Guest Directors from Vancouver and Around the World
The Opening Gala of the Vancouver Queer Film Festival on Thursday, August 15. One of the most sought after invitations of the Summer, the Opening Gala film at the Vancouver Playhouse will be followed by a party outdoors on the šxʷƛ̓exən Xwtl’a7shn (Queen Elizabeth Theatre Plaza) on the corner of Georgia and Hamilton Street. The opening film will be Leon Le’s Song Lang (U.S.A./Vietnam), a richly imagined love story set in the dreamy, faded beauty of a Vietnamese opera house in the 1980’s Saigon. This award-winning film features Vietnamese pop star, Isaac, in the leading role and is both a stunning visual tribute to the golden age of Cải Lương, and to the sweet cautious stirrings of budding desire that scales to operatic heights.
“The biggest highlight in the Queer calendar is our Opening Gala’s A Night At The Opera,” said Out On Screen Executive Director, Stephanie Goodwin. “Dress in your opera best for a stunningly beautiful film and then party the night away with 500 of your best friends.”
“We’re honoured to be hosting so many incredible visiting artists whose work will surely inspire audiences. No matter your interests in genre, aesthetic or story, you’ll find a film you’re sure to love, expand your horizons and challenge your worldviews,” Artistic Director Anoushka Ratnarajah.
There will be several international and local artists, performers, and filmmakers attending the VQFF, such as: Phillip Pike, director of Our Dance of Revolution (Canada), a remarkable chronicle and celebration of Toronto’s Black queer community history; and director Flavio Alves and lead actress Carlie Guevara for the feature film, The Garden Left Behind (USA), which follows Tina, a young Mexican trans woman living in New York, as she navigates an upcoming medical transition while struggling to survive as undocumented immigrant.
There are also many free events to enjoy at the Vancouver Queer Film Festival: The archival film Toni, Randi and Marie (Canada), directed by Ron Hallis, and a unique cinéma-vérité trilogy about the everyday lives of the eponymous female impersonator cabaret star, trans hustler, and female sex worker; in the Queer the CBC Workshop, the VQFF and CBC will host a discussion panel on the role of a national broadcaster in the creation and dissemination of LGBT2Q+ content–learn how to get your content noticed by a major television network; Portland’s premier drag clown Carla Rossi (with support from Anthony Hudson), present Welcome to Clown Town, a look at drag’s many varieties, houses, and legendary artists, from from Two-Spirits, to the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, Elvira, and RuPaul. The full list of engaging, free events are available at www.queerfilmfestival.ca
The 11-day festival is the largest queer arts event in Western Canada and the second-largest film festival in Vancouver. With more than 100 films from 27 countries, the Festival will run from August 15 to 25, 2019 at the Cineplex Odeon International Village Cinemas, SFU’s Goldcorp Centre for the Arts, the York Theatre, VIFF Vancity Theatre, and the Vancouver Playhouse. The Vancouver Queer Film Festival celebrates the best in independent queer cinema and facilitates a unique community space through a variety of performances, panels and workshops.
Full ticketing details, including pricing, can be found at www.queerfilmfestival.ca/tickets.
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