, father and son. Doug tries to juggle both relationships while father and son begin to compete for Doug’s affection. How will this crazy love triangle turn out?

DIRECTOR: Rob Williams and Actor Benjamin Lutz to attend film screening

8:00 p.m.

 

“Gayby”

Director: Jonathan Lisecki

This amiable comedic adventure captures 30-something Jenn, a yoga instructor, who persuades her gay best friend, Matt, to have a child together. Distrustful of doctors and fertility treatments, they agree to approach things “the old fashioned way.” Gayby examines unconventional friendships, as well as the challenges of creating a family. Filled with wry twists and contagiously sweet characters, Gayby successfully pairs sentiment and easy laughs into one indie-wrapped package.

*Preceded by the short film “Las Llaves”

10:00 p.m.

 

“Keep The Lights On”

Director: Ira Sachs

Keep The Lights On chronicles Filmmaker Erik and closeted lawyer Paul’s emotionally and sexually charged journey through love and addiction. They meet through a casual encounter, but they find a deeper connection and become a couple. They are risk takers -compulsive and fueled by drugs and sex. In an almost decade-long relationship defined by highs, lows and dysfunctional patterns, Erik struggles to negotiate his own boundaries and dignity and to be true to himself.

DIRECTOR: Ira Sachs to attend film screening

*Preceded by the short film “Your Warmth”

10:30 p.m.

 

Saturday, October 6^th, 2012

 “Taboo Yardies”

Director: Selena Blake

“If you’re gay in Jamaica, you’re dead.” The Guardian

“Anytime you is a known faggot in Jamaica you are going to get beaten, if it’s not today it’s tomorrow.” Jamaican “Sure they can be in the cabinet—not mine.” Prime Minister Bruce Golding of Jamaica on BBC Hard Talk

“Batty boy” “Batty man” A Jamaican epithet for homosexual

“Taboo Yardies” a documentary you must watch since it contains the above chilling quotes!

DIRECTOR: Selena Blake to attend film screening

*Preceded by the short film “Nowhere To Run”

2:00 p.m.

 

“Taking A Chance On God”

Director: Brendan Fay

A chronicle of the extraordinary life and legacy of 85 year old John McNeil, gay Catholic priest, founder of the LGBT spiritual movement and a pioneering voice of gay liberation. Refusing to betray his own conscience, McNeil stood up to the man who became Pope Benedict XVI and would not be silenced. Theologians, journalists, activists, and LGBT religious figures, including openly gay Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson, movingly testify to McNeil’s influence and importance.

Ft. Lauderdale resident John McNeil to attend film screening

*Preceded by the short film “It’s Ha(r)d To Say”

2:30 p.m.

 

“The Invisible Men (Gvarim Bilti Nirim)”

Director: Yariv Mozer

Hebrew and Arabic with English Subtitles

The Invisible Men tells the story of 3 gay Palestinians who have run away and are now hiding illegally in Tel Aviv. Louie, hiding in Tel Aviv for 8 years; Abdu, exposed as gay in Ramallah, accused of espionage and tortured by Palestinian security forces; and Faris, who escaped from the West Bank after his family tried to kill him. Their only chance for survival – to seek asylum and leave their homelands forever behind.

Director Yariv Mozer may be attending.

Preceded by the short film “I Don’t Want To Go Back Alone”

4:30 p.m.

 

“The Crown Jewels (Kronjuvelerna)”

Director: Ella Lemhagen

Swedish with English Subtitles

Who shot Richard Persson? The only child of a wealthy factory owner was apparently shot by the beautiful Fragancia, found at the scene with a gun in her hand. For her alibi, Fragancia weaves a fantastic tale of unlikely events and mystical happenings, all set around the remote village where Fragancia and Richard grew up and populated with wacky characters, including the town heartthrob who grows up to be a world-class hockey player with a penchant for his fellow teammates.

5:00 p.m.

 

“A Perfect Ending”

Director: Nicole Conn

A Perfect Ending is a touching and evocative story of one woman’s struggle to find what moves her. Rebecca seems to have the perfect life as a prim wife and mother of three, but something is missing. She finds that something upon meeting Paris, a ravishing young escort. Rebecca and Paris embark on a sensual journey of self-discovery. Raw, moving and often humorous, A Perfect Ending asks: Without passion, what’s the point?

7:00 p.m.

 

“I Do”

Director: Glenn Gaylord

Jack is a surrogate father to his deceased brother’s daughter, Tara. He picks her up after school, helps with homework, and is there for the occasional emergency room visit. But then Jack is informed his work visa will not be renewed. Desperate to stay he marries his lesbian friend, Ali. The ruse does not last as they feel pressure from immigration, as well as Jack’s growing relationship with Mano, a very sexy Spaniard.

7:30 p.m.

 

“Naked As We Came”

Director: Richard LeMay

After an unexpected phone call, Laura and her brother Elliot rush to their family’s country estate to find their mother, Lilly, gravely ill and living with a handsome young stranger named Ted. Their mother’s condition sets Laura and Elliot on a path to realizing where their own lives have gone wrong. Love, loss and hope are all explored in this powerful drama, which asks the question: What is your dream?

DIRECTOR: Richard LeMay & ACTRESS: Karmine Alers to attend screening

*Preceded by the short film “More Or Less”

9:30 p.m.

 

“Elliot Loves”

Director: Terracino

“Elliot Loves” is the story of Dominican-American Elliot Ayende at two stages of his life: as a nine-year-old who is side-kick and confidant to his barely-keeping-it-together single mom; and as a 21-year-old looking for love in all the wrong places in New York City. A comedy-drama that shows you can survive anything life throws at you – just “keep it cute, papi.”

DIRECTOR: Terracino to attend film screening

*Preceded by the short film “The Performance of Drowning”

10:00 p.m.

 

Sunday, October 7^th, 2012

“I Stand Corrected”

Director: Andrea Meyerson

Over the course of more than two decades, John Leitham built a successful career as a jazz musician. Working in an overtly homophobic industry, he led a fractured life knowing that deep down, he wasn’t John, he was Jennifer. After being served divorce papers, John started hormone therapy to reassign his sexuality from John to Jennifer. This documentary chronicles the transition that John made into Jennifer and the risks that she took to actualize her female identity and maintain her status as a top musician.

DIRECTOR: Andrea Meyerson & SUBJECT: Jennifer Leitham to attend film screening

*Preceded by the short film “Mila Caos”

3:00 p.m.

 

“What Men Want: Men’s Shorts”

Cupcake; The One That Got Away; Strangers; I Don’t Want To Go Back Alone; The Night Shift.

From the mystery of two Strangers traveling up a dark road in Sweden, to the sweet Brazilian tale of friends discovering who they are in “I Don’t Want To Go Back Alone,” to the bittersweet memory of love in the Canadian “The One That Got Away,” to the bawdy musical Australian romp in “Cupcake,” to the Spanish horror of what goes bump in the night during “The Night Shift,” and finally the funny Argentine tale of one man that can’t let go and another that can’t get out of his apartment in “Las Llaves.” The Men’s Shorts program is both a world and genre tour de force.

*Preceded by the short film “The Performance of Drowning”

3:30 p.m.

 

“Let My People Go!”

Director: Mikael Buch

French & Finnish with English Subtitles

This is a quirky comedy about Ruben, a French Jewish postman who flees his life in a candy-colored Finland with his partner Teemu after “discovering” a bag full of Euros. Back in France, Ruben must deal with his hotheaded brother, smothering mother, lusting older attorney, Gentile brother-in-law, and a chasing Teemu, all while trying to figure out what to do with all the money.

*Preceded by the short film “The One That Got Away”

5:30 p.m

 

“UNFIT: Ward vs. Ward”

Director: Katie Carmichael, Edwin Scharlau, Penny Edmiston

“I believe that this child should be given the opportunity and the option to live in a non-lesbian world…” Judge, Pensacola, FL 1995. Unfit: Ward vs. Ward is about a custody case that answers the question, who is more fit to raise a child? A convicted killer or a lesbian? This is the story of Mary Ward, and the fight for her daughter.

Directors: Katie Carmichael and Edwin Scharlau to attend screening.

6:00 p.m.

 

CLOSING NIGHT FILM

“Bear City 2: The Proposal”

Director: Douglas Langway

Look out P-Town, the bears are coming! Bear Roger and his twink boyfriend Tyler are getting married and they decide to hold their nuptials in Provincetown … during Bear Week. With their bevy of bear and cub wedding party in tow, Roger and Tyler head to a charming B&B owned by Kathy Nijimy where hard-partying, bare bears and titillating temptations threaten the “I do’s.” Let the fur fly!

DIRECTOR: Douglas Langway and ACTOR: Gerald McCullough to attend film screening

8:00 p.m.