Welcome Welcome to the 8th Annual GayCharlotte Film Festival The GayCharlotte Film Festival, first established in 2009, has become an annual event in the Queen City. A collaborative program of Charlotte Pride, the film festival’s goal is to entertain, enlighten, and build valuable bridges of understanding, support, and acceptance within and between the LGBTQ and ally communities in the Charlotte region. Now in its eighth year, the GayCharlotte Film Festival has become one of Charlotte’s premier arts and cultural events, which has brought thousands of attendees together to celebrate the artistic, cultural, and historical contributions of LGBTQ and ally individuals, all through the power of film. Each year, we work to strengthen our program by expanding the diversity and subject matter of the films we show. This year, we’re proud to present two regional film premieres — MAJOR! and LOEV. We hope you’ll decide to attend both and stay after the MAJOR! screening on Sunday for a panel discussion with local transgender community members. The GayCharlotte Film Festival seeks to offer something for everyone. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the show. With Pride, Matt Comer, Teresa Davis, Victoria Eves, Richard Grimstad, Craig Hopkins, Frank Kalian, Jim Kimbler, Heather Macon-Hudson, Michelle Trent, Helena Williams-Vann The GayCharlotte Film Festival Committee The GayCharlotte Film Festival operates under the fiscal sponsorship of Charlotte Pride, Inc., a 501(c) registered nonprofit corporation. All donations are fully tax-deductible to the extent provided by law. Please consult your tax advisor for the appropriate treatment of any contributions made to the GayCharlotte Film Festival.
Special Community Event FILM PREMIERE & PANEL DISCUSSION MAJOR!
A new documentary film by Annalise Ophelian & StormMiguel Florez
Sunday April 24 — Screening: 5:30pm — Panel immediately following
Southeastern U.S. Regional Premiere
ABOUT THE FILM: This is the story of one woman’s journey, a community’s history, and how caring for each other can be a revolutionary act. MAJOR! follows the life and campaigns of Miss Major Griffin-Gracy, a 73- year-old Black transgender woman and veteran of the Stonewall Rebellion who has been fighting for the rights of trans women of color for over 40 years. PANEL DISCUSSION: After the screening, participate in a panel discussion highlighting important transgender issues and local trans voices, including recent attention on the state’s anti-LGBTQ legislation, HB2, which targets transgender people and their use of restrooms, among other minorities.
A NOTE TO OUR GUESTS & PATRONS REGARDING HB2 & THE USE OF RESTROOM FACILITIES
HB2’s restrictions on restroom access apply only to public, government-owned buildings. The GayCharlotte Film Festival is hosted on private property. All guests and patrons are welcome to use the facilities which correspond with their gender identities or expression. For any concerns, please see a member of the film festival committee or Charlotte Pride Board of Directors.
Film Screening Schedule DATE
FILM
TIME
Thursday April 21
LGBTQ Shorts Night
6:45 p.m.
Friday April 22
4th Man Out
7:00 p.m.
Friday April 22
Those People
9:00 p.m.
Saturday April 23
The Danish Girl
12:00 p.m.
Saturday April 23
Jenny’s Wedding
2:30 p.m.
Saturday April 23
LOEV
5:00 p.m.
Saturday April 23
While You Weren’t Looking
7:00 p.m.
Saturday April 23
The Same Difference
9:00 p.m.
Sunday April 24
Carol
1:00 p.m.
Sunday April 24
In the Grayscale
3:30 p.m.
Sunday April 24
MAJOR!
5:30 p.m.
Sunday April 24
Trans Community Panel
(Preceded by: The First)
(Preceded by: Spunkle)
(Preceded by: Late Expectations)
(Immediately following MAJOR!)
Film Screenings 4th Man Out April 22 @ 7pm • 86 minutes After a night of drinking, Adam Hutcherson (Evan Todd), a car mechanic in a small, working class town, stumbles out of the closet to his three straight unsuspecting, blue-collar best friends (Parker Young, Chord Overstreet, Jon Gabrus) — a disruption to their dynamic which they now must try and overcome through alcohol, Tinder dates and forgiveness.
Those People April 22 @ 9pm • 89 minutes On Manhattan’s gilded Upper East Side, a young painter, Charlie, finds the man of his dreams in an older pianist from across the globe. If only Charlie weren’t secretly in love with his own manipulative best friend, Sebastian, who is embroiled in a financial scandal. In the wake of Sebastian’s notoriety, their tight-knit group of friends must confront the new realities of adulthood. The Danish Girl April 23 @ 12pm • 119 minutes With support from his loving wife Gerda (Alicia Vikander), artist Einar Wegener (Eddie Redmayne) prepares to undergo one of the first sex-change operations. This 2015 British biographical romantic drama film is loosely inspired by the lives of Danish painters Lili Elbe and Gerda Wegener. Jenny’s Wedding April 23 @ 2:30pm • 94 minutes Eddie (Tom Wilkinson) and Rose (Linda Emond) have always dreamed of the day their daughters get married. When their daughter Anne (Grace Gummer) ties the knot, everybody turns expectantly to younger sister Jenny (Katherine Heigl) and are overjoyed when they find out that she is engaged, but not to whom they expected as she plans to wed a woman (Alexis Bledel).
Special Event FILM PREMIERE LOEV
A new film by Sudhanshu “Suds” Saria
Saturday April 23 — Screening: 5pm
East Coast U.S. Regional Premiere
ABOUT THE FILM: When hot shot, Wall Street dealmaker Jai thinks of putting some pleasure into his 48 hour business trip to Mumbai, Sahil, his young, music-producer friend, drops everything, including his reckless boyfriend Alex, to help him execute the perfect getaway. Hiking the hills and canyons of Maharashtra, amidst half-attempted conversations and sudden silences, business calls and old jokes, the friends discover there is more than just time-zones keeping them apart.
Film Screenings While You Weren’t Looking April 23 @ 7pm • 104 minutes The changing landscape of post-Apartheid South African politics and lifestyles is portrayed through two central relationships — a successful black real estate woman who is cheating on her white wife and their bohemian daughter dating a gender non-confirming woman in the Khayalitsha township. The Same Difference April 23 @ 9pm • 78 minutes Director Nneka Onuorah puts a spotlight on the black lesbian/bisexual community and explores the internal-homophobia and gender roles that play out within our own community, including the kind of judgment that stud-on-stud couples, bisexual women and pregnant aggressives face from their peers. Carol April 24 @ 1pm • 118 minutes Therese Belivet (Rooney Mara) spots the beautiful, elegant Carol (Cate Blanchett) perusing the doll displays in a 1950s Manhattan department store. The two women develop a fast bond that becomes a love with complicated consequences. In The Grayscale April 24 @ 3:30pm • Spanish. English Subtitles • 101 minutes Therese Belivet (Rooney Mara) spots the beautiful, elegant Carol (Cate Blanchett) perusing the doll displays in a 1950s Manhattan department store. The two women develop a fast bond that becomes a love with complicated consequences.
VOLUNTEER!
Charlotte Pride needs you!
Interested in learning more about how you can get involved in events like the film festival and other activities? Email us to learn more about volunteering at volunteer@charlottepride.org.
Red Carpet Sponsors
Silver Screen Sponsor Official Media Partner
Box Office Sponsors
Spotlight Sponsors
Community Partner
Printing and Copying Services Printing • Typesetting • High Speed Copying Binding Services • Invitations Labels • Laminating • Fax Services • Pads Wedding Programs • Business Cards Carbonless Forms Rubber/Self Inking Stamps • Door Hangers Much More More!
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Short Films OPENING NIGHT
LGBTQ Cinema Shorts Competition Vote on your favorite short film!
Thursday April 21 — Doors: 6:45pm — Screenings: 7:30pm ABOUT THE CONTEST: Here’s your chance to leave your mark on the world of LGBTQ film. Audience members will view several shorts and at the end of the night cast a ballot for their favorite film. The winner will receive the GayCharlotte Film Festival’s audience award, “Best Short — Viewers’ Choice.” HOW TO VOTE: You will receive a paper ballot. Choose the film you think represents the best short among those shown. How you vote and the criteria you use are up to you — vote for the film that moved you, the film you thought had the best production value or one that you thought had the best plot. It’s up to you! THE FILMS: Stealth — Director: Bennett Lasseter Hole — Director: Martin Edralin Tremulo — Director: Roberto Fiesco The First — Director: James Sweeney When AIDS Was Funny — Director: Scott Calonico Late Expectations — Director: Laurie Arakaki 11 Life Lessons from an Awesome Old Dyke — Director: Allison Khoury The Bench Project: Lost and Found — Director: Oriana Oppice
SUPPORT THE FILM FESTIVAL IN 2017 Want to get a jump on 2017 sponsorship? Contact us today! film@charlottepride.org
Coming Soon
Memberships & More Programs! CELEBRATING LGBTQ VISIBILITY THROUGHOUT THE YEAR...
Charlotte Pride and the GayCharlotte Film Festival Committee will soon announce a new initiative to expand the film festival and its educational, artistic, and cultural activities with film screenings, panel discussions and other cultural events throughout the year, including during Charlotte Pride Week. These new activities will bring the work of the film festival and the power of LGBTQ visibility in film to audiences and community members throughout the year SUPPORT OUR NEW EXPANSION: As part of our expansion, we’ll soon announce ways that you can join as a Film Festival Member. Your annual membership will support the ongoing work of the festival and get you exclusive member benefits and access to events throughout the year. Stay tuned for more information as we launch our new initiatives over the summer! GET INVOLVED: Our current events and activities wouldn’t be possibe without the commitment and hardwork of our all-volunteer committee. As we expand, we’ll be looking for new volunteers to join us in organizing, planning, and presenting new projects and events. Interested in joining the committee or have ideas for future programming? Email us at film@charlottepride.org.
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SUPPORT THE FILM FESTIVAL IN 2017 Want to get a jump on 2017 sponsorship? Contact us today! film@charlottepride.org
GAYCHARLOTTE FILM FESTIVAL 2016 Official Media Partner
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About Charlotte Pride ‘MORE THAN JUST A FESTIVAL...’ Charlotte Pride is the leader in LGBTQ visibility in Charlotte and the Carolinas. LEARN MORE: CHARLOTTEPRIDE.ORG
ABOUT CHARLOTTE PRIDE: We present and collaborate on programs, projects, and activities, including the annual Charlotte Pride Festival and Parade, Trans Pride, Latin Pride, and the GayCharlotte Film Festival, among others. Since its founding in 2000, Charlotte Pride has expanded its year-round programming and partnerships to better connect community members with its mission, vision, and values. It is now the one of the largest LGBTQ Pride organizations in the American Southeast. OUR MISSION: Charlotte Pride creates programs and activities to enrich, empower, strengthen, and make visible the unique lives and experiences of LGBTQ people in Charlotte and the Carolinas. OUR VISION: Charlotte Pride envisions a world in which LGBTQ people are affirmed, respected, and included in the full social and civic life of their local communities, free from fear of any discrimination, rejection, and prejudice. OUR VALUES: Dynamic: Charlotte Pride knows that the needs of our LGBTQ community are not stagnant; we work to ensure our programs, projects and activities reflect the ever-changing face of our community. Collaborative: Charlotte Pride recognizes that change takes partnership — among and between both LGBTQ and non-LGBTQ people and organizations. The greatest progress for the entire LGBTQ community necessitates a social justice-minded focus on issues which affect the lives of those individuals who live at or beyond the margins. Inclusive: Charlotte Pride values the contributions of all people and mindfully works to include a wide range of life experiences, perspectives and beliefs in all of our programs and activities. Intentional: Charlotte Pride takes a deliberative and purposeful approach to our programs and activities, seeking to provide a thoughtful, open, and affirming space for community members to engage with our organization and its mission.
Get Involved EDUCATIONAL & OUTREACH PROGRAMS Learn more about Charlotte Pride programs at charlottepride.org/programs/ Charlotte Trans Pride Charlotte Trans Pride is Charlotte Pride’s transgender community outreach and collaborative project — funded in part by the Charlotte Lesbian and Gay Fund in 2015. Charlotte Trans Pride seeks to provide expanded support for transgender members of the community, opportunities for social networking, awareness and education events, as well as community and leadership development initiatives to benefit current and up-and-coming transgender leaders. In 2015, Charlotte Pride provided $4,500 in matching funds plus additional financial support for the project. Charlotte Latin Pride Charlotte Latin Pride is a collaborative community project designed to build the engagement and capacity of the local Latino/a LGBTQ community and its allies. Activities include social events as well as educational and outreach initiatives in order to highlight the diversity of the local Latino/a community. GayCharlotte Film Festival The GayCharlotte Film Festival aims to entertain, enlighten and build valuable bridges of understanding, support, and acceptance within and between the LGBTQ and ally communities in the Charlotte region. In 2015, Charlotte Pride provided $1,000 to support the film festival, in addition to in-kind supportive services, including administrative, accounting, media relations and other support. Interfaith Collaborations A wide diversity of LGBTQ and ally people of faith join to celebrate Pride each year at Charlotte Pride’s annual Interfaith Service, which helps to kick-off Charlotte Pride Week. In 2015, the Charlotte Pride Interfaith Service raised over $1,000 in funding for Time Out Youth Center. Youth Pride In 2015, Charlotte Pride provided an additional $1,000 to present the annual Charlotte Pride Youth Dance, in collaboration with Time Out Youth Center. The event kicked off Charlotte Pride Week and provided a safe, alcohol- and drug-free social environment for youth under the age of 21. Future Youth Pride programs are planned. Arts & Culture Charlotte Pride partners on several collaborative projects highlighting the artistic and cultural diversity of the LGBTQ community, including visual arts projects with local artist Edwin Gil and art showcases featuring talent from local LGBTQ choral groups, photographers, dancers and others. Over the past two years, Charlotte Pride has committed over $10,000 in funding and in-kind services to support local LGBTQ arts and cultural initiatives.