The Vancouver Queer Film Festival is back for its 33rd year and will be shining a spotlight on queer artistic legacies.
The festival will be presented across the province in a video-on-demand format with a few small in-person events between August 12-22. The festival will follow the guidance of Public Health in order to offer audiences a coronavirus (COVID-19) safe experience, festival organizers stated in a recent press release.
The festival features sixteen feature films, seven short film programs and several other shows all curated by artistic director Anoushka Ratnarajah and festival programmer Nya Lewis. The theme of this year’s festival is ‘Longing’, and many films shine a spotlight on queer artistic legacies and the value of queer artistic contributions to society.
“Queer artists have been creating in the face of adversity for decades,” says Ratnarajah. “I am honoured to host programming that speaks to these important legacies of artistic contributions and the people who create them.”
VQFF will also present a screening of the feature documentary, Can You Bring It: Bill T. Jones and D-Man in the Waters. The documentary tells the story of one of the most legendary and seminal dance works to come out of the AIDS crisis. “D-Man” gave physical manifestation to the grief and hope of the times. After reconstructing the original choreography, a group of young dancers learn about the forgotten history and deepen their understanding of the power of art to bring about change.
Also available on VQFF’s watch platform is Queer as in F*ck You: Queers in Politics, a panel in which queer politicians speak about taking on the unnerving task of being queer in politics.
To see the full program and purchase tickets/passes, visit the Vancouver Queer Film Festival’s website.
