LGBTQ Management of Film Festivals
Film and documentaries are an important medium for the LGBTQ community to tell its stories and document its history. In addition to the mainstream international film festivals, there are a large number of LGBTQ-specific film festivals organized around the world to participate in this process. In both cases, there are LGBTQ individuals as founders, organizers, board members, Artistic Directors, Executive Directors, and more.
Since the first gay film festival opened in San Francisco in 1977, queer film festivals have flourished. Their content has diversified from the original classical films and often pornography, to activism and documentary. Film festivals can serve as safe havens and celebratory occasions for the local LGBTQ community, and are often an important part of the education and stepping out process for many individuals. A lot of today’s avante-garde directors and producers got their start in the LGBTQ film festival circuit.
Film festivals also serve the purpose of archiving and maintaining LGBTQ cultural memory. Many videos and films of the past are carefully stored, restored, and often digitized to be available for future generations.
Several LGBTQ individuals are also involved in the management of high profile, global mainstream film festivals. Their roles may involve, in part, the presence of LGBTQ-themed films at their associated film festivals.
We have identified the following LGBTQ individuals involved in film festivals around the world. They hail from Canada, South Africa, Norway, the Netherlands, Uganda, China, the United States, Romania, Belgium, France, Israel, Indonesia, Great Britain, and Russia. Simply click on their names to access their biographies.
Belgium
- Stijn Deklerck - Beijing Queer Film Festival
Canada
- Heather Conway - Hot Docs Film Festival
- Noah Cowan - Toronto International Film Festival
- Amber Dawn - Vancouver Queer Film Festival
- Scott Ferguson - Inside Out Film Festival
- Stephanie Goodwin - Out on Screen, Vancouver Queer Film Festival
- Matthew Hays
- Lauren Howes - Inside Out Film Festival
- Chris Kelly - Toronto International Film Festival
- Andrew Murphy - Inside Out Film Festival
- David Vella - Toronto International Film Festival and Inside Out Film Festival
- Andria Wilson - Inside Out Film Festival
China
- Fan Popo - China Queer Film Festival
- Xiaogang Wei - Beijing Queer Film Festival
France
- Patrice Chereau - Cannes Film Festival
Great Britain
- Alan Gemmell - FiveFilms4Freedom
- Berwyn Rowlands - various film festivals
- Paul Struthers - Frameline
Indonesia
- John Badalu - Q!FilmFestival
Israel
- Marcia Friedman - San Francisco Jewish Film Festival
- Yair Hochner - TLVFest
Norway
- Turid Eikvam - Norwegian gay film festival
Romania
- Lucian Dunareanu - Gay Film Nights Film Festival
Russia
- Manny de Guerre - Bok o Bok Film Festival
- Gulya Sultanova - Bok o Bok Film Festival
Taiwan
- Jay Lin - Taiwan International Queer Film Festival
The Netherlands
- Evelien Eshuis - Netherlands Gay & Lesbian Film Festival
- Gert Hekma - Netherlands gay film festival
Uganda
- Kamoga Hassan - Queer Kampala International Film Festival
United States
- Matthew Breen - Sundance Film Festival
- John Cooper - Sundance Film Festival
- J. D. Disalvatore - Outfest
- Alonso Duralde - USA Film Festival
- Steven Gaines - Hamptons International Film Festival
- Christopher Lees - San Francisco Transgender Film Festival
- James Nadeau - Wicked Queer (Boston)
- Damien Navarro - Outfest
- Christopher Racster - Outfest
- Rajendra Roy - Sundance Film Festival, Hamptons International Film Festival, Berlin International Film Festival
- Kirsten Schaffer - Outfest
- Shawna Virago - San Francisco Transgender Film Festival
- Frances Wallace - Frameline
- Kim Yutani - Outfest and Sundance Film Festival
See Also
- Prominent Theatre and Film Critics Who Identify as LGBTQ
- The World of LGBTQ Film and Video Animation
- Lesbian Film and Television Producers and Directors
- Documentary Filmmakers From the LGBTQ Community
