Episode 4.17 - "Bad Word For A Good Thing"
Damn, this has been the lonnnnnngest April of my entire life! In addition to the Day Of Silence and the Gender Bender Dance, I've been planning and hosting an event that I suggested last May, the 1st Annual PRiDE Film Festival. To make things even better, I have my own crafty committee of peeps to help me out: Beth, Nyya, and Steph. And let me tell ya, it has been a long and tumultuous road making my dream project a reality.
From the get-go, I present the group with an extensive catalog of gay films (most of which I already own), grouped together by thematic similarities. For example, the 5-film Gays Kick Butt series would include: Iron Ladies, Like It Is, Beautiful Boxer, Guys and Balls, and D.E.B.S. However, the girls were not feelin' any of my 9 themed series suggestions because they felt the movies would be too similar. *eye roll* Compromise. So, I end up looking over our combined total of 106 nominated films and picked out five films that would represent every part of GLBTQ.
Yet another stumbling block. Budget approval only allows for THREE movies so now I have narrow it down to the top three instead of five. Since Steph and Beth so lovingly praised Alice Wu's Saving Face at our first meeting, I choose it sight unseen (to be remedied ASAP). Begrudgingly, I remove Bound and TransAmerica from the lineup, keepin Craig Chester's outrageous laugh-out-loud comedy Adam & Steve (a personal favorite) and the Wachowski Brothers' big-budget blowout, V For Vendetta!.
People constantly ask why I decide to fight and claw for V, and it's because of the Wachowski Brothers' underrated contributions to queer cinema. Hell, their feature debut was a little movie called... I don't know, BOUND (Jennifer Tilly & Gina Gershon), a.k.a. one of the most well-known, highly rated lesbian films in history. They followed it up with The Matrix films, all of which are laced with gay semiotics and sexual ambiguity, especially the characters of Trinity and Morpheus. Add to the mix their most recent effort, V For Vendetta, and top it off with Larry Wachowski coming out as a transsexual known as "Linda," and you should now understand. I'm not crazy. ;-)
After purchasing the film rights, reserving the locations, hosting the Gayest Bake Sale Ever (if such a thing is feasible), posting up flyers and hemorrhaging money on FaceBook Ads, the first two screenings have mediocre turnouts with audiences made up of mainly ALLiES members and 4 total non-members. Granted, they are on Monday nights, and the people who do show up thoroughly enjoy the films BECAUSE they are among the best out there and are extremely entertaining and inspiring.
As expected, V For Vendetta gets a good turnout (at least double the previous screening), but at that point, I've already lost steam because of all of this pressure to make the event a success. I've been putting my ass out there for a gay event, and while I share the success with my 3 girls, the failures hit me twice as hard because my inexperience with public event planning rules and regulations has led to poor execution. With that, I'd like to thank Steph, Beth, and Nyya for stickin' with me even though I seriously was on the verge of a nervous breakdown some days. For real, I actually snapped one night and went off on a few people. Ah, beautiful carnage. *slaps forehead*
But seriously, at this point, PRiDE Month has been kickin' my ass and frankly, I can't wait to go back to being ashamed! *scoff* Just when my flame was at its puniest, I made an appointment with my hair, or should I say, Head & Skull stylist, Sherry. She works over that salon, though I can't remember the exact name--the Sundance... Hair... Festival? That can't be right. ANYWAY... I stop over after a photo appointment and we swap stories. Among other things, she tells me about her ex-boss, Danny the Drama Queen. No relation. ;-D Apparently, they're great friends and they frequently hit the gay bars but they can't work together because he kept calling her a "Drama Whore" on the job. And as I'm listening to this, I appreciate it all so much more--y'know, the drama that comes so naturally to my people. :-D As I always say, "Normal's boring," and I'm PROUD to be a weirdo! *exeunt flourish*
From the get-go, I present the group with an extensive catalog of gay films (most of which I already own), grouped together by thematic similarities. For example, the 5-film Gays Kick Butt series would include: Iron Ladies, Like It Is, Beautiful Boxer, Guys and Balls, and D.E.B.S. However, the girls were not feelin' any of my 9 themed series suggestions because they felt the movies would be too similar. *eye roll* Compromise. So, I end up looking over our combined total of 106 nominated films and picked out five films that would represent every part of GLBTQ.
Yet another stumbling block. Budget approval only allows for THREE movies so now I have narrow it down to the top three instead of five. Since Steph and Beth so lovingly praised Alice Wu's Saving Face at our first meeting, I choose it sight unseen (to be remedied ASAP). Begrudgingly, I remove Bound and TransAmerica from the lineup, keepin Craig Chester's outrageous laugh-out-loud comedy Adam & Steve (a personal favorite) and the Wachowski Brothers' big-budget blowout, V For Vendetta!.
People constantly ask why I decide to fight and claw for V, and it's because of the Wachowski Brothers' underrated contributions to queer cinema. Hell, their feature debut was a little movie called... I don't know, BOUND (Jennifer Tilly & Gina Gershon), a.k.a. one of the most well-known, highly rated lesbian films in history. They followed it up with The Matrix films, all of which are laced with gay semiotics and sexual ambiguity, especially the characters of Trinity and Morpheus. Add to the mix their most recent effort, V For Vendetta, and top it off with Larry Wachowski coming out as a transsexual known as "Linda," and you should now understand. I'm not crazy. ;-)
After purchasing the film rights, reserving the locations, hosting the Gayest Bake Sale Ever (if such a thing is feasible), posting up flyers and hemorrhaging money on FaceBook Ads, the first two screenings have mediocre turnouts with audiences made up of mainly ALLiES members and 4 total non-members. Granted, they are on Monday nights, and the people who do show up thoroughly enjoy the films BECAUSE they are among the best out there and are extremely entertaining and inspiring.
As expected, V For Vendetta gets a good turnout (at least double the previous screening), but at that point, I've already lost steam because of all of this pressure to make the event a success. I've been putting my ass out there for a gay event, and while I share the success with my 3 girls, the failures hit me twice as hard because my inexperience with public event planning rules and regulations has led to poor execution. With that, I'd like to thank Steph, Beth, and Nyya for stickin' with me even though I seriously was on the verge of a nervous breakdown some days. For real, I actually snapped one night and went off on a few people. Ah, beautiful carnage. *slaps forehead*
But seriously, at this point, PRiDE Month has been kickin' my ass and frankly, I can't wait to go back to being ashamed! *scoff* Just when my flame was at its puniest, I made an appointment with my hair, or should I say, Head & Skull stylist, Sherry. She works over that salon, though I can't remember the exact name--the Sundance... Hair... Festival? That can't be right. ANYWAY... I stop over after a photo appointment and we swap stories. Among other things, she tells me about her ex-boss, Danny the Drama Queen. No relation. ;-D Apparently, they're great friends and they frequently hit the gay bars but they can't work together because he kept calling her a "Drama Whore" on the job. And as I'm listening to this, I appreciate it all so much more--y'know, the drama that comes so naturally to my people. :-D As I always say, "Normal's boring," and I'm PROUD to be a weirdo! *exeunt flourish*