A last word about Outfest....
Tommorrow, I'll be hanging out all day at the Beverly Hilton for day two of the ABC Press Tour which makes this hit home: Outfest is really over. Why does the Los Angeles LBGT Film Festival mean so much to me?
It is such a pleasure to be able to see people like me up there on the screen in so many different genres and in well-written, well-acted quality films of substance. I was sititng with a twentysomething friend at one of the screenings who was feeling sort of over everything.
And I said to him: "You know why I'm not over everything? Because I remember what it was like to live in the closet, to not have many gay movies to see and many of those out there were about painful subjects like AIDS and living in the closet. There were so few stories with hope and that really shapes you when you're a teen and in your 20s. You wonder, "How can I ever have a happy life?"
Outfest paid tribute to the past in a completely lovely way with the restoration and screening of "Parting Glances." I hope a lot of younger people got an idea of the diginity so many displayed during those years in the 80s when AIDS was a virtual death sentence. And then you see love stories like "Shelter" and "We're All Angels" and you feel hopeful and wonderful comedies like "Love and Other Disasters" where you can see smart and successful people be as dysfunctional as you are when it comes to relationships.
But Outfest is about more than seeing terrifc movies (I took in about 30 this year between screenings and screeners) and meeting stars and directors and writers. It's about having fun with friends like my pal Trevor (pictured with me below) and making all kinds of new friends and acquaintances. I've gotten so many nice e-mails in recent days from people saying: "What are we going to do now that Outfest is over?"
Mainly, it's just the whole experience of being with thousands of people for nearly two weeks and having so many shared experiences - kind of like an alternative universe of gay people. I love that, I love that we have that. I'm old enough to really appreciate how far the festival has come in its 25 years of existence and young enough to look forward to many more.
Here are some of the postings from my incredible 2007 Outfest experience...
- From Perez Hilton to Michael Huffington: My Night at Outfest 2007
- The Cast of Ugly Betty Comes to Outfest...- Judith Light shining bright at Outfest 2007...
- Gay classic 'Parting Glances' restored and celebrated
- Experiencing 'For the Bible Tells Me So"
- "We're All Angels" tells story of Jason and deMarco
- The East Side Story boys hit Outfest...
- Gay-friendly "Brothers & Sisters" gang delights Outfest
Until next summer...
Pictured at right are best actior co-winners Merlin Gaspers and Dorian Brockington" ifor"25 Cent Preview" which the festival's grand jury also chose as best dramatic film.
Grand Jury Awards:
I'll be posting the winner of Outfest awards in a few minutes but first wanted to share some of the humor of the brilliant Bruce Vilanch who hosted tonight's ceremony at the Ford Ampitheatre. I caught up with Bruce after the awards and asked him to pose with the sexy duo of Jensen Atwood and Darryl Stephens and promised I'd start rumors.
"It's such a great story with so many elements to it and it has such a great cast and direction," Alvarado tells me. "It was a phenomenal experience and I think that's why everyone can relate to it. It hits everything: It's funny, it's got some drama to it. It's a great film and I loved being a part of it."
"Being a gay Latino movie that was shot here in Los Angeles,. this is the perfect ending for it," Portugal says of the Outfest playdate. " It's a movie that has a heart, it has some gorgeous, hunky guys and a lot of comedy and amazing performances.It's a movie that talks to the heart about not what it's like to be different, but what it's like to be human. Wanting to have a home, family and friends and be happy where you're at."
Uh, OK. I mean, we are encouraged as festival goers to see all types of films but I wondered why Darryl was seeing a lesbian-themed movie when there were so many movies with so many men and so little time to see them all. Then yesterday, I'm flipping through the Outfest program, I saw that Darryl is one of the film jurors who will decide which film wins what at tomorrow night's awards gala.
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I liked the film, directed and produced by Robert Nunez, very much. It follows the couple as they criss-cross the country performing everywhere from churches to the White Party. They record their CD and we are able to see the warts and all process of that. They also talk about their relationship which is strong, but not perfect. And among those interviewed are parents, actor Chad Allen and Soulforce founder Rev. Mel White and cameos from K.D. Lang and Carson Kressley.
The film is one of five movies at Outfest 2007 that explore being queer and Christian with "For the Bible Tells Me So" the festival's centerpiece documentary earlier this week.
Filmmaker Daniel G. Karslake [pictured with Archbishop Desmond Tutu] has created something so remarkable that I can see so many in the LGBT community sending a copy to their families. It will give parents who are not accepting of their children [and attribute it to religious beliefs] much to think about and it also educates us. This well-researched film examines what, if anything, the Bible actually says about homosexuality as we know it today.It also intelligently explores the way religious conservatives have systematically misled the public in regards to biblical references of homosexuality and how this campaign continues to stigmatize the gay community. 
So I bumped into T.R. Knight last night at the Outfest reception for the superb documentary "For the Bible Told Me So" (OK, I heard he was there and hunted him down) and we talked about the movie which I think is going to change lives.
While the Outfest crowd should be quite receptive to the film, Karslake wants the movie to be seen by everyone. "I actually made the film very specifically for middle America. It's sort of for this moveable middle of people who are, for the first time, meeting somebody in their workplace or in their family or at their school who is gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender but also still kind of go, 'Oh, but they're condemned." And they just want to hear more information. It's really about giving people the ability and the permission to have some new information."
Mark Indelicato, the gloriously free to be himself, fashion-loving kid on ABC's "Ugly Betty," turns 13 today. Although he wasn't among the "Betty" cast members present at Sunday's 
Liight (pictured here with your favorite blogger) really is the belle of the ball at this year's 25th annual Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Film Festival what with her sensational dramatic turn in the opening night film "Save Me" and her appearance with the "Betty" cast. She has been upgraded from recurring cast member to full-fledged regular for the upcoming season.
But yesterday I had planned to go to the premiere of "Tim Gunn's Guide to Style" which was pretty star-studded but not ienough to miss the "Ugly Betty" event. So here are a few picks starting with Reichen Lemkuhl and his hottie boyfriend who look like they were born to walk a red carpet...together! Below, Reichen joins his "Dante's Cove" castmates Jensen Atwood, Gregory Michael and John Fleming for a group shot. 
How fun was this? Pretty damned fun! Much of the cast of gay-fave "Ugly Betty" showed up at the Director's Guild of America yesterday (including my pretend boyfriend Eric Mabius) for a informative and sometimes hilarious panel discussion and a wonderfully intimate after-party. America Fererra, Ana Ortiz, Vanessa Williams, Judith Light, Michael Urie and Mabius were there from the cast as well as the show's creators. The kid who plays Justin was not present but there was much discussion about his character - a 12 year old we all know is gay but a storyline producers want to handle with care. What's great is this is a 12 year old whose family loves him fiercely no matter what.
Kicked off the day pretty early with yet another program of short films under the heading of "Straight Boys." Outfest audiences love their short films and the theater was almost completely full. This year, the shorts have been particularly good. This one was highlighted by this pee-your-pants funny animated short called "Bro and Dude's Cool Afternoon." It's in the outrageous vein of "South Park" with an animated Lance Bass as the main character who takes a few hits but nothing like those reserved for creepy Mark Foley and Ted Haggard. Funny. Funny. Funny. 
I really liked the 21-minute "Flatmates," a Swedish film about two rommates, one gay, one straight, whose sexual tension comes to a head one night. And really excellent was "Shawram and Abbas," a 37-minute film from the Netherlands about two Iranian refugees who pretend they are gay in order to obtain asylum in the Netherlands.
The shorts were followed by the provocativly titled feature "Men in the Nude" ("Ferfiakt") a Hungarian film about a middle-aged novelist married to an actress whose life is turned upside down when he falls in love with a 19-year-old Russian hustler. The title is a bit misleading but certainly succeeded in achieving a packed theater. The movie was well-done and beautifully acted by the three leads and I liked it a lot. But the characters did have their clothes quite often.
It's Sunday afternoon at Outfest 2007 and I'm here at the DGA Theatre between screenings. I have about 20 minutes of spare time so thought I'd start my posting in Alexis Arquette whose documentary "Alexis Arquette: She's Our Brother" screened yesterday. Alexis, of the famed Arquette clan (Patricia, Rosanna, David, among others) starred in many films including gay faves "I Think I Do" and "Grief," among others, and had a recurring role in one of my all-time favortie shows, Showtime's late, great "Beggars and Choosers." Her film follows her journey transitioning from life as a man to living as a transgender woman.
I'm wrapping up my third day at Outfest but before I head home, wanted to tell you about some off-the-charts terrific short films that screened this morning under the title of "Boys Shorts." The photo at right is from "Kali Ma" which is one of the funniest shorts I've ever seen at this festival. A high school student of Indian descent is bullied by the kid at school he has a crush on. The bully writes stuff wit an ink marker on the kids neck and when his mother finds out, she marches over to the kid's house in a rage. She turns into Rambo and teaches blonde bully a lesson he won't soon forget. My God, this was so terrific. Director Soman Chainami, a film student at NYU, deserves major kudos for this 15-minute masterpiece.
And just a brilliant in a different way was the 20 minute gem "I Hate Musicals" directed by Stewart Schill. It's about a work-obsessed guy who works for a cuthroat insurance company that puts the bottom line ahead of humanity. He has a big presentation and tries to get out of attending the opening night of his actress-fiancee's new musical. He ends up going but his cell phone goes off during her big finale. Later, he tells her that she was good but that he hate's musicals and always will. The next morning, he wakes up and he cannot talk - he can only sing. This is where things take off to glorious heights. The musical numbers are so hilarious (there are three in all) and you see how his inability to talk and only sing changes the guy's life. Schill told me after the screening that he plans to make the short into a full-length feature. That is great to hear!
There were six shorts in all and the sexiest was "Heartland," a sweet story about a New Yorker who is forced to go back home and help out on his dad's farm for awhile. He and the hunky farmhand, who is raising his younger siblings after the death of their mother, strike up a friendship that ends up being more. Their kiss in the pick-up is better than Heath and Jake in "Brokeback Mountain." The 12-minute short was directed by Mark Christopher who directed the feature film "54" about the famed Studio 54. That movie starred Ryan Phillipee, Salma Hayak, Mike Meyers and Neve Campbell among others. Much was cut from the film for theatrical release and it is my hope that a more extended version will be released on DVD.
And then there was the feature film "The Picture of Dorian Gray" which is a contemporary retelling of the classic novel by Oscar Wilde. It's now based in NYC in the art world of the 1990s and fully enacts the homoeroticism that was only hinted at in earlier versions. The actor who plays Dorian (David Gallagher) is unbelievably good looking and he is terrific in the role. Director Duncan Roy displays some terrific filmmaking techniques but his storytelling is an absolute mess. I focused hard and still didn't know what the hell was going on half the time. I left the theater very annoyed by the whole thing.
My favorites were "Orphan" [leading man Scott Strasser is pictured at top of page. His performance is brilliant!] and "Mommy's House," the latter which starred Veronica Cartwright [pictured, right] in a deliciously funny and creepy role. Loved her! Also good were "Where we Began" and "Doorman" and rounding out the program were "At the River" and "The Famous Joe Project." Since this was sold out, organizers say they are likely to repeat in next Sunday and I highly recommend you try and catch it...those of you in LA, or within driving distance. They aren't worth flying across the country for, OK?
Of the evening's first film, the French movie "One To Another," the guy said: "It was on the low side of so-so...it was just so FRENCH. I can't do sad movies like that anymore...it's just too much fior me."
Trevor, the little social butterfly that he is, knew more people than I did! And it kinda pissed me off! I did a buncha red carpet interviews before Trevor arrived to steal my thunder and got to hang with Rene Lynch of the LA Times who I worked with for many years - including covering a murder case in Arizona where a madman kept the body of his murder victim in a freezer. Life is a lot less grisly for both of us these days.
It was so great to see the cast of "East Side Story" and to finally meet the writer-director Carlos Portugal. Trevor and I kept running into the guys - like about six times - so we all got rather chummy. Here I am pictured with Steve Callahan who has a lot going on in his career right now. We had a chat that, you guessed it, I'll share in a few days. Steve told me he is a faithful reader of Out In Hollywood.
Once the red carpet slowed down, Trevor and I hit the VIP pre-party. Trevor's motto for the night: "Think VIP!" We gabbed with Perez Hilton whose hair was very orange - frighteningly orange. Perez, who I interviewed for an piece in The Advocate last year, told me he had some kind of big announcement today. I still gotta check and see what it is...Perez is seen hanging out with Tori Spelling and her hubby Dean McDermott at the after-party filming something for Tori's reality show I believe.
I was saved when the ushers started to insist that we go into the theater to our seats. The "East Side Story" dudes told us they had seats in the front row. Trevor lamented our N-48 and N-50 seats. It just wasn't VIP enough for him. We settled in and watched Bill Condon get a special achievement award who said: "I can't describe what it means to me to be recognized today - the phrase 'being recognized by your peers" has a literal meaning." Condon noted that he was standing on the same stage where one of the musical numbers from his "Dreamgirls" was filmed and went on to thank his gay manager and gay agent and partner Dan Morrisey.
Met a buncha people Trevor knew and when I tried to introduce him to someone I know, GLAAD Executive Director Neil Guliano, it turns out they already know each other. And there's Wilson Cruz! "Hi Wilson! Meet Trevor." Knows him. Chad Allen? Knows him (that's Trevor pictured above with Chad). Finally, we spot Tony Tripoli and his boyfriend T.J. (pictured below) and Trevor knows neither of them. Had a great time hanging out with them for awhile and Darryl Stephens (Noah on "Noah's Arc") came by for awhile. Darryl, who also starred in "Boy Culture," has just finished an indie film and is excited to start filming the new "Noah's Arc" movie next month. Tony, once Kathy Griffin's favorite gay friend, and I met when I wrote a cover story on him for Fronteirs Magazine.
What stood out for me the most was the journey that Allen's character takes and how he really seems to find himself after being so lost and how, in the end, he makes his own choices and doesn't feel bad about himself. But he had to get there and Allen makes his journey believable and touching. But Judith Light is the real revelation here. My God. She inhabits this role so completely and gives so much depth to a very conflicted character with many layers. She conveys what she is thinking or feeling so well just with the look on her face. I was so impressed with Light and I hope she gets award recognition for her superb work. 
