Join us for the fourth ‘All Our Stories’ event on December 3rd!

‘All Our Stories’ is an opportunity for youth to connect, and explore queer film and literature with Out In Schools and Vancouver Public Library. This year we’re hosting the event in collaboration with VPL’s Britannia branch at the Canucks Family Education Centre from 4PM-6.30PM.

The event is free and all content is youth-rated. Attendees will also be provided with snacks and drinks.

If you’re a student, parent, or educator please share this event with your community. Our Out In Schools team are happy to answer any questions you have about All Our Stories, get in touch with us on 604 844 1615.

Dear family,

Hilarious. Honest. Fierce. Loyal. Leaderful. Loved. Sandy Silver.

It is with an incredibly sad heart that I share the passing of an Out On Screen community giant: Sandy Silver.

Sandy has been a committed VQFF Festie for years and years and years and years. She was often seen in the front row of International Village with friends taking in a double feature and in our community with the large group of friends she’d developed through the Festival. Her spark drew many to her, including myself. She has always been honest with me in a refreshing and loving way, whether she was reviewing films (good and not so good), sharing her deep sense of connection and responsibility to young queer folk, or giving me much needed advice on how to be part of our community. Even though I only knew her for a handful of years, she made me feel like an old friend because she was open and trustworthy in all aspects.

Sandy did so much for Out On Screen in a modest manner, never wanting the spotlight, preferring instead to focus on her impact. There are many stories, but I will share one that exemplifies her deep commitment to young people.

In 2015, we screened In The Turn, a film following Crystal, a 10-year-old trans girl as she navigates the challenges of transition with the support of an inclusive roller derby league. Sandy was so troubled by seeing the bullying young trans people face that she sprung into action. She knew Out In Schools needed to be all over BC, particularly some of the hardest to reach places. So she started the “Road Warriors”, a group committed to getting Out In Schools to some of the rural areas like those she’d seen in the film. It started by Sandy and her partner Linda donating the cost of an Out In Schools rural trip, allowing the program to go further afield. She then challenged four other couples to join her and Linda to be “Road Warriors” and donate to Out In Schools’ rural tours. She succeeded in creating a community of people that directly grew the number of young people who got to experience Out In Schools in their communities.

Sandy was an ardent supporter of the organization as a whole, and one of the earliest members of our Directors Guild, a core group of community members who make a longer term commitment to the health of the organization and act as ambassadors and advisers for the organization.

Sandy was also very accomplished and a well known personality outside the Out On Screen family, making her mark in Canadian Volleyball, women’s sports, and the UBC community.

Most of all, Sandy was a friend to Out On Screen. The entire Out On Screen family is heartbroken at the loss. We hope we can carry forward the characteristics she carried so well: Hilarious. Honest. Fierce. Loyal. Leaderful. Loved. We love you, Sandy.

Sincerely,

Stephanie Goodwin

Out On Screen Executive Director

Thank you to our generous Vancouver Queer Film Festival partners, from our Opening Gala showing of Song Lang, to our projecting brilliance: two spirit showcase, this year’s VQFF was more enthralling and entertaining than ever. We couldn’t have done it without you!

The 2019 Annual Sponsorship Report for the Vancouver Queer Film Festival is available online now. Click here to read and download.

If you would like to join our family of corporate supporters, please get in touch. By sponsoring the Festival you are holding up LGBT2Q+ filmmakers who take aesthetic and narrative risks, providing a platform for the films and stories that need to be seen, heard, and experienced.

We’re back for the year’s must-attend event, the Out On Screen Fall Gala! This year’s fabulous Studio 54 themed art auction and cocktail party fundraiser is in support of Out In Schools and Vancouver Queer Film Festival.

Party with the who’s who of Vancouver’s LGBT2Q+ communities, take home one of 20 stunning pieces created by local and Canadian artists, and be a part of increasing queer, trans, and two-spirit representation in film and society.

The evening features both live and silent art auctions curated by Barry Dumka at BCreative Consulting, stunning drag, burlesque and dance performances, and moving stories about the impact Out In Schools is having in communities across BC! See our full auction catalog here.

Proceeds from the evening will support Out In Schools facilitators as they travel across BC creating inclusive schools, and provide a platform for queer artists at the 2020 Vancouver Queer Film Festival.

Don’t drag your heels – buy your tickets today!

V.I.P tickets include a reception from 6PM, early access to the art, a special performance, complimentary bar and nibbles, and gift bags with unique items. Doors for regular ticket holders will open at 7PM.

Evening Schedule

6PM | V.I.P ticket holder reception, art preview and special performance
7PM | Doors for regular ticket holders
8.30PM | Opening remarks and performance, Live Auction begins
9.30PM | Intermission, followed by performance
11PM | Last Call

Supporters

Thank you to our supporters. We could not have made tonight happen without support from these fabulous supporters!

Presenting Sponsor – TD Bank Group

Raffle Prize Donors

Coastal Pacific
Delta Air Lines
Kingfisher Oceanside Resort & Spa
Pacific Coastal Airlines

Door Prize Donors

Burgoo
Grounds for Coffee
Joe Fortes
The Keg Steakhouse + Bar

FAQs

Will ASL Interpretation be available?

If you require ASL interpretation, please book your ticket and let us know by 4:00 PM on Friday, October 18.

What should I wear?

This year’s theme is Studio 54. Think disco, glamour, sequins, big hair, and even bigger heels. Dress fun and fabulous! Come prepared to shine and snatch the Best Dressed prize.

Are there ID or minimum age requirements to enter the event?

Yes. All attendees must be 19+.

What are my transportation/parking options for getting to and from the event?

The venue is located behind the new Great Northern Way campus for the Emily Carr University of Art & Design. The 84 bus route stops nearby, but some walking will be required. Limited paid parking is available on Great Northern Way campus.

Do I have to bring my printed ticket to the event?

No. You can bring a physical or digital version of your ticket. If someone else booked your ticket, please bring that person’s name and email address, just in case.

Is it ok if the name on my ticket or registration doesn’t match the person who attends?

Yes! If there is a possibility that your name and ticket registration won’t match, please afford us a little patience at the check in table. If someone else booked a ticket on your behalf, please be sure to have their name and email ready in case our volunteers need it.

Pride Run & Walk raised a massive $17,780 this July! We’re so grateful to the Vancouver Frontrunners for organizing this event, and for making Out In Schools one of its beneficiaries. We received $9,033 and our friends at the LOUD Foundations Pride Youth Scholarship Fund received the remainder of the funds raised.

The money raised for Out In Schools will go towards opening hearts and changing minds across B.C. This award-winning program brings films into classrooms to inspire youth to step into the challenges and the triumphs of LGBT2Q+ communities.

Vancouver Frontrunners are a community focused LGBTQ2+ non-profit sports club focused on running and walking. So far they have raised over $124,000 for our community since the event started 15 years ago.

Partnering with the Vancouver Pride Society, Pride Run & Walk was held at Second Beach Park on July 21st, 2019 and is one of the opening events of the Vancouver Pride festival.

Vancouver Frontrunners welcome runners and walkers of all abilities, to become a member, visit their application page.

For three decades, Out On Screen has proudly showcased films that illuminate the everyday and transformative moments in the lives of queer, trans, and two-spirit people. What began as a small group of queer friends and family gathered together to create space for queer film in 1988, has grown to the second largest film festival in Vancouver, screening the best in independent queer media and performance from around the world. I am proud and excited to be working with a diverse community of artists and advocates who believe in the transformative power of queer art. During my tenure as Artistic Director, I endeavour to work towards an arts scene and film world that prioritizes those of us who continue to be underrepresented in the stories we see on screen and on stage: two-spirit people, queer and trans people of colour, queer and trans sex workers, immigrants, women, queer and trans people living in poverty and all those who live on the fringes of our already marginalized community. My programming always puts an emphasis on our intersectional identities, struggles, and joys.

Recent years have proven groundbreaking for queer cinema, moving away from the dominance of coming-out stories and into mainstream box office success. We are seeing queer filmmakers taking aesthetic and narrative risks, creating art that pushes boundaries, and takes audiences into new queer territories. I feel very fortunate to be witnessing the artistry, intelligence, and courage of queer film today.

As greatly as I am heartened by the increase of representation for us in the mainstream, I hope also for the longevity of dangerous and subversive queer art. I want our weirdness, our freakiness, our subversiveness to continue to flourish. As our stories become more palatable to the mainstream, independent queer film festivals face a unique challenge to remain relevant and representative to our communities. I truly believe in the power of gathering together, of sharing an emotional experience together as queer people. And that’s something you can’t get from the LGBT section on Netflix, or at a screening in a chain theatre. When we gather, we get the opportunity to collaborate in an ecstatic collective experience, of laughter or outrage or tears, and a view into fully realized worlds.

I hope for the queer art I program to keep troubling audiences, as much as it moves us. To make us uncomfortable, to question our safety and normalcy, and unite us across our differences so we can fight for each other to thrive in an increasingly tense and dangerous world. Because great art and storytelling, when it comes down to it, beautifully, brutally and honestly represents the humanity that we all share. Even and especially when it pushes us. Even and especially when we are uncomfortable. The work of art is not to protect us, but to push us into new intellectual and emotional discoveries, to deepen our understandings of ourselves and others.

I believe art is our most powerful weapon in the fight for liberation and justice. Art is our most compassionate and intelligent tool for resistance, if we are to survive and thrive in a world that is unceasingly hostile towards us. Art making can do the important work of building empathetic connections between us, between people on screen, on stage and in theatre seats, to create a story we live together.

Most importantly, my programming takes place on the unceded traditional and ancestral homelands of the xwməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. We are privileged to be guests on this land, both welcome and unwelcome. As a predominantly settler organization and arts platform, we have responsibility to be in right relations with the Indigenous peoples on whose lands we live, work, and play. Our work to be better guests is never-ending, imperfect and in process. As a curator on these lands I know that I must remain humble and dedicated to this work, and never take it for granted that I am here because of legacies of on-going violence and occupation.

I am grateful for this revolutionary moment in queer representation in film, and simultaneously hope and know there are many queer years ahead of us, to make the world all the more beautiful and dangerous with our stories. Queer art and artists are vital to keep the landscape of this city vibrant, to make sure Vancouver doesn’t just turn into a city of white, sterilized condos and coffee shops. We need to continue to be what makes this city interesting, confusing, exciting. Our work is not done, and I’m so excited to see what new queer worlds we can build together. Ultimately, programming is a collaboration, not only with my colleagues, but with you, our beloved audiences. Don’t just take my word for it– come see for yourself.

You are invited to attend The Vancouver Out On Screen Film and Video Society  2019 Annual General Meeting June 5, 2019 at The Post

Join us on Wednesday, June 5th! We invite you to our Annual General Meeting to share in dialogue and discuss further steps as a community. We are celebrating 31 years of illuminating LGBT2Q+ lives and look forward to meeting with you all as we embark onto the next 31 years. Register Now This event is open to current voting and non-voting members of the society. All memberships purchased at the 2018 Vancouver Queer Film Festival are valid until June 30, 2019. Adult members are granted voting member status. Youth members are granted non-voting member status. Individual donors 18 years or older are granted voting member status if a cash donation was made to the society at the Ingenue level or greater and between June 5, 2018 and May 6, 2019. Any memberships conferred as a result of signing a partnership agreement with the society are granted voting member status. You must be 18 years and older and have signed the agreement between June 5, 2018 and May 6, 2019.  Please register your organization’s assigned representative, including name and position (if applicable), by no later than May 15, 2019. Once you register we will have your details on file, there is no need to print your ticket to attend the AGM. Out On Screen produces the Vancouver Queer Film Festival (August 15-25) and the Out in Schools education program, and is a registered charity. 2019 marks Out On Screen’s 31st year of illuminating, celebrating and advancing queer lives through film, education and dialogue.

Out on Screen (Vancouver Queer Film Festival) is teaming up with Reel Youth and Love Intersections, to offer this unique video project for a fourth year!

Aspiring young filmmakers + changemakers can participate in this FREE 8-session program to learn filmmaking skills and produce inspirational short documentaries about senior LGBT2Q+ troublemakers. And troublemakers (roughly ages 50+) get to share their stories with the world in a portrait-style short documentary. 

We’ll premiere the films at the Vancouver Queer Film Festival in August!

In this program, youth participants will:

• learn how to plan, shoot, and edit a short film
• work creatively with a small group of peers
• help share the stories of LGBT2Q+ elders & mentors in their community
• have a ridiculous amount of fun!

This is an inclusive program and is open to all identities. We encourage indigenous, non-indigenous, immigrant, newcomer, refugee, people of colour, queer, two-spirit, trans, gender-creative, and deaf youth to apply. The program is open to youth 14-30 years old. This program has 8 sessions. The dates and times are:  

Wed. May 29              4:00pm – 8:00pm (youth only)
Thurs. May 30             4:00pm – 8:00pm (youth only)
Fri. May 31                  4:00pm – 8:00pm 
Sat. June 1                10:00am – 4:00pm
Sun. June 2               10:00am – 4:00pm

Fri. June 7                   4:00pm – 8:00pm (youth only)
Sat. June 8                10:30am – 4:30pm (youth only)
Sun. June 9               10:30am – 4:30pm (youth only until 3:30)

Application deadline is May 17, click here for more info and to sign up!

VQFF is pleased to announce two upcoming community partnerships:

Join us for Black History Month with VIFF for a screening of the acclaimed Kenyan Film, Rafiki
Monday February 4 at 6:30pm at Vancity Theatre 

About: Bursting with the colorful street style & music of Nairobi’s vibrant youth culture, Rafiki is a tender love story between two young women in a country that still criminalizes homosexuality. Kena and Ziki have long been told that “good Kenyan girls become good Kenyan wives” – but they yearn for something more. Despite the political rivalry between their families, the girls encourage each other to pursue their dreams in a conservative society. When love blossoms between them, Kena and Ziki must choose between happiness and safety.

Join us for Dance House’s production of Blood on the Dance Floor
Wednesday February 6 to Saturday February 9 at 8pm at SFU Goldcorp Centre for the Arts

Out On Screen is an arts non-profit that illuminates and advances LGBT2Q+ lives through film, education, and dialogue. We believe in a society where all gender and sexual diversity thrives. This includes a world free of transphobia and gender oppression.

We believe the Meghan Murphy and Feminist Current event scheduled for January 10th 2019 at the Vancouver Public Library (VPL) fundamentally perpetuates transphobia and violates the legal human rights of trans and gender diverse people. The relationship between anti-trans hate speech and violence towards trans people is both direct and well documented.

Libraries are intended to be public spaces that are enriching, expansive, and ultimately safe for all. In the past, the VPL has taken many positive actions to make their spaces safer and more accessible, demonstrating a commitment to LGBT2Q+ communities. Unfortunately, allowing transphobic programming to occur undermines the progress the VPL, LGBT2Q+ individuals, artists, activists, and community groups have worked so hard to achieve.

In the spirit of partnership, collaboration, and community, Out On Screen reached out and spoke to the Chief Librarian, members of the Library Board, and other elected officials to engage constructively to hold the VPL accountable to its values and to keep the VPL safe for trans and gender diverse people. Without substantial progress on these fronts, Out On Screen publicly requests the VPL listen to the communities affected, reinforce its leadership, and cancel the booking.

Our commitment to safety, security, and freedom for LGBT2Q+ communities is paramount.