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ASSETS

Images

Shorts
Hidden Canyons | Season 2
NORTH STAR
Found
Lesbian Miserables
Saccharine
DIVR
Hidden
Features
A Reflection of Self
Alaska is a Drag
Borrowed
Conversion
Her Side of the Bed
Homebody
Maybe Someday
Okinawa Coming out Chronicles “Mama” Katsuki’s Hug-Filled Road Trip
Park View
SURVIVING THE SILENCE: The Untold Story Of Two Women In Love Who Helped Change Military Policy
Wake Up, Leonard
Wonderfully Made — LGBTQ+R(eligion)
The Unabridged Mrs. Vera’s Daybook

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SUMMARIES

Hidden Canyons | Season 2 – even LGBTQ+ residents of a small beach town navigate modern struggles with identity, family planning, mental health, career, and rights via one-minute episodes. The micro series’ first season was a viral sensation on Tiktok; the second season expands on the characters and themes to address issues of trans eligibility in sports, parental rights in queer family arrangements, and polyamorous marriage. TV/ Web Series. Directed by Brant Rotnem, Fawzia Mirza & Nava Mau. 12.57 min. USA. Festival Premiere

North Star – A rural rancher and his ailing husband, struggling against poverty and isolation, make a heartbreaking decision in order to preserve the dignity of their marriage in the face of mounting pressures from relatives. Narrative Short. Directed by P.J. Palmer. 30 min. USA. World Premiere

Found – When Rowan tries to find her missing ex-girlfriend, a mysterious UFO interrupts her calls. Narrative Short. Directed by Jean Grant. 8.17 min. USA. West Coast Premiere

Lesbian Misérables – Across all of the United States, there are only 21 gay bars for the women, non-binary, and trans masc community… this is the story of Lesbian Misérables. Music Video. Directed by Tess Paras. Performed by Sibel Damar, Carey Cox, Sahana Srinivasan, Anna Garcia, Allison Reese, Bri Giger, Glo Tavarrez, Steve Han, Dickie Hearts, Jordan Stafford. 2.40 min. USA. Festival Premiere.

Lo Pony ‘Saccharine’ – While navigating the queer dating scene in 2020 Portland, Carl realizes they adore their own company. Music Video. Directed by Kale Chesney. Performed by Lo Pony. 2.21 min. USA. Festival Premiere

DIVR – The three founders of an exclusive lesbian sex app may be shattering the start-up world’s glass ceilings, but the pressures of success have begun to threaten the integrity of their friendship – and worse, their brand. Narrative Short. Directed by Zoey Martinson. 16.15 min. USA. West Coast Premiere

Hidden Canyons | Season 2 – even LGBTQ+ residents of a small beach town navigate modern struggles with identity, family planning, mental health, career, and rights via one-minute episodes. The micro series’s first season was a viral sensation on Tiktok; the second season expands on the characters and themes to address issues of trans eligibility in sports, parental rights in queer family arrangements, and polyamorous marriage. TV/ Web Series. Directed by Brant Rotnem, Fawzia Mirza & Nava Mau. 12.57 min. USA. Festival Premiere

A Reflection of Self – From an indigenous two-spirit poet to a trans olympic athlete, “A Reflection of Self” shares the voices, stories, artistry, and heart of LGBTQIA2S+ community members and explores what it truly means to be free. Documentary. Directed by Jesse Brandon Locke. 77 min. USA. Portland Premiere

Alaska is a Drag (2018) – This is a fish out of water story — literally. Everyone who slices fish all day daydreams – his are just glamtastic. He’s had to learn to fight to survive. And his boss who is also an amateur boxer takes note. When a new kid offers to be his sparring partner – he and his twin are forced to confront the real reason they’re stuck in fish guts. Narrative Feature. Directed by Shaz Bennett. 88 min. USA

Borrowed- David, a middle aged painter and former Navy officer living in a secluded but beautiful shoreline house in the Florida Keys, breaks his willful isolation to do a portrait of a very special guest: young, edgy and openly gay Justin; but as the date takes an unexpected turn, David must do everything in his power to keep control of the situation while discovering Justin’s true intentions. Narrative Feature. Directed by Carlos Rafael Betancourt & Oscar Ernesto Ortega. 90 min. USA. World Premiere

Conversion – A story of survival and hope, “Conversion” follows five survivors as they shed light on the secretive and often deadly practices of conversion therapy. Documentary. Directed by Zach Meiners. 105 min. USA . World Premiere

Her Side of the Bed (2017) – Rachel Nolan is a recently dumped, 20-something writer living in NY. She moves in with her best friend Nicole who vows to get her over the heartbreak by any means possible, but when the two best friends share an intimate night, their friendship is forever changed. Narrative Feature. Directed by Bryn Woznicki. 98 min. USA

Homebody – A gender-queer body-transfer fantasy about a little boy who sends his spirit into his babysitter’s body. Narrative Feature. Directed by Joseph Sackett. 75 min. USA. Portland Premiere
Maybe Someday (f) – Jay, a non-binary 40-something photographer, attempts to move across the country to start her life over again in the midst of separating from her wife. Along the way, she takes a detour to stay with her high school best friend who she used to be secretly in love with, and befriends a charismatic gay man who has long given up on love. Struggling to move forward with the next chapter of her life, memories of the past resurface as Jay grapples with the inevitable cycles of love, loss, and letting go. Narrative Feature. Directed by Michelle Ehlen. 91min. USA. Oregon Premiere.

Okinawa Coming out Chronicles “Mama” Katsuki’s Hug-Filled Road Trip – The coming out story of“Mama” Katsuki, the owner of the Shinjuku 2-chome gay bar “Kusuo”. In his late twenties, he leaves his hometown so he can be truly himself. Ten years later from that day, he comes out to his parents as gay.Now he can finally say he is on good terms with his family, but it took many conversations to reach this point.
This movie follows him as he visits his hometown of Naha City, Okinawa Prefecture, looking back on the time when he came out, talking with family and friends and opening about their true feelings. Documentary. Directed by Hiroaki Matsuoka. 103 min. Japan. North American Premiere

Park View – The 1990 murder of Talana Kreeger in the Southern coastal community of Wilmington, NC, still challenges our assumptions about legal, religious, and media responses to LGBTQ hate crimes. Documentary. Directed by Tab Ballis. 67m. USA. Portland Premiere.

SURVIVING THE SILENCE – Surviving the Silence tells the story of two women in love who played a part in changing military policy, shining light on the unknown history of how a closeted colonel forced to expel an Army hero for being lesbian did so in a way resulting in re-instatement via federal court.
Years before Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Colonel Patsy Thompson presided over the review board that dismissed Colonel Margarethe Cammermeyer for being a lesbian. Although she had been in tough spots over the course of her 28-year service, this was the toughest. Presiding over this case forced Patsy to confront her own moral dilemma and her own secret: she too was a lesbian.
Margarethe Cammermeyer, a highly-decorated nurse and war hero, was on track to becoming a general. During a security clearance interview, she truthfully answered when asked if she was a lesbian. This started an investigation which led to her eventual and highly-publicized expulsion from the Army National Guard. In 1995, Margarethe’s memoir was adapted as a television movie, which was executive-produced by Barbra Streisand and starred Glenn Close. But Patsy’s story has remained a secret…until now. Documentary Feature. Directed by Cindy L. Abel. 79 min. USA. Festival Premiere

Wake Up, Leonard (f)- Leonard’s manifested a date with his ex – now he’s just gotta fix his vibration.Part comedy, part self-help nightmare, WAKE UP, LEONARD follows one man’’s quest for wellness while failing miserably to stay on his vibe. This is the story of a broken-hearted seeker with a tenuous grasp on his mental health, but an admirable faith in the Universe. Will Leonard learn how to not only love his higher self, but his lower self too? This improvised feature film was shot during the pandemic and explores themes of mental wellness, queer love, and self acceptance. WAKE UP, LEONARD begs the question, “It’s a wonderful life?”. Narrative Feature. Directed by Kat Mills Martin. 73 min. USA. Portland Premiere

Wonderfully Made – “Wonderfully Made — LGBTQ+R(eligion)” s a feature length documentary striking at anti-LGBTQ attitudes by exploring the challenges and aspirations of LGBTQ+ Catholics. The film focuses on the Catholic Church because it is one of the largest religious organizations and its anti-LGBTQ+ stance is known and growing more hardline. The narrative of the film is shaped by the process of a fine art project creating unprecedented, photographic iconography depicting Jesus as a member/ally of the LGBTQ+ community, represented by multiple LGBTQ+ models. Documentary. Directed by Yuval David. 94 min. USA. West Coast Premiere

The Unabridged Mrs. Vera’s Daybook – The Unabridged Mrs. Vera’s Daybook tells a story of historic activism and community art through the works of two San Francisco artists and long-term AIDS survivors. During one of the darkest periods in US history, two men decide to bring joy and color to a broken community for which an entire movement has emerged. Supporters, fellow activists and members of the queer art community join the film to help paint this vivid portrait of perseverance, compassion and outrageous dime-store fashion. Documentary. Directed by Robert James. 81 min. USA. Festival Premiere

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