VANCOUVER, August 8, 2023 – The Vancouver Queer Film Festival (VQFF) is delighted to welcome over 35 directors, stars, writers and producers to Vancouver from August 10-20. Guests slated to attend the 35th edition of the Festival represent 29 of the films showcased and will participate in Q&As following each in-person screening. Tickets can be purchased at www.queerfilmfestival.ca.

“For our 35th anniversary, we are hosting more visiting artists than ever. I’m thrilled that we can provide space for many international and local queer filmmakers to make meaningful connections and network,” said Charlie Hidalgo, Artistic Director, Out on Screen. “2SLGBTQIA+ film festivals are a hub for community strengthening and much-needed collaboration.”

VQFF will award 2SLGBTQIA+ filmmakers $52,500 CAD in cash, in-kind prizes, and play encore screenings of the winning films on August 20. $30,000 CAD in cash and prizes will be distributed amongst the Audience Choice Award winners for Best Canadian Feature, Best Canadian Short, Best International Feature and Best International Short.

The jury for the inaugural RBC Narrative Change Award with a $5,000 CAD cash prize include acclaimed film producer and Director of Transgender Representation at GLAAD, Alex Schmider; award-winning journalist and media personality Shar Jossell; and Firelight Media’s Documentary Lab Director, Lucy J. Mukerjee.

The jurors for the 2023 Gerry Brunet Memorial Award: Best British Columbia Short, with a $2,500 CAD cash prize sponsored by the Directors Guild of Canada, BC plus a $15,000 CAD camera package from Keslow Camera are; visiting feature filmmakers V.T. Nayani (THIS PLACE), Twiggy Pucci Garçon (MnM) and Gabe Gabriel (RUNS IN THE FAMILY).

On Monday, August 14, VQFF is proud to host a series of three online industry panels centered on the past, present and future of 2SLGBTQIA+ storytelling.

A Present History of LGBTQ Storytelling will feature a panel of LGBTQ experts from GLAAD, including; Alex Schmider, Megan Townsend, Monica Trasandes, Nick Adams, and Tre’vell Anderson, award-winning journalist and author of We See Each Other: A Black Trans Journey Through Film and TV. They will reflect on the progress they’ve witnessed in LGBTQ storytelling and how they’re pushing the future of LGBTQ storytelling forward.

Cultural Strategy and Narrative Change will see a conversation with cultural strategist Sonya Childress, Co-founder of Color Congress; Tre’vell Anderson, author of We See Each Other: A Black, Trans Journey Through TV and Film; and film strategist Asad Muhammad, the Vice President of Impact and Engagement Strategy at POV. This powerhouse trio will walk the audience through practical ways that storytellers can use their work to transform how 2SLGBTQIA+ people are seen and understood.

Positionality/Authentic Authorship and Stereotype will feature Rico Johnson-Sinclair, Director of the Anti-Racist Taskforce for European Film and Gian Franco, Co-Founder and Chairman of The Stereotype Project, offering an immersive and interactive workshop on authentic authorship and positionality, designed to give 2SLGBTQIA+ filmmakers practical tools to enable authenticity both above-the-line and below-the-line.

In addition to guests from this year’s film selections, the Opening Night party at Vancouver Playhouse will feature performances from Toddy, Mermaid and Milan Garçon with music by DJ Softieshan. The party is FREE to attend with tickets to the Opening Night Presentation: Stronger Together. The Closing Night party at Vancouver Playhouse will also feature a stellar lineup of performances from Continental Breakfast, Kara Juku and Genesis, with music by DJ Bella. Entry to the party is also FREE with tickets to the Closing Presentation screening of RUNS IN THE FAMILY.

Short programmes that will feature special drag performances following the screenings include; Midnight Foreplay with a performance by Maiden China, The Coast is Queer with a performance by Mx. Bukuru, and Slay 4 Me, which will see live performances by Bongganisa and Juan Alcuitas-Imperial. The screening of the feature documentary QUEENDOM (France) will also treat its audience to a special drag performance by Vixen Von Flex!

Special guests attending the 2023 Vancouver Queer Film Festival by film:

1946: THE MISTRANSLATION THAT SHIFTED CULTURE (USA) Sharon “Rocky” Roggio (Director) Jena Serbu (Producer) A QUEER’S GUIDE TO SPIRITUAL LIVING (Canada) Ari Conrad Birch (Director/Co-Writer) Michal Heuston (Director/Co-Writer) AC UNIT (USA) Grace Godvin (Director) Drew Anderson (Actor/Co-Writer) Hilton Dresden (Actor/Co-Writer) AND THEY WERE LOVED (USA) Malik Julien (Director) APARTMENT 605 (USA) Bianca Catbagan (Director) BEFORE I CHANGE MY MIND (Canada) Trevor Anderson (Director/Co-Writer) BITTERSWEET BECOMING (Canada) Polina Teif (Director) Karla Rae James (Documentary Protagonist, Co-Writer) D. Morrison (Composer, Sound Recordist) DOTTING THE “I” (USA) Doug Tompos (Director/Writer) E.S.S. SCENES (Canada) Romi Kim (Director) EGGHEAD & TWINKIE (USA) Sarah Kambe Holland (Director/Writer) GEN (UK) Vivian Barton (Director/Producer) GORDITX (USA) Malik Ever (Director) GROCERY LIST (USA) Joanne Mony Park (Director/Writer) HOOK UP (Canada) Coby Friesen (Director) Kathleen Gallagher (Producer) I LOVE YOU MORE (Kosovo/Albania) Erblin Nushi (Director/Writer) Don Shala (Actor, Producer)

MnM (USA) Twiggy Pucci Garçon (Director) Mermaid Garçon (Documentary Protagonist) Milan Garçon (Documentary Protagonist) MOONCAKE (USA) Rraine Hanson (Director/Co-Writer) ONE BABY, PLEASE! (Canada) Polly Pierce (Director) Adrian Neblett (Producer, Actor) POLYWOOD (USA) Alessio Mineo (Director) PSYCHO BABY (USA) Charlotte Kennett (Director/Writer) Savannah Summers (Actor) Nikki Javadi (Producer) RETURN TO OMBABIKA (Canada) Ma-Nee Chacaby (Director) RUNS IN THE FAMILY (South Africa) Gabe Gabriel (Actor/Writer) STAY (Canada) King Louie Palomo (Director) TABANCA (Canada) Lauren Marsden (Director/Writer) TERROR/FORMING (Canada) Rylan Friday (Director/Writer) THE MATTACHINE FAMILY (USA) Andy Vallentine (Director/Co-Writer) THE WALL (USA) Valeska Miller (Director/Writer) THIS PLACE (Canada) V.T. Nayani (Director/Co-Writer) THREE TIDY TIGERS TIED A TIE TIGHTER (Brazil) Gustavo Vinagre (Director/Writer) THRIVING: A DISSOCIATED REVERIE (Canada) Kitoko Mai (Actor/Writer/Producer) TWIN SPARKS (USA) Ollie Yao (Director) YAHA WAHA (UK) Sarah Li (Director)

Festival images and press materials can be downloaded here.

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Media Contact
Laura Steen
Route 504 PR
laura@route504pr.com

About Out On Screen
Out On Screen is a charitable organization that illuminates, celebrates, and advances queer lives through film, education, and dialogue. The Vancouver Queer Film Festival creates a dynamic platform for queer cinema that reflects a diversity of experiences while connecting and strengthening our communities. The award-winning Out In Schools program brings age-appropriate queer cinema into school classrooms to combat homophobia, transphobia, and bullying, and to provide the language and tools for inclusion. Out On Screen is proud to be among the leaders in Canada working to create an equitable society where sexual and gender diversity are embraced. www.outonscreen.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/queerfilmfest
Facebook: www.facebook.com/VancouverQFF
Twitter: www.twitter.com/queerfilmfest
#VQFF2023

Unveils More than 90 Films From 27 Countries

VANCOUVER, July 12, 2023 – The Vancouver Queer Film Festival (VQFF) has announced the complete lineup for its 35th anniversary. From August 10-20, audiences can catch 92 films from 27 countries, with 24 features, 68 shorts, 10 World Premieres, 10 North American/International Premieres and 31 Canadian Premieres among the selections. In addition to in-person and BC province-wide digital screenings, the Festival will feature performances by 2SLGBTQIA+ local artists, post-screening Q&As with filmmakers, industry workshops, and encore screenings of the festival favourites on August 20. 

This year, VQFF’s lineup exclusively showcases films by 2SLGBTQIA+ storytellers. “Our programming team used authentic and positive representation as our north star,” said Charlie Hidalgo, Artistic Director, Out On Screen. “The media we consume shapes the cultural narrative about our communities and profoundly influences our emotional, political, and social landscapes. We embraced stories celebrating our freedom, joy and expansiveness, and are proud to present an empowering lineup that is a testament to the extraordinary visions of 2SLGBTQIA+ creators.”

VQFF is pleased to announce its continued partnership with Lead Partner RBC Royal Bank. “At RBC, we are proud supporters of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community and are thrilled to sponsor the Vancouver Queer Film Festival once again,” says Martin Thibodeau, Regional President, British Columbia, RBC Royal Bank. “Through spotlighting stories that celebrate and champion diverse voices, we have seen and felt the impact it has within our local communities.” With the support of RBC Royal Bank, this year VQFF is launching the Narrative Change Award, with a $5,000 CAD cash prize that will honour a storyteller who uses the power of cultural strategy to overturn outdated narratives, inspire change and expand the audience’s perception of 2SLGBTQIA+ identities in their work.

Embracing the essence of solidarity within the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, in a festival first, VQFF’s Opening Presentation: Stronger Together will feature six remarkable short films celebrating the community’s rich and multifaceted experiences. Comprised of five Canadian Premieres and the winner of Sundance’s 2023 Best Short Film Award, the program includes director Doug Tompos’ DOTTING THE “I” (USA), which sees ​​a modern-day Cyrano and a mid-life cynic embark on a profound exploration of lost love; Sundance Best Short Film Award winner THRIVING: A DISSOCIATED REVERIE (Canada), a comedy inspired by the lived experience of Black, non-binary, disabled artist and former sex worker Kitoko Mai; and Grace Godvin’s AC UNIT (USA), in which a Jewish queer man attempts to help their stylish trans femme friend install an air conditioner. 

The Opening Presentation also includes director Twiggy Pucci Garçon’s documentary short MNM (USA), which follows two chosen siblings making their runway ballroom debut; Joanne Mony Park’s GROCERY LIST (USA) sees issues big and small surface when a queer couple just wants to go grocery shopping; and director Abel Rubinstein’s MARS (United Kingdom), a frank, fearless, and funny love song to trans youth created by award-winning music artist, Yungblud. Following the films, the Vancouver Playhouse will host the first party of the festival with DJs, performers, a dance floor and more – which will be FREE to attend with tickets to the Opening Presentation screening.  

VQFF is thrilled to announce that this year’s Closing Presentation will be the British Columbia Premiere of director Ian Gabriel’s RUNS IN THE FAMILY (South Africa). A love letter to trans and drag communities, it follows a father, Varun, and his son River, a trans drag performer, as they attempt a road trip across South Africa to break River’s estranged mother out of rehab. The film is a real-life family collaboration by Ian Gabriel and his son Gabe, who wrote and stars in the film. The Closing Night Party will be hosted at the Vancouver Playhouse post-screening, FREE to those with tickets to the Closing Presentation.

“We are honoured and thrilled to have been invited to close VQFF this year. RUNS IN THE FAMILY is, first and foremost, a gift of hope, love, family support, and self-celebration for the queers, so closing a proudly queer festival far across the globe from where this story originates means the world to us. It proves that our family, our community, our reach is expansive, and we hope for our quirky, heartfelt father-trans son drag road trip story to wrap its arms around everyone who sees any part of themselves in it,” says Gabe Gabriel, writer/star, RUNS IN THE FAMILY. 

The 2023 Centrepiece Presentation will be the Canadian Premiere of director Sharon “Rocky” Roggio’s astonishing documentary 1946: THE MISTRANSLATION THAT SHIFTED CULTURE (USA), which won the 2022 Audience Award at DOC NYC and quickly became the most-viewed film in the festival’s history. With new revelations that cast significant doubt on any biblical basis for queer and trans prejudice, Roggio’s fascinating film traces the origins of the Christian anti-gay movement back to 1946, when a dangerous mistranslation resulted in the first appearance of the word “homosexual” in the Bible. 

Notable titles in the features lineup include the British Columbia Premieres of the crowd-pleasing BIG BOYS (USA), director Corey Sherman‘s witty and warm-hearted coming-of-age tale; director Trevor Anderson’s joy-filled BEFORE I CHANGE MY MIND (Canada) that follows a nonbinary newcomer at school who forms an unexpected friendship with the school bully; director Olivier Peyon’s beautiful film LIE WITH ME (ARRÊTE AVEC TES MENSONGES) (France) that captures central themes of love and enduring heartache, IT’S ONLY LIFE AFTER ALL (USA), director Alexandria Bombach’s documentary on pioneering queer icons and tireless political activists, the Indigo Girls, and Cláudia Varejão’s stunning WOLF AND DOG (LOBO E CÃO) (Portugal/France) which skillfully converts intolerance into a nurturing sense of community spirit.

Other festival feature highlights include the British Columbia Premiere of Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren’s striking debut 20,000 SPECIES OF BEES (Spain), set throughout one pivotal summer, as an eight-year-old transgender girl explores her identity alongside the women of her family in the Basque Country. The International Premieres of THE MATTACHINE FAMILY (USA), director Andrew Vallentine’s look at the complexities of queer parenthood starring Nico Tortorella, Juan Pablo Di Pace and Emily Hampshire; and THREE HEADED BEAST (USA), directed by Fernando Andrés and Tyler Rugh, a rare window into the life of a bisexual couple in an open relationship as they navigate how to include a third. The Canadian Premiere of CLASHING DIFFERENCES (Germany), directed by Merle Grimme, is a punchy, darkly funny, and caustically subversive film that looks candidly at issues including tokenism and colourism.

The intergenerational film project Troublemakers returns to the big screen for its seventh year. Reel Youth, Out On Screen and LOVE Intersections will present five new films by youth filmmakers documenting the lives of local lesbian, gay, queer, trans and nonbinary community members who inspire through art and advocacy. Preceding Troublemakers, the award-winning Out In Schools program, will present an abridged version of their Beyond Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) presentation. Exploring the importance and impact of positive 2SLGBTQIA+ representation, the presentation will showcase two new films in the Out In Schools film catalogue.

Curated Shorts Programs will include a melody of episodic pilots in Fresh Starts; a return of the homegrown talent showcase The Coast is Queer; a spine-tingling journey of seductive and thrilling tales in Midnight Foreplay; and Slay 4 Me, which explores the ballroom and drag communities, featuring live performances and a talk on queer performance practices following the films. The full list of Shorts Programs can be found here. 

The 2023 Festival programme was curated by VQFF Artistic Director Charlie Hidalgo; Festival Programmers Sarah-Tai Black and Rico Johnson-Sinclair; 2023 VQFF Programming Disruptor Fellowship recipients Eva Grant, Jasmine “Audder” Monton, and Romi Kim, made possible through the generous support of Telefilm Canada, Warner Bros Discovery Access Canada and The British Columbia Arts Council; and Guest Programmer Simone Ling.

For ticketing details, including sliding scale pricing beginning at just $5, the complete Festival lineup, screening dates and times, please visit www.queerfilmfestival.ca.

Festival images and the full Festival programme can be downloaded here. 

The VQFF would also like to thank its generous partners for their support, including lead partner RBC Royal Bank, premiere partners Canada Media Fund, Rogers, Warner Bros. Discovery Access Canada and Telefilm Canada, signature partner Twin Sails Brewing, screening partners UBCP/ACTRA, Downtown Vancouver Business Improvement Association, Herschel Supply Company and the Canadian Media Producers Association, festival funders Canada Council For the Arts, Government of Canada, City of Vancouver, Creative BC, The Province of British Columbia and British Columbia Arts Council, cultural partner SFU Woodward’s, exclusive technical partner 24 Frames Digital Films, transportation partner Modo, exclusive media partner CBC Vancouver, advertising partner Western Media Group and festival supporters bed, Vancouver Civic Theatres, MT+Co, IATSE Local 891, Gayvan.com, James Goodman, Black Screen Office and ACFC West, Local 2020 Unifor. 

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Media Contact
Laura Steen
Route 504 PR
laura@route504pr.com 

About Out On Screen

Out On Screen is a charitable organization that illuminates, celebrates, and advances queer lives through film, education, and dialogue. The Vancouver Queer Film Festival creates a dynamic platform for queer cinema that reflects a diversity of experiences while connecting and strengthening our communities. The award-winning Out In Schools program brings age-appropriate queer cinema into school classrooms to combat homophobia, transphobia, and bullying, and to provide the language and tools for inclusion. Out On Screen is proud to be among the leaders in Canada working to create an equitable society where sexual and gender diversity are embraced. www.outonscreen.com 

Instagram: www.instagram.com/queerfilmfest
Facebook: www.facebook.com/VancouverQFF
Twitter: www.twitter.com/queerfilmfest
#VQFF2023

VQFF’s new training and mentorship program for BIPOC and 2SLGBTQIA+ film programmers welcome the 2023 cohort.

VANCOUVER – Out On Screen and the Vancouver Queer Film Festival are delighted to announce that Eva Grant, Romi Kim, and Jasmine Monton are the inaugural recipients of the VQFF Programming Disruptor Fellowship, a new training and mentorship program for emerging BIPOC, 2SLGBTQIA+ film programmers. 

Led by Out On Screen’s new Artistic Director, Charlie Hidalgo (he/him), the Disruptor Fellowship program seeks to catalyze transformative change in the Canadian film industry and shepherd new talent into a field in critical need of diversification.

“The talent and vision of this group are astounding,” says Artistic Director Charlie Hidalgo. “Each brings a unique lens and robust creative practice to the program, ranging from film, performance, music, cultural programming, and community development. I couldn’t be more excited to collaborate with this brilliant team in the curation of the 35th anniversary of the Vancouver Queer Film Festival.”

The 2023 Disruptor Fellows were selected from a pool of 54 applicants. Each Fellow will receive at least $10,000 throughout the fellowship which will run from February to August. Spanning five phases, the Fellowship program combines masterclasses, workshops, and hands-on experience. Speakers will include Emmy, Peabody, and Critics Choice Award-nominated film producer Alex Schmider (Changing the Game, DISCLOSURE, Framing Agnes) and renowned LGBTQ+ media advocacy organization GLAAD. 

“This program is designed to provide participants with a practical toolkit and robust ethical framework that will enable them to approach their curatorial practice in a restorative and impactful way, centering accountability, integrity, and community care,” added Hidalgo. “Over the coming years, we hope the graduates of this program become a force of transformative change in the Canadian film industry.”

The Fellowship program will culminate in the 35th annual Vancouver Queer Film Festival, an 11-day festival taking place in-person and online August 10-20, 2023. The Disruptor Fellows will be credited as Festival Programmers for their contributions in curating films and events for VQFF.

This year’s Festival programming team will also welcome Sarah-Tai Black (they/them) as Festival and Industry Programmer. Sarah-Tai is a film programmer and arts curator who works to center embodied Black, queer, trans, and crip futurities. They are interested in spaces and moments that inspire immediate, all-encompassing feeling, speak back to conventional ways of seeing and being seen, and experiment with presupposed boundaries of form and narrative.

The 2023 Programming Disruptor Fellows

Eva Grant (she/her) is a bilingual filmmaker operating at the intersection of queer and BIPOC storytelling, and the founder of Tooth & Nail Pictures.  She is the creator of the dark comedy web series Degrees of Separation, a guest director on Couleurs du Nord, and in pre-production on her short film as an ImagineNATIVE Screenwriting Shorts Fellow. The CMF, IPF, BIPOC TV and Film, ISO, RWSI, BANFF Spark, and AGO have supported her work. Eva is a graduate of Stanford University, where she studied literature and philosophy. Her work is influenced by fantasy, futurism, mythology, death, love, and her mixed St’at’imc Indigenous, South and West Asian, and European heritage.

김새로미 Romi Kim (they/them), also known as SKIM in drag, is a genderfluid, second-generation Korean lesbian. Kim is an interdisciplinary artist that works in video, performance, installation, and photography. Their work has been exhibited in South Korea, the United Kingdom, and Canada, most recently at SUM Gallery and Polygon Art Gallery in Vancouver. They have performed internationally in South Korea, Vietnam, Berlin, San Francisco and Vancouver (Cultch Theatre, Upintheair Theatre, and Transform Cabaret Festival). SKIM is also a co-producer of the all-drag king and thing show Magic Dykes.

Jasmine Monton (they/she), who also goes by the stage name Audder, is an artist of multiple genres and multiple feelings. They are a self-defined “gate-reaper”, combating industry gatekeeping and growing healthy arts leadership. Jasmine values storytelling that brings dignity, depth, and wonder to the queer community. Once acknowledged at a film festival as “the overly enthusiastic volunteer”, they believe film and media are powerful sources of connection to personal identity and each other. Jasmine’s background is in community outreach, youth mentorship, event coordination, and music. They are co-producer of the Filipino Fridays Podcast.

About Out On Screen

Out On Screen is a charitable organization that illuminates, celebrates, and advances queer lives through film, education, and dialogue. The Vancouver Queer Film Festival creates a dynamic platform for queer cinema that reflects a diversity of experiences while connecting and strengthening our communities. The award-winning Out In Schools program brings age-appropriate queer cinema into school classrooms to combat homophobia, transphobia, and bullying, and to provide the language and tools for inclusion. Out On Screen is proud to be among the leaders in Canada working to create an equitable society where sexual and gender diversity are embraced. www.outonscreen.com 

For further information and interview requests, please contact:
media@outonscreen.com
604-844-1615

Deadline for applications is January 13, 2023. 

Vancouver – December 13, 2022

Out On Screen is proud to announce the inaugural Programming Disruptor Fellowship, a game-changing training and mentorship initiative for emerging BIPOC 2SLGBTQIA+ film curators.  Led by Out On Screen’s new Artistic Director, Charlie Hidalgo, this Fellowship aims to be a catalyst for transformative change in the Canadian film industry, shepherding new talent into a field that is in critical need of diversification, in order to further the dignity, liberty, and justice of BIPOC and 2SLGBTQIA+ identities. 

Through the fellowship, three emerging film programmers who identify as BIPOC 2SLGBTQIA+ will receive $10,000 and the opportunity to be an integral part of the curation of the Vancouver Queer Film Festival 2023. Compensation is based on an hourly wage of $24.08/hour + 4% vacation and wellness and networking funds. Selected Fellows will be credited as Festival Programmers, and by the end of the program will have acquired a practical toolkit and a robust ethical framework that will enable them to approach their curatorial practice in a restorative and impactful way, centreing accountability, integrity and community care. 

“Film festival programmers are uniquely positioned to transform worldviews,” said Charlie Hidalgo. “The choices that curators make define whose voices are heard, whose narratives are seen, and what communities are celebrated. Historically, the pool of film programmers have been predominantly male-dominated, cisgender, straight, white, and middle-class, so stories that don’t feel ‘mainstream’ get pushed to the margins. This Fellowship will empower BIPOC 2SLGBTQIA+ curators to give a platform to the voices that are questioning systems of oppression and reshaping our culture.”

Applications are open until January 13. The call is open to programmers across Canada. Applicants must be available to attend virtual masterclasses, workshops and programming meetings, from February to July, and will be expected to attend the Vancouver Queer Film Festival in person, from August 10-20, 2023. Applications will be accepted though the Out On Screen web portal. For additional information, please click here.

Submissions to the 35th Annual Vancouver Queer Film Festival (August 10-20, 2023) are NOW OPEN!

Each August, WE SHOWCASE 11 days of outstanding cinema, live performances, community-building events, and great parties, all in the environment of beautiful mountain and ocean views.

WE PAY screening fees for all selected work. WE SEEK content in all genres, specifically stories that center on 2SLGBTQIA+ protagonists, overturn stereotypes, push boundaries, strive for change, arouse and tantalize, and above all, highlight the tremendous diversity of queer, trans, and Two Spirit people, artists, and communities.

Along with the arrival of Artistic Director, Charlie Hidalgo, also NEW THIS YEAR:

THE NARRATIVE CHANGE AWARD

This cash prize will be determined by a jury, and will honor a storyteller who uses the power of cultural strategy to overturn outdated narratives, inspire change, and expand the audience’s perception of 2SLGBTQIA+ identities in their work. 

EPISODIC CONTENT WELCOME!

Episodic content created for television or web is now also welcomed. 

Single episodes and full series can be submitted, but the content must not have aired yet or be available for free online.

ENTRY FEES

In order to ensure that all submissions are evaluated and that all programmers are paid a living wage, we have started charging an entry fee. However, we do offer waivers to BIPOC artists and other underrepresented identities and regions.  If cost is a barrier, please email us to submissions@outonscreen.com. The VQFF Programming team can’t wait to watch your work!

Gold members of FilmFreeway get a 25% discount on all fees.

We are excited to welcome Charlie Hidalgo (he/him) to the Out On Screen team as our new permanent Artistic Director starting September 26, 2022!

Charlie Hidalgo is a Colombian-Canadian film curator, trans media consultant, filmmaker, and a graduate of the Canadian Film Centre’s Producer Lab. He is committed to combatting the erasure of 2SLGBTQIA+ BIPOC identities in the media by curating and creating stories that question culture and empower queer and trans BIPOC communities. His work has screened at TIFF, SXSW, Slamdance, BFI, VIFF, Inside Out, Outfest, and NewFest Film Festivals. He has programmed for Urbanworld, Slamdance, Cucalorus, Tribeca, Inside Out, Outfest, NewFest, and Athena Film Festivals.

“I’m honoured to join Out On Screen as the Artistic Director. I look forward to collaborating with the team to curate an unforgettable 35th anniversary Vancouver Queer Film Festival, and to expand the dynamic, inclusive, and impactful programming for our communities.” – Charlie Hidalgo, Artistic Director

“I am very excited for Charlie to join our team at this pivotal moment for Out On Screen and for the arts sector in general. More than ever are we in need of strong and uplifting artistic visions, and I know Charlie is up for the task. I hope you’ll welcome him warmly to Vancouver!” – Brandon Yan, Executive Director

Spotlights shine a little extra light on films and programs we think you should check out!

The Vancouver Queer Film Festival is online & in-person from AUG 11 – 21, 2022

11 DAYS, 97 FILMS FROM 20+ COUNTRIES

JUST ANNOUNCED: MOTORBIKE/SUPERDYKE EXHIBIT

Tickets start at just $5 at www.queerfilmfestival.ca  #VQFF2022

FREE EVENTS!

VANCOUVER – Out On Screen is excited to bring back the Opening Gala of the Vancouver Queer Film Festival (VQFF), presented by RBC, on Thursday, Aug. 11. The Opening Gala film The Empress of Vancouver, an ode to local drag icon Oliv Howe by local filmmaker Dave Rodden-Shortt, is screening at the Vancouver Playhouse and will be followed by a fabulous queer royalty-themed Opening Night Party at šxwƛ̓exən Xwtl’a7shn Plaza (Queen Elizabeth Theatre Plaza). 

The 11-day festival, with the theme “Make It Yours,” will feature 97 films from more than 20 countries, along with post-screening Q-and-A’s with filmmakers, local performing artists, and industry and community workshops. 

Purchase all-access festival passes, digital-only passes, or individual tickets at queerfilmfestival.ca. Browse the full program online or in the PDF of the print Festival guide. 

“Out On Screen is finally returning to the big screen with its first in-person celebrations in years. We’ve all been working so hard on it, and it’s finally happening. I cannot wait for you to relish with film and party goers, while exploring all of the local and international films, programs, and workshops we carefully brought together for the 34th annual film festival,” says executive director Brandon Yan.

In keeping with the “Make It Yours” theme, the festival has also added the MOTORBIKE/SUPERDYKE exhibit, Aug. 16-20, co-presented by Sum Gallery, comprised of VQFF alumni artists. The opening party is Saturday, Aug. 13 at  Sum Gallery.

“We have artists Cheryl Hamilton and lisa g showcasing a collaborative multimedia installation about coming out and navigating through queer stereotypes,” says Yan. “The exhibit will include illustrations, prints, an animated film and zines, which was the medium inspiration for this year’s festival guide.”

Festival goers can expect a jam-packed opening weekend at VIFF Centre with workshops like Queer Collective: VQFF Programmers Talk (Aug. 13), which explores how participation and interconnectivity in queer film and arts practices can create a more inclusive arts community. The panel is free with a $5 VQFF membership. 

Our film offerings include:

Making his directorial debut, J.E. Tiglao has created the first Filipinx narrative feature with an intersex main character. The groundbreaking drama Metamorphosis tells the story of 15 year-old Adam who finds out he is intersex after getting his first period. The in-person screening on Aug. 14 is open exclusively to self-identified QTBIPOC with special consideration to Filipinx people, and is followed by a conversation with festival programmer jas calcitas and members of Vancouver Pinoy Pride Society. 

Obsidian: Black Queer Cinema, Aug. 14 at VIFF Centre and online, returns with a collection of shorts guest curated by Mahlet Cuff titled AS I AM. AS I AM explores the joys and challenges of navigating the unique experience of being Black and queer and will be followed by a pre-recorded Q-and-A with Mahlet Cuff, Ayo Tsalithaba, and Dr. Kwame McKenzie. 

The Youth Gala film, Being Thunder, Aug. 16 at The Cinematheque and online is an intimate documentary following Sherenté Harris, a Two Spirit teenager as s/he comes of age. This film was a four-year collaboration between director Stéphanie Lamorré, Sherenté, and their family. It is a story of colonial resistance, Two Spirit leadership, and the power of young people.

Local documentary Emergence: Out of the Shadows, Aug. 19 at The York Theatre and online, follows the journeys of Kayden, Jag, and Amar, as they navigate disparate experiences surfacing their queer identities within conservative South Asian families. A Q&A with the cast and crew follows.

All Boys Aren’t Blue, Aug. 19 at The York Theatre, is based on George M. Johnson’s critically acclaimed memoir of the same title. Reflecting Johnson’s experiences as Black masc and non-binary, the film explores themes of Black queerness, queer identity assumptions, cultural normativity, and HIV/ AIDS in the Black community. This screening features an interdisciplinary program with live poetry performance. 

For ticket information and the complete in-person and online festival schedule, please visit www.queerfilmfestival.ca.

For interview requests and additional images, contact Michael Ianni at michael@praid.ca

Social media platforms:

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/queerfilmfest

Facebook: www.facebook.com/VancouverQFF 

Twitter: www.twitter.com/queerfilmfest 

#VQFF2022

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Media Contact

Michael Ianni | Festival Publicist | michael@praid.ca | 604.345.7689

About Out On Screen

Out On Screen is a charitable organization that illuminates, celebrates, and advances queer lives through film, education, and dialogue. The Vancouver Queer Film Festival creates a dynamic platform for queer cinema that reflects a diversity of experiences while connecting and strengthening our communities. The award-winning Out In Schools program brings age-appropriate queer cinema into school classrooms to combat homophobia, transphobia, and bullying, and to provide the language and tools for inclusion. Out On Screen is proud to be among the leaders in Canada working to create an equitable society where sexual and gender diversity are embraced. www.outonscreen.com 

MEDIA RELEASE

July 12, 2022

2022 LINEUP FOR VANCOUVER QUEER FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCED

FULL FESTIVAL PROGRAMME GUIDE RELEASED

ALONGSIDE MORE THAN 90 FILMS

FESTIVAL PASSES AND TICKETS AVAILABLE NOW AT WWW.QUEERFILMFESTIVAL.CA

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VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Queer Film Festival (VQFF) released today its complete lineup for the 11-day online and in-person film festival taking place August 11–21, which includes the best in queer film from local and international artists. 97 films from 20 countries are featured at this 34th Festival presented by RBC, along with in-person celebrations featuring local performing artists, post-screening Q&As with filmmakers, and industry and community workshops. Purchase all-access Festival Passes, online-only Digital Passes, or individual tickets at queerfilmfestival.ca. Browse the full programme online or in the PDF of the print Festival guide. 

“In the early days of Out On Screen, the act of 2SLGBTQIA+ people unapologetically taking up physical space and putting our films on the big screen was revolutionary. This year’s theme “Make It Yours” is not just an echo of the DIY spirit this Festival was founded upon, but also a roar for our collective future. Our shared experiences and collective dreams are returning to our screens—big and small—again in this year’s wonderful program. I hope you find something you need in these beautiful films.” – Executive Director, Brandon Yan.

The Festival’s Opening Gala screening is the local premiere of Dave Rodden-Shortt’s feature documentary The Empress of Vancouver, an ode to local drag icon Oliv Howe, crowned the 10th Empress of the Vancouver Dogwood Monarchist Society in 1981. In the 80s, Oliv’s punk rock energy, gender-bending performances and DIY glam aesthetic spoke to a political and artistic shift in Vancouver’s drag community. This proudly local documentary brings to light queer artistic legacies and histories that have previously been unseen. This film will be available exclusively in person on opening night, with a fabulous queer royalty-themed Opening Night Party to follow the screening.

Our local shorts program The Coast Is Queer returns for its 25th anniversary year, available in person and online. Also returning are shorts programs: Obidian: Black Queer Cinema, subtitled AS I AM, and Two Spirit and Indigiqueer Cinema, which has been expanded into two shorts programs this year, A Brave and Tender Lineage and Sovereign Bodies.

This Festival proudly presents the Canadian premiere of French film Besties (Les Meilleures), a beautifully shot coming-of-age drama about two young women from opposing groups in suburban Paris navigating womanhood and queer identity. Other prominent feature film programs include local documentary Emergence: Out of the Shadows on navigating queer identity in South Asian families; ground-breaking Filipinx drama Metamorphosis on intersex identity; the delightfully absurdist, queer body-swap comedy Homebody; our Youth Gala film Being Thunder about a Two Spirit teen of the Narragansett tribe; Afrofuturist sci-fi musical Neptune Frost; and Lebanese documentary Sirens about the first and only all-women Middle Eastern thrash metal band.

VQFF’s closing feature is Dramarama, a heartfelt comedy and instant classic about a group of graduating theatre kids in 1994 spending one last slumber party together where tensions and true identities come to light. This in-person only screening is the perfect theatre-going experience to close out the Festival.

In addition to in-person and video-on-demand screenings, VQFF will be hosting its first in-person celebrations in three years, the Opening Night Party and The Coast is Queer 25th Anniversary Celebration, and three workshops on queer arts practice and community-building: Queer Collective: VQFF Programers Talk; We’re Here We’re Queer, Let’s Activate!; and Out In Schools: Beyond SOGI.

For ticketing details, including pricing, and the complete Festival lineup, along with screening dates and times, please visit www.queerfilmfestival.ca.

For interview requests and additional images, please contact Michael Ianni at michael@praid.ca

For more information, please visit the following platforms:

Instagram: www.instagram.com/queerfilmfest 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/VancouverQFF 

Twitter: www.twitter.com/queerfilmfest 

#VQFF2022

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Media Contact

Michael Ianni | Festival Publicist | michael@praid.ca | 604.345.7689

About Out On Screen

Out On Screen is a charitable organization that illuminates, celebrates, and advances queer lives through film, education, and dialogue. The Vancouver Queer Film Festival creates a dynamic platform for queer cinema that reflects a diversity of experiences while connecting and strengthening our communities. The award-winning Out In Schools program brings age-appropriate queer cinema into school classrooms to combat homophobia, transphobia, and bullying, and to provide the language and tools for inclusion. Out On Screen is proud to be among the leaders in Canada working to create an equitable society where sexual and gender diversity are embraced. www.outonscreen.com 

MEDIA RELEASE

May 30, 2022

Vancouver Queer Film Festival Reveals Creative Theme: ‘Make It Yours’

Presented by RBC, the 34th Annual Film Festival Returns with More In-Person and Online Screenings

August 11– 21, 2022

VANCOUVER – Out On Screen is bringing back the highly anticipated Annual Vancouver Queer Film Festival (VQFF) for its 34th edition. The festival will run August 11-21 this year online and in person with a creative theme of “Make It Yours” inviting audiences to return to the political grassroots. The Festival expands a provincewide video-on-demand selection with 2-3 theatre screenings per-day in Vancouver. The Festival is also pleased to announce its continued partnership with its Presenting Sponsor RBC Royal Bank. Passes are on sale now at www.queerfilmfestival.ca with full programming and tickets for the VQFF 2022 available in July. 

The crowd favourite is celebrating its 34th year more fabulous than ever with more impactful films that raise awareness about the struggles, joys, and journeys of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. Inspired by this year’s submissions, VQFF’s programming aesthetic and curatorial vision will draw upon the fearless and fierce politics, visual style, and grassroots creativity of queer subcultures and the ‘zines that kept the communities informed and connected. Thematically, this year’s Festival shares stories told from an autobiographical perspective, leaning further into the trend of experiential and experimental filmmaking, community building, and self actualization through artistic expression. 

Commenting on this year’s theme, Artistic Director Anoushka Ratnarajah said: “‘Make It Yours’ is an invitation into empathy and a reminder of the tools and powers that are accessible to us in the fight for our personal and collective freedom. Moving through and living within a colossal shift in our global queer communities, filmmakers are reflecting upon what brought us here and what kind of new worlds we can build. After the disorienting experience of the last two years, we turn to art once again for solace, cheer, reflection, and inspiration. The films emerging from this time are filled with hope and unrelenting determination.”

“We approached planning this year’s Festival with community care in mind. While we are very excited to finally support our local theatres and gather in person after two almost entirely online Festivals, we know we’re not out of the woods yet. We hope everyone will find an option that works for them this year. And as always, we continue to appreciate the support of our communities, supporters, and sponsors. In particular, the support of RBC, our presenting sponsor for 2022,” adds Out On Screen Executive Director Brandon Yan.

“At RBC, we strongly believe in our role to help communities prosper and it is this guiding purpose that draws our involvement to organizations that truly make a difference” says Martin Thibodeau, Regional President, British Columbia, of RBC Royal Bank. “That is why we are proud to once again sponsor the 34th annual Vancouver Queer Film Festival. We have seen the important impact this festival has had, as it continuously sheds light on stories that inspire us to help amplify and celebrate the voices of 2SLGBTQIA+ people across the province and around the world. We are thrilled to continue our ongoing relationship with Out On Screen and are truly grateful to serve these communities!”

“An update that we are not so excited about sharing with you is that Anoushka Ratnarajah, Out On Screen’s Artistic Director since 2017, will be leaving us in June this year,” said Executive Director Brandon Yan. “We would like to thank Anoushka for the remarkable job that she did curating our Festival and working to support independent 2SLGBTQIA+ filmmakers locally and internationally. Under her leadership, Out On Screen’s forward-thinking, values-based artistic programming has pushed boundaries and kept VQFF ranked as one of the top three best film festivals in Vancouver. We are grateful for getting the chance to work with her and see her creativity unfold, and we cannot wait to see what she does next.”

“I am very grateful for all the opportunities to learn and grow while I have been working here at Out On Screen,” said Artistic Director Anoushka Ratnarajah. “I have been honoured to work alongside some of the most passionate, empathetic, and thoughtful people in our beautiful queer community because of this job. There are many joyful memories of this work I will carry with me. I truly believe in the importance of the work we have done together, and I am hopeful for the future of the organization.” 

“Although we are sad to see Anoushka go, we are also excited to announce Festival Programmer Nya Lewis as the incoming Interim Artistic Director,” said Executive Director Brandon Yan. “Nya has been an important part of the Out On Screen team since 2020. Her dedication and passion in engaging QTBIPOC filmmakers and artists reassure us of the success she will bring to her new role. Additionally, Nya is an independent curator whose hybrid practice reflects the diversity of intersectional, intergenerational, global indigenous, Queer critical discourse and its many forms of expression. We are looking forward to witnessing Nya’s fantastic work as Out On Screen seeks out its next Artistic Director.” 

For more information, please visit the following platforms:

Instagram:       www.instagram.com/queerfilmfest 

Facebook:       www.facebook.com/VancouverQFF 

Twitter:            www.twitter.com/queerfilmfest (#VQFF2022)

About Out On Screen

Out On Screen is a charitable organization that illuminates, celebrates, and advances queer lives through film, education, and dialogue. The Vancouver Queer Film Festival creates a dynamic platform for queer cinema that reflects a diversity of experiences while connecting and strengthening our communities. The award-winning Out In Schools program brings age-appropriate queer cinema into school classrooms to combat homophobia, transphobia, and bullying, and to provide the language and tools for inclusion. Out On Screen is proud to be among the leaders in Canada working to create an equitable society where sexual and gender diversity are embraced. www.outonscreen.com 

About RBC

Royal Bank of Canada is a global financial institution with a purpose-driven, principles-led approach to delivering leading performance. Our success comes from the 89,000+ employees who leverage their imaginations and insights to bring our vision, values and strategy to life so we can help our clients thrive and communities prosper. As Canada’s biggest bank and one of the largest in the world, based on market capitalization, we have a diversified business model with a focus on innovation and providing exceptional experiences to our 17 million clients in Canada, the U.S. and 27 other countries. Learn more at rbc.com.

We are proud to support a broad range of community initiatives through donations, community investments and employee volunteer activities. See how at rbc.com/community-social-impact.

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Michael Ianni

Festival Publicist 

michael@praid.ca

604.345.7689