aGLIFF

aGLIFF 24 is over and strangely I’m not experiencing my normal post-fest-depression.  I usually feel a little low after a film festival, after immersing myself in films and all the socializing between films. I think it’s because I not only ran into several old friends I haven’t seen in a long time, but I made even more new ones hanging out at the Subaru Lounge, which was a great place to hang out and chat, especially the first few nights during our brief respite from triple-digit heat.

By sheer coincidence I saw several intense films and programs. aGLIFF gambled on starting the festival with The Lulu Sessions, which was surprisingly as entertaining as it was illuminating. Closing-night film Cancerpants was a very different documentary despite a very similar subject; a woman’s very personal journey after a cancer diagnosis. The packed house included director Nevie Owens and some of the local musicians included on the soundtrack, and it was truly a communal experience to see the movie with that particular crowd. Actually there were two closing-night films, but how could I not go to the one with so many local connections.

The final day of aGLIFF was much like the days before it: moderate crowds, the usual broad mix of films and the continued comforting presence of Rick Perry and Michele Bachmann welcoming us to the festival before each screening.

I started the day with the My Queer Movie Competition shorts, a just slightly eclectic collection of 13 films in every conceivable style. Kudos to the aGLIFF programmers for presenting a shorts program with something for every taste, from David Goldstein and Jeff Keith's beautifully romantic Now & Forever to Eliane Lima's dark and striking (if somewhat impenetrable) Leonora to one of my favorites, Austinite Zach Green's hilarious The Green Family Elbow, about a family enduring anti-gay bullying although no one in the family is gay.

Another favorite short is Christopher Peak's Looking, a poignant documentary about men who use Craigslist to meet other men for secret sexual encounters. The five men interviewed in Looking are amazingly candid about their activities, telling us that such liaisons are very common, and many of the participants are married or have girlfriends. I also enjoyed Kate Lefoe's Under Pressure, an Australian import about two high-school girls who reveal their secret sexual desires while hiding from a shooter at their school.

I must start my coverage of my second half of aGLIFF by correcting a grievous omission in my coverage of the first half. Hollywood to Dollywood screened along with two notable shorts. The first of these was a mind-blowing three minutes of J-Pop music video meant to explore ideas of body image and gender identification. DOKKA DOKKA (Pounding Ground) is viewable on YouTube and worth a watch. The second of the two shorts was an intriguing and contemplative piece. Tu E Eu presented a couple's argument and breakup over the phone, but the conversation was repeated by different pairs of varying races and genders. As they argued about their parents' refusal to accept their choice of partner, viewers are left to reflect based on their own assumptions about the participants.

Moving on, the weekend encompassed the bulk of the festival. Because of traffic and Austin's new extended parking meter hours, I avoided Friday Night's activities at the Paramount which included the centerpiece film Mangus and a dance party on the Paramount stage. Saturday, however, kept me busy. My selections overlapped quite a bit with those Don covered in Dispatch #4, starting with Buffering.

aGLIFF was surprisingly uncrowded on Saturday. Not that this is a bad thing at all -- there were no long lines for most films, and I had no trouble finding a good seat in any of the five (yes -- five!) screenings I attended. And the crowds were as enthusiastic as ever. (I attribute much of the enthusiasm to the cheerful pre-show greetings from two well-known supporters of the LGBT community, Rick Perry and Michele Bachmann.)

My first screening of the day was I Am, a moving and intensely personal documentary that chronicles the LGBT community's struggles for acceptance in India. After an 11-year absence, director Sonali Gulati returns to Delhi to re-open her family home, which has been empty since her mother's death. Gulati regrets never coming out as a lesbian to her mother. While in India, she interviews other gay and lesbian Indians and their families about their experiences, and the resulting film is a painful reminder that homosexuality still is strongly condemned in many cultures.  I Am is a very well made and powerful movie that captures a rarely seen side of Indian society.

Next up was Buffering, a film that could not be more different from I Am. A farcical sex romp about a young gay British couple deeply in debt, Buffering reminds us how money -- specifically, lack thereof -- can inspire many people to do just about anything to pay their bills. Seb (Alex Anthony) and Aaron (Conner Mckenzy) lead a quiet life in English suburbia until monetary woes lead Aaron to film the couple's sexual encounters and launch a website featuring the films, all without telling Seb. When Seb discovers the ploy, he's horrified -- that is, until he sees the profit potential, and soon enough the two begin producing ever wilder (and more lucrative) videos.

If you haven't been attending the 24th Austin Gay and Lesbian International Film Festival (aGLIFF), you're missing out. Mike and Don will have more dispatches soon, but in the meantime, check out some of the folks in attendance.

In the above photo, Skot Tulk, former Executive Director of aGLIFF; filmmaker Monte Patterson, director of the powerful short Caught; and aGLIFF programmer Frank Hai take a moment between the fun Mangus! screening and the Majestic Dance Party at the Paramount. 

The programming for this 24th year of aGLIFF offers a frequently dark and somber lineup of selections. Opening-night film The Lulu Sessions, covered by Jenn in Dispatch #1, was a sobering look at the final days of a terminal cancer patient. This was presented along with Communication, a 20-minute short that also dealt with the death of a loved one, as a youth contemplates the missed possibility of an almost-relationship with his former professor.

Though I was unable to attend the earlier screenings Thursday, they continued the morbid trend with So Hard to Forget, which includes the words "painful" and "bitter loss" in the synopsis. Meanwhile on the other screen, We Were Here documented the early days of AIDS with a movie that was described by one viewer as "devastating, but incredibly well done."

In the later time slot was Amphetamine, a Chinese romance complicated by drug addiction. However, I opted for something lighter and more frivolous, which turned out to be delightfully touching. Twin brothers/reality stars/actors Gary and Larry Lane document their love of Dolly Parton in Hollywood to Dollywood.

Every year at aGLIFF I learn something and have a preconception blown away. This year it happened on the second night watching a film about the leatherman culture.

Kink Crusaders is a documentary about the International Mr. Leather contest. You can picture him, right? A bare-butt man in chaps, a codpiece and a leather cap. That stereotype may have a been prevalent when the contest began in the 1970s, but the wardrobe has evolved and so have the contestants. As Michael Skiff's documentary shows, the contenders are from all walks of life, including a 2008 IML semi-finalist confined to a wheelchair. And if that doesn't intrigue you, watch the last two minutes of the film to shatter even more preconceptions.

It's a daring choice to open a film festival with a documentary about someone dying with cancer. Tuesday night aGLIFF kicked off its 24th film festival with The Lulu Sessions, an unflinching, intimate documentary about a complex woman and her equally complex friendship that defied definition.

Filmmaker S. Casper Wong was in attendance and talked about the difficulties in making the movie. Wong and Louise "Lulu" Nutter were friends when Nutter was diagnosed with cancer. Wong, who was in film school at the time, documented Nutter's experience in The Lulu Sessions, which explores their relationship over 15 years.

Like any good documentary, the story is never that simple, and through Wong's lens and discussions with Nutter, a complex, challenging, and brilliant woman easy to connect with onscreen. Nutter was a well-known cancer researcher; I had the nagging suspicion I knew something about her as the film progressed. It turns out her work was often referenced in scientific papers I helped edit when I worked at Harvard Medical School a lifetime ago.

The Austin Gay and Lesbian International Film Festival (aGLIFF) is 24 years old next week and is bigger than ever. This year, festival movis are screening at three different venues -- Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar, Violet Crown Cinema and the Paramount Theatre -- not to mention all the parties and special events.

Looking over the schedule, I'm again having to make tough decisions about what to see. The lineup includes a number of topical documentaries as well as enticing narratives, including a selection of international titles. Even in writing this preview, it was hard to choose titles, especially since Texas is definitely represented.

aGLIFF's Centerpiece Film Mangus! should fill the Paramount quite a bit just on the plot -- a boy who longs to star in his school's production of "Jesus Christ Spectacular." But the cast is guaranteed to draw a crowd too, as it includes none other than John Waters, Heather Matarazzo and the outrageous Jennifer Coolidge. And the best part?  It was filmed here in Texas (just north of Dallas).

aGLIFF knows how to party. I know from experience: the crowds are fun, witty and very welcoming. So just imagine their annual Red Carpet Gala complete with a live Academy Awards telecast this year, so big it's moving to Austin Studios. If anyone can create celebrity sensation, aGLIFF's party planners can.

On Sunday, February 27, paparazzi, a red carpet and a champagne reception await you as the hostess with the mostest, Rebecca Havermeyer, will be on hand to greet you like the Austin celebrity you are. When you get to your private table, your waiter will be ready with some Oscar-themed cocktails, starting at 5:30 pm. Above, you can see Miz Havermeyer chatting up then-Austin filmmaker Kyle Henry, whose Fourplay: San Francisco short played aGLIFF 2010 with overwhelmingly positive reactions. (Henry's in Chicago now, but we still can't stop thinking of him as belonging to Austin.)