Scottish Queer International Film Festival 2015
Finding good LGBT cinema on UK screens can be a challenge. Praise be, then, for SQIFF (24-27 Sep), a new community-focused film festival representing and reflecting queer identity
Despite tireless work by kickarse film distributors like Peccadillo Pictures, access to films centred on the lives and concerns of LGBTQ characters is scarce. That’s why the launch of the inaugural Scottish Queer International Film Festival (SQIFF) should be rejoiced for its existence alone. That its vibrant and inclusive programming matches its good intentions is just a bonus.
The festival kicks off with effervescent lesbian rock opus Dyke Hard (24 Sep) and closes with David Thorpe’s playful doc Do I Sound Gay? (27 Sep), and in between there’s clearly been an attempt to represent queer identity in all its myriad forms. “We’re definitely aiming for something that's more explicitly political,” explains SQIFF committee member Helen Wright. The programme avoids the many cliches of gay cinema: for example, the familiar coming out stories or tales of tortured gay repression. “I didn’t want to see any films that were about beautiful men with their tops off,” says Wright. “Instead we’re looking at films that are interested in issues, like Alive! (26 Sep), a documentary about five men with HIV, and it’s giving them a chance to talk about their experiences. And then there’s closing film Do I Sound Gay?, which is about the gay men who worry about what their voices sound like. So, for me, those are examples of issues that get buried sometimes. We wanted to choose films that are exploring in more depth the problems LGBT people face.”
The SQIFF team's programme should also be cherished for addressing the fact that even within the genre of queer cinema, there’s an inequality: when it comes to the moving image, the T part of LGBTQ is often ignored. “Trans people don’t really have great representation in the cinema,” says Wright, “and the attitude towards trans characters when they are depicted can be massively offensive.” The SQIFF team have addressed this imbalance with the help of The Scottish Transgender Alliance, who have sponsored part of the programme, including a series of shorts featuring films by and about people who are trans, non-binary, and/or intersex, and a trio of docs.
“The thing about documentaries is that they let trans people have their own voice,” notes Wright, “rather than narrative films which are maybe not made by trans people themselves, and so are putting words into people’s mouths, if you see what I mean.” There’s also the issue that plagues queer cinema: of straight, cisgender actors playing gay or transgender roles as a shortcut to acting acclaim. “We don’t have any of that in this programme,” says Wright. “I think it’s important for people to speak for themselves.”
If this all sounds a bit earnest, fear not: SQIFF isn’t above having a party. For evidence, look no further than the festival's centrepiece, an evening of wild and lairy films from two giants of queer cinema: Pedro Almodóvar (whose 1985 comedy What Have I Done to Deserve This? opens the night's double-bill) and John Waters (whose 1977 trash fairytale Desperate Living closes it).
“We were trying to find stuff with a sort of mother theme,” Wright explains, "so we’re calling the double-bill ‘Lock Up Your Mothers’ (26 Sep), and after the screening there’s Lock Up Your Daughters, which was a long-running queer club night in Glasgow that’s been dormant for a few years and is coming back for a one off. I’m really excited about that one because I’ve been thinking about pairing [Almodóvar and Waters] for a while.”
Despite their kitsch surface, the marrying of these subversive and deceptivly smart movies is another example of SQIFF's sharp, multi-layered curation. “It's one case of how we're letting audiences experience more,” says Wright, “because a lot of people will be familiar with Almodóvar’s later films, like All About My Mother and Bad Education, but his early films are less well-known – they’re wild and trashy, much closer to John Waters' work. I’m not sure who influenced whom – probably they’ve influenced each other a little bit – but that’s just an example of what we’re trying to do: it’s going to be a very fun night but also an opportunity to think a little bit about the history of queer cinema... And there’ll be a fun party afterwards.”
SQIFF takes place 24-27 Sep at the CCA and other venues across Glasgow
For full programme details, go to sqiff.org