1999 Vancouver Queer Film Festival

It’s been another banner year of amazing queer output both locally and internationally. The programming committee at Out On Screen has again been impressed and inspired by the creativity and diversity of the work. Not only are the hometown heroes being presented throughout the festival (including a regional selection of queer film and video from across Canada), but Out On Screen is also bringing in work from as far afield as Bombay, Tokyo, Russia, Israel, and Berlin. Queer artists are finding a balance, choosing to engage with the complexity of personal positions, community issues, social concerns, and political debates, while also acting illicitly, expanding sexual possibilities, and having outrageous fun.

This year’s excellent mix includes the old and the new, the specific and the universal, and the refined and the rude. It’s simply the best that queers around the world have to offer——smart, sexy, and often hilarious. Festival favorites return in new forms: the hometown cinematic fete Code V (formerly known as Made-In-Vancouver); the sex-positive and lust fulfilling Open Sex’me (the explicit sex program); and the superstition breaking The Return of the Positively Queer Youth. Even closer to home, check out hometown director and team player Patrice Leung’s documentary Womyn Warriors and learn about race, softball and sexuality. The Opening Gala showcases renowned Canadian director Anne Wheeler’s newest work, Better Than Chocolate which was shot in the Commercial Drive area and director Jim Fall’s very queer indie hit, Trick featuring Tori Spelling.

The specific and universal are played against, and reflected in, the international work. Learn about the life of a drag queen prostitute who enlists in South Africa’s army in Sando to Samantha. Get Kosher and attend the Israeli/Jewish feature double-bill, Treyf and Amos Gutman, Filmmaker. And this year Out On Screen goes retro and proudly presents the exclusive Canadian screening of Manji (All Mixed Up)——a rare lesbian camp classic from Japan. As the millennium closes, we’ve compiled works from queers who will be taking filmmaking into the 21st Century in Directors For A New Millennium. All this international work reminds us that it’s a queer world after all.

Even though the Millennium is ending, Out On Screen is heading into a new decade. The films and videos have been booked. The artists are coming. The parties planned. And there are seats for you. With the indispensable festival guide as your passport, we encourage you to join us (again) for a look within and a glance abroad. On the behalf of the Programming Committee, enjoy the festival!

Kevin Gulayets
Out On Screen, Programming and Technical Coordinator