13th Fairy Tales Queer Film Festival

May 26 - June 3, 2011

PROGRAMMERS QUICK PICKS: TOP NIGHTS OF THE FEST

After a simple, passionate and beautiful love-story, stroll on over and join the Fairy Tales team as the celebrations commence and we eat, drink and gather at Dolce Sapori where they are as passionate about their tradition as we are about films. The Opening Gala is for Fairy Tales members and invited guests only; tickets cannot be purchased to the event but memberships will be available for purchase at the door of the Plaza Theatre 30 minutes prior to the show.

2. CALGARY GETS BETTER: ONE PSA AT A TIME
Sunday May 29 | 4:00 PM
The Plaza Theatre | 1133 Kensington Road NW
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In January, the Calgary Police Service, EMMEDIA Gallery & Production Society and Fairy Tales partnered on an anti-homophobia and anti-bullying campaign wherein youth were given the practical skills to produce Public Service Announcements. After a series of workshops and mentorship in creating their PSAs it’s now time to showcase the work of all participants. At the heart of our film festival is this special night - come and join our team as we celebrate these brave young filmmakers! Opened to the public: we encourage all who are interested to come and venerate the work of the Youth Anti-Homophobia PSA program participants.

3. FESTIVAL SPOTLIGHT: Matinee Idols & A Rocky Life
Monday May 30 | 6:30 PM
The Plaza Theatre | 1133 Kensington Road NW

Most everyone would agree that Roy Harold Scherer, Jr. is one of the most well-known movie idols of all time. Those classic good looks. That brilliant acting. And that stage name: Rock Hudson. Rock Hudson delivered fine entertainment to us all for well over 30 years, but before his death in 1985 he made a far greater contribution to the world: by going public with his homosexuality and illness due to complications arising from AIDS, he brought worldwide attention to the unwarranted stigma that was attached to homosexuality and the dreaded disease. Working in partnership with AIDS Calgary Awareness Association, Fairy Tales presents a fantastic film on Matinee Idol Rock Hudson and a post-screening panel discussion to further engage you. Admission to the panel presented by AIDS Calgary Awareness Association is free with admission to ROCK HUDSON: DARK & HANDSOME STRANGER.

4. BRING-A-STRAIGHT-NIGHT
Tuesday May 31 | 7:00 PM
The Plaza Theatre | 1133 Kensington Road NW

Labels are for soup cans - so bring your favourite straight/ally and introduce them to the power of the queer community. This year, BRING-A-STRAIGHT-NIGHT features WE WERE HERE, an amazing documentary on the arrival and impact of AIDS in San Francisco. It speaks to our capacity as individuals to rise to the occasion, and to the incredible power of the queer community coming together with love, compassion, and determination. This evening will bring our Calgary community together too and ensure there’s no doubt that Fairy Tales is for everyone. Labels be gone! Bring-a-Straight-Night: 2 for 1 Offer! Bring your favourite straight and they’ll get in for free. Available on May 31 only at the venue box office (cash only). If you wish to have a guaranteed ticket you can buy in advance for regular price.

5. “IT GETS BETTER”: DAN SAVAGE & THE POWER OF COMMUNITY - LIVE
Wednesday June 1 | 7:30 PM
Vertigo Playhouse Theatre | 161, 115 - 9 Ave SE, Calgary, AB

“Savage Love” columnist Dan Savage may be known for his “nothing is taboo” discussions of sex and relationships, but in his “It Gets Better” project on YouTube, he addresses the epidemic suicide rate among gay teens. With more than half a million hits in its first week, "It Gets Better" has gained immense popularity as an online community of hope and support for gay teens who struggle with social isolation, depression, and bullying. Speaking out to college audiences in multimedia and interactive presentations, Savage creates a place for young people of all orientations to share their stories and show their support. Refreshingly honest, riveting and direct, Savage’s approach has unleashed the power of community and aims to save lives. Dan Savage attends Fairy Tales 2011to honour our Youth Anti-Homophobia Public Service Announcement program participants. Tickets to “It Gets Better”: Dan Savage & the Power of Community are available now and in limited supply. Please arrive at the theatre early, as this event is general admission. All proceeds from this event’s ticket sales go directly to the 2012 Youth Anti-Homophobia PSA Competition.

6. FESTIVAL SPOTLIGHT: Lovers of a Certain Vintage…
Thursday June 2 | 7:00 PM
The Plaza Theatre | 1133 Kensington Road NW

GEN SILENT is one of the most amazing documentaries that you will see in this lifetime. We can and have often over looked the fact that there is an aging population in the GLBTQ community. Have you ever wondered why no one talks about sexuality after 60? This film is a reminder that our queer seniors are equally brave for both coming out and silently enduring oppressive cultural norms in a time when it seemed those who were GLBTQ would never be given dignity. Join us for this incredible documentary that will serve to whet your appetite for Seniors AGOGO. Seniors AGOGO is comprised of a group of dedicated seniors who have been meeting, laughing and sharing their experiences with love, loss and sexuality to create a series of staged readings, monologues and digital stories. Join us for a lively show…laugh, remember and empathize with the cast! There will be an opportunity to discuss the issues of sexuality and aging after the show with cast members as well as the playwright/director and a representative from Calgary Sexual Health Centre.

7. HAPPILY EVER AFTER-PARTY 11!!
Friday June 3 | 7:00 PM
The Uptown Stage and Screen and Marquee Room | 612 8th Ave SW
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You’ve fallen in love with Sarah Waters’ stories again, you’ve seen the Rocky Life, you’ve brought your straight, celebrated the aging GLBTQ populace and you’ve even enjoyed some Savage Love! Now it’s time to party.

No minors admitted to HAPPILY EVER AFTER-PARTY 11: 18 years old and up only please.
This event is a fundraiser for Fairytales Presentation Society.

FAIRY TALES QUEER FILM FESTIVAL 2011, FILMS BY DATE:

Set against the turbulent and thrilling backdrop of Forties London, THE NIGHT WATCH tells the stories of four young people inextricably linked by their wartime experiences.

FRIDAY MAY 27, 2011

Mel, a gender-variant factory worker, is ready to leave small-town Germany and see the world with brother Knut. When plans goes awry, Mel’s path leads to two hitchhikers who mistake Mel for a handsome Portuguese man - Miguel. Embracing the mutual attraction with spirited Jenny, Mel seizes the opportunity for reinvention as Miguel.

26-year-old Lukas is not living, he’s barely surviving. His dream of making it as a rap musician is on the wane and life with his 46-year-old producer and lover, Mischa, has become unsatisfying. Lukas’ only escape is alcohol and cocaine, a trend that Mischa grows tired off. Mischa soon sets his sites on Lukas’ younger brother Sämi, a growing star in the rap world. Lukas finds himself oscillating between jealousy and concern for his younger brother, who he fears could wind up sharing his fate.

10:45 PM | The Plaza Theatre | Deviant Thriller | 18A – Sexual & Brutal Violence
UNHAPPY BIRTHDAY
Directed by Mark Harriott & Mike Matthews | 2010 | UK | 90 mins
Trailer

A special birthday party becomes a living nightmare for city-dwelling couple Sadie and Rick and their friend Jonny. A refreshingly queer take on the classic British horror film, UNHAPPY BIRTHDAY has a playfully retro vibe, a healthy irreverence and a deliciously deviant heart.

SATURDAY MAY 28, 2011

4:15 PM PM | The Plaza Theatre | 14A
TRANS-MISSION SHORTS
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The committee’s selection of films featuring transgendered characters/themes. Our Trans-mission Shorts package is proudly sponsored by TELUS (Spectrum group).

Sasha, confronted with the everyday prejudice of his homophobic immigrant family, struggles to explore his sexuality, which has been a secret to everyone but himself. Sasha is a bittersweet comedy about the struggle of coming out, and the power of love to transcend prejudice.

MAN AT BATH is from acclaimed French director Christophe Honoré who brought us LOVE SONGS and DANS PARIS. Real life porn star François Sagat plays Emmanuel who is dumped as his boyfriend Omar leaves France to study film in New York City. In a minimalist portrait of each man, the film then follows both as they try to move on with their lives. This is a treat for film lovers due to the intimate and unique camera work throughout the film. But for those that appreciate the nude male form, you will love how the film celebrates Sagat’s sculpted body. Who could ask for anything more?

An Exposé on the transgressive artist (in the purest sense of the term), the leader of the Queercore Movement: Bruce LaBruce. This documentary if for his fans and for those who aren’t fans already: you will be after you see this documentary.

SUNDAY MAY 29, 2011

4:00 PM | The Plaza Theatre | PG – Language May Offend
“Calgary Gets Better”: One PSA a Time
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This is your chance to support the Youth Anti-Homophobia Public Service Announcement program and celebrate the work of our budding young PSA-creators. This gala will include four short films that will compliment the voices of our youth participants. Join us as we recognize the work and courage that went into creating these brand new PSAs! Please join us at HIGHER GROUND after the program to celebrate the youth!

6:45 PM | The Plaza Theatre | 14A - Coarse Language
Save our Lesbian National Parks…

Every year the Programmers lament the lack of narratives on women and so we put this program together for you to try to make it up to you. SAVE OUR LESBIAN PROGRAMMING!

Lazy summer days and warm nights set the stage for this Argentian study of gender confusion. A young girl discovers a new male friend while visiting her father's farm. The young boy is a much-anticipated jockey in the local horse race but, as the doctor-father soon finds out, the young boy is not what he appears. A beautifully crafted, tender look at how a family copes with difference and tradition.

MONDAY MAY 30, 2011

Much more than just a Matinee Idol…
Rock Hudson was a dream of a man; the epitome of masculinity: tall, slim and muscular, and one of the sexiest film stars that Hollywood has ever produced. But who was Rock Hudson really? This documentary sheds light on a famous actor star who performed a clandestine balancing act between his private and public lives; between the heterosexual world of an extremely manly looking screen idol and a darker side of forbidden sexuality lived by a secretly gay man. After the screening there will be a panel discussion hosted by AIDS Calgary Awareness Association.

9:15 PM | The Plaza Theatre | 18A – Sexual Violence
MANHUNT: Male Shorts for Cruisin’
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TUESDAY MAY 31, 2011

A documentary that illuminates and reminds us of the strength of the queer community.
WE WERE HERE is the first documentary to take a deep and reflective look back at the arrival and impact of AIDS in San Francisco. It speaks to our capacity as individuals to rise to the occasion, and to the incredible power of a community coming together with love, compassion, and determination.

Bring-a- Straight-Night: 2 for 1 Offer!
Bring your favourite straight and they’ll get in for free.
Available on May 31 only at the venue box office (cash only). If you do not want to take advantage of the 2 for 1 offer you can buy your tickets in advance and guarantee your seat for regular price.

Mae is a conservative Southern belle of a Mom who dotes on her only son Brian. Every Sunday Mae invites Brian for dinner and serves up a new appropriate young woman of marriageable age for her son’s inspection. Oddly enough for Mae, none of them ever pass the mustard. Armed with a questionnaire from Glamour magazine Mae finally faces the fact that Brian is gay, and aided by her ditzy sister Rose, Mae goes into action mode to find Brian the perfect husband. Hilarity ensues in this laugh out loud comedy as the sister’s launch into unchartered pink waters with gay abandon. An over-the-top farce of unprecedented proportions that works due to the witty script and top-notch performances by Joanne McGee and Carol Goans as the sisters on a mission.

WEDNESDAY JUNE 1, 2011

7:00 PM | The Plaza Theatre | 14A
Canadians Rock the Rainbow
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A shorts package full of fantastic Canadian films!

Wanting more out life, Marie Deschamps decides to leave her native Quebec and head to the ski slopes of British Columbia despite her family's protests. But dismal failure awaits her as she arrives in Whistler lacking the English skills she needs and finding the town in off-season.

The ageing LGBT community is often overlooked by mainstream culture. Gen Silent is a touching documentary examining the lives of the pioneers of equal rights and their new realities. We learn about the hardships they face, like rejection, loneliness, vulnerability, anger, anxiety, deterioration, mental illness, and cancer. We also see strength, hope and new expressions of love, which make their lives so profound. Join us for this incredible documentary that will serve to whet your appetite for Seniors AGOGO, presented by Calgary Sexual Health. Seniors AGOGO is comprised of a group of dedicated seniors who have been meeting, laughing and sharing their experiences with love, loss and sexuality to create a series of staged readings, monologues and digital stories. Now they will meet, laugh and share their stories with you.

Streetlife. No place to go. Sexwork for food. No bed to sleep in, in the city that never sleeps.
Following a group of transgendered youths living rough in the streets of New York City, shot over six years, this ground breaking documentary reveals not only the many trials they must face in their fight to survive in a society that is hostile to their very existence but also the dreams and desires that keep them going in the face of such harsh reality.

JUNE 3, 2011 HAPPILY EVER AFTER-PARTY 11
7:00 PM | The Uptown Stage & Screen | 18+ ONLY | ID Required

LOOSE CANNONS (MINE VAGANTI)
Directed by Ferzan Ozpetek | 2010 | Italy| 114 mins
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In this beautifully shot coming-out comedy from Italy Tommaso (Riccardo Scamarcio) has a comfortable life in Rome as an aspiring writer and is in a steady relationship with his boyfriend Marco — a life he has kept secret from his family. When he's called back to his hometown of Lecce in Southern Italy to help run the family business, he decides to reveal his homosexuality to his conservative family and hopefully get out of his business obligations in the process. When his plans are thwarted, Tommaso gets stuck on the path that he was desperately trying to avoid.

It’s been another fruitful festival and now it’s time to party! After the screening take five steps into the Marquee Room to dance the night away to the beats of DJ Joshua vN, DJ Mike Dub and DJ Jody Crowe.
No minors admitted to HAPPILY EVER AFTER-PARTY 11: 18 years old and up only please.

Fairy Tales Queer Film Festival is presented by:
Fairytales Presentation Society
Suite 202, 351 11th Avenue SW, Calgary, AB T2R 0C7

ON DAN SAVAGE IN CALGARY: Fairytales Presentation Society presents:
“IT GETS BETTER”: DAN SAVAGE & THE POWER OF COMMUNITY
Wednesday June 1 | 7:30 PM
Vertigo Playhouse Theatre | 161, 115 - 9 Avenue SE, Calgary, AB

DAN SAVAGE  Creator of the “It Gets Better” Project and “Savage Love” Column

Dan Savage grew up in "a loud, argumentative, and very Catholic" family, and came out as gay as fruit cocktail. Originally known as a gay-sex columnist, he is now a household name thanks to his It Gets Better video project on YouTube. The project, which has gained immense popularity since its creation in mid September, asks people to make and upload short positive videos about their experiences about the LGBT community. Millions have viewed the videos and participated so far, including President Barack Obama and entertainer Janet Jackson. Advertising Age has called It Gets Better one of the top social media campaigns of 2010. His new book, It Gets Better: Coming Out, Overcoming Bullying and Creating a Life Worth Living, was released in March of 2011.

In 1991 he was the night manager at an independent video store in Madison, Wisconsin, when a co-worker told him he was planning to move to Seattle and start a new alternative newspaper. Savage, a self-described "pushy busybody," replied, "You have to have an advice column. Everybody hates them, but everybody reads them." And suddenly Savage, who'd never considered himself a writer before, was a snarky "Dear Abby" for the sexually active.

Savage's column, "Savage Love," first appeared in 1991, in the first issue of The Stranger. Readers of any sexual persuasion were invited to seek Savage's pithy advice with the salutation "Hey faggot," an attempt by Savage to make the word more socially acceptable. In 1999, Savage announced he'd grown weary of "Hey faggot," possibly because a lot of readers thought "Hey faggot" not "Savage Love" was the name of the column.

The once-a-week column is funny, informative, outrageous, non-judgmental (about consenting sex acts), and very judgmental (about moronic letter-writers). "Savage Love" is now syndicated to better alternative weeklies across America.

Savage is the author of The Commitment: Love, Sex, Marriage, and My Family, Skipping Towards Gomorrah: The Seven Deadly Sins And The Pursuit Of Happiness In America, Savage Love: Straight Answers from America's Most Popular Sex Columnist, and The Kid: What Happened After My Boyfriend and I Decided to Go Get Pregnant. The latter book tells how Savage and his boyfriend adopted their son from his willing mother, a "spare-changing gutter punk." It is also the inspiration for the upcoming musical from the producers of Avenue Q, which had its debut in the 2009-2010 season for the New York-based New Group theater company.

"If the religious right really wanted to stop gay sex ... they should get behind gay people adopting, because nothing puts a stop to gay sex faster."

In addition to writing his column, Savage is now the editor of The Stranger. He's also active in theater, directing queer plays as Keenan Hollahan. Keenan is Savage's middle name, and Hollahan is his grandmother's maiden name.

"Dying is easy," says Savage. "Coming out is hard."

Tickets to “It Gets Better”: Dan Savage & the Power of Community are available now and in limited supply. All proceeds from this event’s ticket sales go directly to the 2012 Youth Anti-Homophobia PSA Program. Please note: seating for this event is on a first-come, first serve basis.

Dan Savage attends Fairy Tales Queer Film Festival 2011 in Honour of the Youth Anti-Homophobia Public Service Announcement Program

Directly inspired by Dan Savage’s “IT GETS BETTER” viral anti-bullying campaign, Calgary Police Service, Fairy Tales and EMMEDIA teamed up in January 2011 to launch a new program in which youth were provided with the tools to create their own anti-homophobia public service announcements. The idea was also inspired by Calgary Police Service’s own professionally produced commercial created with a local youth group called INSIDE OUT. This special initiative engaged youth through film in the promotion of safer and more diverse learning environments, free from homophobia and bullying.

The program included a series of workshops hosted by EMMEDIA Gallery & Production Society, teaching youth the practicalities of filmmaking such as editing, video production and how to make an effective PSA. After acquiring the “how-to”, they utilized equipment at EMMEDIA to create their PSAs. The culmination of their efforts will be shared with the public on Sunday May 29 at 4 PM at a gala in their honour, CALGARY GETS BETTER: One PSA at a Time.

The program was made possible and free for all participants thanks to the TELUS Community Board. The TELUS Calgary Community Board is one of nine across Canada, made up of local community leaders and TELUS team members passionate about the communities where they live and work. They are tasked with seeking out grassroots local charities and supporting them with donations and expertise. The TELUS Calgary Community Board has funded more than 181 projects since its inception in 2006.

Dan Savage’s IT GETS BETTER inspired our Youth Anti-Homophobia PSA program and got our teams thinking about how to engage youth within our own city. We thank Dan for that inspiration and leadership.

You can support this program by attending the Youth Gala on May 29, joining us for “It Gets Better”: Dan Savage & the Power of Community on June 1 and donating to Fairytales Presentation Society. This program will continue annually with your generous support.

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13th Fairy Tales Queer Film Festival

May 26 - June 3, 2011

PROGRAMMERS QUICK PICKS: TOP NIGHTS OF THE FEST

FAIRY TALES QUEER FILM FESTIVAL 2011, FILMS BY DATE: