As NSW’s leading HIV prevention, HIV support and LGBTI health organisation, we are once again partnering with Queer Screen to present several key films and events at this year’s Mardi Gras Film Festival running from February 15 to March 2.

Some of the titles being presented or supported by us include the first episode of Disney’s highly-anticipated drama series about America’s LGBTI rights movement When We Rise starring Rachel Griffiths and Guy Pearce, the quirky HIV-related comedy Pushing Dead starring Danny Glover, the cult lesbian horror comedy Women Who Kill, and transgender coming of age drama Real Boy.

There’s also a big focus on films from Asia and the Pacific with a selection of contemporary and classic films as well a community forum on the importance of Asian Pacific queer cinema, all of which are all being presented by our Asian Gay Men’s Project. And in partnership with Foxtel, and Screen NSW, we will present a special public event with two leading members of global LGBTI media advocacy organisation GLAAD about accelerating LGBTI acceptance through better representation of LGBTI people and issues in the media.

“ACON is a long time sponsor of Queer Screen and we’re delighted to once again be involved with the Mardi Gras Film Festival and presenting this collection of films,” our CEO Nicolas Parkhill says. “The power of cinema to share an understanding of the human condition is one of the greatest ways to explore the journeys of LGBTI people from many different walks of life. The screenings and events we are presenting also provide us with a unique opportunity to add a local perspective to a range of issues which affect the health and wellbeing of our community.”

We are presenting the following screenings and events:

 When We Rise / Fri 17 Feb, Event Cinemas, George St

This highly-anticipated drama series recounts the history of the LGBTIQ rights movement in America. Written and created by Dustin Lance Black (Oscar-winner for 2008 film Milk), this part is the first of four, was directed by Gus Van Sant (Good Will Hunting, Milk) and stars Australia’s Rachel Griffiths and Guy Pearce.

 Women Who Kill / Sat 18 Feb, Event Cinemas, George St

IndieWire called Women Who Kill the best lesbian horror-comedy ever. Ingrid Jungermann, of webseries The Slope fame, directs and stars in this wry and witty American indie. Drawing on all the shadowy bits of modern romance and the unknown secrets in new relationships, Women Who Kill gets surprising laughs out of suspicion and paranoia.

 The Wedding Banquet / Sat 18 Feb, Event Cinemas, George St

Ang Lee’s (Brokeback Mountain) early film The Wedding Banquet is simply a class act. Wai-Tung is loving gay life in Manhattan with partner Simon, while tolerating his Taiwanese parents’ attempts to match-make from back home.

 One Night and Two Days / Tue 21 Feb, Event Cinemas, George St

One Night and Two Days is a stunning 2012 trilogy from director Leesong Hee-il (whose 2006 feature No Regrets is widely known as the first Korean gay film) and is finally premiering in Australia.

 Coming Out / Sat 25 Feb, Event Cinemas, George St

Coming Out is a brave and intimate documentary in which Alden Peters records, in detail, his coming out to his close friends and family, and all the emotions that come along with that process. It’s impossible not to live each moment with Alden as we witness every minute reaction from everyone he tells.

 Asian Pacific Film Festival Alliance Shorts / Sun 26 Feb, Event Cinemas, George St

To showcase the amazing queer films being made in this region, the Asian Pacific Queer Film Festival Alliance has put together a package of the best new shorts films from Asia and the Pacific. At the end of each year a film is selected as the best Asia Pacific Queer short film. A highlight is The Threshold, about an Indian teen caught between a traditional upbringing full of gender-stereotypes, and his natural urge to identify with the opposite gender.

 Forum: The Importance of Queer Cinema in the Asia Pacific / Mon 27 Feb, Event Cinemas, George St

In 2015 the Asia Pacific Queer Film Festival Alliance held its first public forum in Taipei. It gave the audience a chance to hear about how queer film festivals are playing a part in changing minds across our region. Join us for an evening of conversation, and hear from delegates from the Alliance member countries, including China, Hawaii (USA), Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Myanmar, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand.

 Irrawaddy Mon Amour + The Priestess Walks Alone / Tue 28 Feb, Event Cinemas, George St

Irrawaddy Mon Amour is a documentary from Myanmar that focuses on a young gay couple and their audacious ambition to marry against the law of the military regime of their country. Their story is tender and romantic, but also set in the context of the emerging gay rights group that they are part of. The Priestess Walks Alone is an emotionally powerful film that constantly treads the boundaries between past and present, and between life and death. Director Hui-Chen Huang slowly reveals her mother’s story in this elegantly paced documentary.

 Real Boy / Tue 28 Feb, Event Cinemas, George St

Real Boy follows Bennett as he struggles to find his place in his fractured family, makes friends who see him for who he is, and ultimately transitions to become a man. While Bennett goes through some of the hallmarks of puberty – pimples, voice breaking, and hair in new places – his personality undergoes a change as well. He is at once a quintessential teenager and a young adult struggling to find acceptance and maturity in a world where that is increasingly difficult to define. (Presented by PASH.tm, supported by ACON)

 Pushing Dead / Wed 1 Mar, Event Cinemas, George St

Quirky and comical, Pushing Dead takes a fresh look at what living with HIV means in the modern day, and features great performances from James Roday, Robin Weigert and Danny Glover.

 In Conversation With GLAAD: Accelerating LGBTIQ Acceptance Through the Media / Tue 28 Feb, Giant Dwarf

Ross Murray and Ray Bradford, directors of LGBTI media advocacy organisation GLAAD, will join radio and television presenter Fenella Kernebone (TedXSydney), author and journalist Benjamin Law (The Family Law), and comedian, Jordan Raskopoulos (Axis of Awesome) in a public discussion on the power of news and entertainment media to shape attitudes and change cultures. US-based GLAAD has become a global leader in ensuring LGBTIQ people are represented fairly and inclusively by helping everyday people share their stories and holding the media accountable for the words and images they present. To illuminate the issue in here in Australia, Screen NSW, Queer Screen and ACON have teamed up with Foxtel and the Australian Film TV and Radio School to bring out two of GLAAD’s leaders for a series of community forums and media industry events during the 2017 Mardi Gras Film Festival.

For more information and to book tickets please visit: www.queerscreen.org.au

ENDS

For more information please contact:

David Alexander, ACON Media and Communications Officer

E: dalexander@acon.org.au   T: +61 (02) 9206 2044   M: +61 (0)428 477 042