June is here, and the world is covered in rainbows once again. Our hosts take some time to reflect on the institution that Pride has become in our culture, and explore our own ambivalence about Pride — the joy and the cynicism. What is the relationship between Pride and Queer film festivals in the cities we serve? What happens when Queer community organizations need to compete with each other for corporate dollars? What does it mean for our community to be so heavily marketed to? ALSO: We share what films embody the spirit of Pride for us, and make some recommendations for inspiring, feel-good, or fiery Pride pics to watch this month!

We take a moment to reflect on the passing of a great friend of Queer cinema, Michael Gamila, and to discuss the role that Queer film festivals play in our history and in our communities. We are joined by Steven Weisenreder from ImageOut and Shane Engstrom from Out Film CT to discuss the history of their film festivals and what it means to run a Queer film festival outside of a major city. We chat about how 80s activism led to a wave of creation of Queer film fests, in places from community meeting rooms to mob-run porno theaters, and we talk about the role that Queer film festivals can still play for a contemporary audience who are now generations removed from their founding.

We are joined by director Chase Joynt (Framing Agnes, No Ordinary Man) for a discussion of trends in Trans cinema. In recent years, the world has seen an outpouring of innovative, formally inventive, and emotionally compelling Trans films. While traditional Trans narratives still have a place, the films of the Trans New Wave are being made for and by Trans people, and look past explainers and transitions to explore in full the complexity of Trans lives on screen.

We kick off with a chat about what we saw at the Berlinale Panorama, the unofficial kickoff of the Queer film festival season.  Why is Berlin so important to Queer Cinema? And then we dive back into the discussion of Queer genres — and why are there so many the lesbian period drama? How do years of Queer cinema build us up to expect our gay characters to meet bad fates? PLUS: Is the “coming out film” the only genre that belongs to Queer cinema?

Everyone knows what film genres are: science fiction, horror, mystery, comedy. But what does it mean to make a genre Queer? Is it telling the story of a genre with Queer people included? Or does it involve changing how the story is told, and finding new surprises in old structures? Plus: How can filmmakers subvert homophobic genre tropes, like Queer/Trans villains and victims? Whose job is it to undo decades of harmful representation? 

WARNING: WHITE LOTUS SPOILERS! Blast from the past! Remember the early 2000s? While the world was reeling from 9/11 and the beginning of new wars, literal and cultural, a lot was going on in Queer film in this changed landscape. The digital video revolution helped make it cheaper to make Queer films (for better and for worse), and Hollywood was producing some good Queer work too -- though now some of it feels problematic in hindsight. But can we still approach and appreciate those films for what they were at the time? PLUS: were the 2000s the golden age for the lesbian comedy?

We talk through the highlights (and some lowlights) in Queer cinema from 2022. What were our favorite movies and TV shows? Where are all the lesbian movies? Are the streamers our great hope for the future of queer film and TV? Or maybe it's Canada!

No film form explores Queer history more frequently or enthusiastically than the documentary — showing our past, showcasing amazing Queer people of history, and unearthing images of Queer lives from times and places we don’t see. What makes the Queer documentary such a powerful format? What are the techniques and topics that make Queer docs shine through?

A common question about Queer cinema is always: is it all about the sex? While Queer cinema can get pretty hot and heavy, is sex necessary for a film to be Queer? What do Queer audiences expect from Queer cinema? Plus: Our hosts recommend some of their favorite sexy queer films!

Time to clear something up: if we’re going to talk about Queer film, what makes a movie Queer? Is it a function of who it’s by? Who it is for? Or is it just a vibe? We play a challenging round of “Is it Queer?” — The Birdcage? Power of the Dog? Philadelphia? Plus: how Queer is teen television today?