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Outfest | WeHo Rolls Out the Rainbow Carpet
by Janelle Eagle, gaytravel.com
It’s that time again. Truly, the best thing about Outfest is that it’s never the same
experience twice! Year after year, the best and brightest LGBT filmmakers and their
friends converge on Hollywood to show off their creativity and express their unique
vision to the masses.
This year, one of the biggest headlines of the festival is comedic actress Jane Lynch,
who is being honored with the Outfest Achievement Award. Ms. Lynch, who just
married her partner in May, has gained acclaim and a huge fan-following since
originating the role of hard-assed cheerleading captain Sue Sylvester on the hit Fox
show “Glee.” Hopefully, her participating and recognition in Outfest 2010 will draw in
mass media enough to take notice of some of the other brilliant, lesser known artists
represented in the festival.
This year’s offering includes 143 films from 25 countries. For the first time, the country
of Nepal has an entry in the festival (a country near and dear to my heart as I just filmed
my first documentary in this amazing country). For those who are lucky enough to live in
the Los Angeles area or those who are able to travel to the event, it’s an amazing
experience.
The media professionals who cover Outfest have an important role in that they have the
capacity to turn this annual event into a mainstream festival that is more receivable to a
mass audience. It’s not enough to show LGBT films solely to the LGBT community.
There is a real opportunity here to bring these films into the limelight and the success
of films like “Brokeback Mountain,” and shows like
Outfest | WeHo Rolls Out the Rainbow Carpet
by Janelle Eagle, gaytravel.com
It’s that time again. Truly, the best thing about Outfest is that it’s never the same
experience twice! Year after year, the best and brightest LGBT filmmakers and their
friends converge on Hollywood to show off their creativity and express their unique
vision to the masses.
This year, one of the biggest headlines of the festival is comedic actress Jane Lynch,
who is being honored with the Outfest Achievement Award. Ms. Lynch, who just
married her partner in May, has gained acclaim and a huge fan-following since
originating the role of hard-assed cheerleading captain Sue Sylvester on the hit Fox
show “Glee.” Hopefully, her participating and recognition in Outfest 2010 will draw in
mass media enough to take notice of some of the other brilliant, lesser known artists
represented in the festival.
This year’s offering includes 143 films from 25 countries. For the first time, the country
of Nepal has an entry in the festival (a country near and dear to my heart as I just filmed
my first documentary in this amazing country). For those who are lucky enough to live in
the Los Angeles area or those who are able to travel to the event, it’s an amazing
experience.
The media professionals who cover Outfest have an important role in that they have the
capacity to turn this annual event into a mainstream festival that is more receivable to a
mass audience. It’s not enough to show LGBT films solely to the LGBT community.
There is a real opportunity here to bring these films into the limelight and the success
of films like “Brokeback Mountain,” and shows like
Miami's Gay Performing Arts Festival July 7-11, 2010 outinthetropics.fundarte.us |
“Glee” is proof. These films
have the capacity to change
hearts and minds and to show
that LGBT people are not
scary. We’re parents, we’re
your neighbors, we’re business
owners and may even be your
friends or members of your
family.
A Labor of Love
Outfest is near and dear to my
heart and it’s a passion that
began taking shape a few years
ago. After graduating from college, I worked for the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against
Defamation (GLAAD). It was through this organization that I learned how impactful words
and images can be. I was part of a team that holds the media accountable for what they put
on the big screen, small screen, and in the papers and magazines decorating our coffee
tables. The organization also famously celebrates the achievements of media that got it
right in the form of their annual GLAAD Media Awards. I left the organization after three
years in order to become one of the filmmakers creating the culture-changing work that I
had spent so much time celebrating.
In the few short years since my departure, I’ve had the distinct pleasure of working on not
one… not two… but THREE films featuring LGBT content and filmmakers. I am incredibly
humbled and honored to be alongside such talented artists and
have the capacity to change
hearts and minds and to show
that LGBT people are not
scary. We’re parents, we’re
your neighbors, we’re business
owners and may even be your
friends or members of your
family.
A Labor of Love
Outfest is near and dear to my
heart and it’s a passion that
began taking shape a few years
ago. After graduating from college, I worked for the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against
Defamation (GLAAD). It was through this organization that I learned how impactful words
and images can be. I was part of a team that holds the media accountable for what they put
on the big screen, small screen, and in the papers and magazines decorating our coffee
tables. The organization also famously celebrates the achievements of media that got it
right in the form of their annual GLAAD Media Awards. I left the organization after three
years in order to become one of the filmmakers creating the culture-changing work that I
had spent so much time celebrating.
In the few short years since my departure, I’ve had the distinct pleasure of working on not
one… not two… but THREE films featuring LGBT content and filmmakers. I am incredibly
humbled and honored to be alongside such talented artists and
technicians. It’s amazing the bravery and vulnerability they show each day they come to
work.
This Year’s Crop: Something for Everyone
Given the talent involved, I was completely unsurprised when I found out that two of the
films I worked on were headliners at this year’s Outfest Film Festival in Los Angeles. A
Marine Story is the poignant tale of a military officer that returns home from war, only to find
herself in a different battle, involving a teen recruit just beginning boot camp. Elena
Undone is an unlikely love story between two women with VERY different lives. One is a
lesbian writer and the other is the wife of a pastor.
To top off an amazing season, I was completely floored when I was nominated to head up
the Outfest Legacy Awards this fall and make an even greater contribution to the LGBT
filmmaking world by protecting the images and stories in this canon of film for generations
to come.
It’s Not Just About the Movies
So why is Outfest important? Cultural change happens in our living rooms and around the
dining room table, not in ballot boxes. The diversity of our complex community and its
allies is rarely even touched on in entertainment- so having a bevy of options celebrating
that diversity is a rare treat. Some of the most talented filmmakers in the business are
members of the LGBT community and they make good movies! Creating a legacy of
moving images that tell stories that have the capacity to change hearts and minds is
invaluable.
Why am I involved? As a filmmaker and storyteller, I care how my life and the lives of my
friends are portrayed. Film and television can reach beyond borders and
work.
This Year’s Crop: Something for Everyone
Given the talent involved, I was completely unsurprised when I found out that two of the
films I worked on were headliners at this year’s Outfest Film Festival in Los Angeles. A
Marine Story is the poignant tale of a military officer that returns home from war, only to find
herself in a different battle, involving a teen recruit just beginning boot camp. Elena
Undone is an unlikely love story between two women with VERY different lives. One is a
lesbian writer and the other is the wife of a pastor.
To top off an amazing season, I was completely floored when I was nominated to head up
the Outfest Legacy Awards this fall and make an even greater contribution to the LGBT
filmmaking world by protecting the images and stories in this canon of film for generations
to come.
It’s Not Just About the Movies
So why is Outfest important? Cultural change happens in our living rooms and around the
dining room table, not in ballot boxes. The diversity of our complex community and its
allies is rarely even touched on in entertainment- so having a bevy of options celebrating
that diversity is a rare treat. Some of the most talented filmmakers in the business are
members of the LGBT community and they make good movies! Creating a legacy of
moving images that tell stories that have the capacity to change hearts and minds is
invaluable.
Why am I involved? As a filmmaker and storyteller, I care how my life and the lives of my
friends are portrayed. Film and television can reach beyond borders and
| . |
walls and this is the way that I choose to create change. The talented pool of individuals
that are showcased this year are often under-supported and overlooked in the wider
entertainment arena and it is my pleasure to be part of giving them their well-deserved
spotlight.
Why should you be involved? It’s one of the only places that you will get to see many of
these films on the big screen. Your financial support in the form of movie tickets will
actually go to a cause you can be proud of- encouraging more LGBT filmmakers to keep
making incredible movies!
Copyright © AMBIENTE MAGAZINE. Do not reproduce without citing this source
that are showcased this year are often under-supported and overlooked in the wider
entertainment arena and it is my pleasure to be part of giving them their well-deserved
spotlight.
Why should you be involved? It’s one of the only places that you will get to see many of
these films on the big screen. Your financial support in the form of movie tickets will
actually go to a cause you can be proud of- encouraging more LGBT filmmakers to keep
making incredible movies!
Copyright © AMBIENTE MAGAZINE. Do not reproduce without citing this source
