Celebrate the 2014 Mardi Gras Film Festival

FILM lovers present at the December 4 Queer Screen session of Kill Your Darlings were given an extra treat, with newly-appointed festival director Paul Struthers announcing 10 key films to screen at the 2014 Mardi Gras Film Festival.

Local gems, international festival hits, documentaries and feature films are among the 10 ‘teaser films’ on offer next year.

“The main highlight for me is Reaching for the Moon, which is probably one of my favourite films I’ve seen. It stars Miranda Otto as the poet Elizabeth Bishop, who goes to Brazil to visit one of her friends who’s in a lesbian relationship. It’s great to be able to have an Australian premiere for opening night, and a lesbian film at that,” Struthers told the Star Observer.

The 2014 Festival will also see the world premiere of Friend of Dorothy, a life-spanning documentary about the acclaimed Sydney artist William Yang peppered with incredible photographs from his many years documenting Sydney’s LGBTI nightlife.

Another documentary of interest is Mr Angel, which chronicles the extraordinary life of transgender advocate, educator and porn pioneer, Buck Angel.

Those looking for steamy romantic melodrama should look no further than what’s been dubbed the first Polish gay film, Floating Skyscrapers.

“It’s about a male swimmer who looks like he might qualify for the Olympic team but ends up having quite a few liaisons in the shower room, which puts his career and his relationships in jeopardy,” Struthers said.

Also this week, the Star Observer launched the official Queer Screen print guide for the Mardi Gras Film Festival, celebrating 21 years of queering Sydney’s cinemas. The annual event is curated and created by the Queer Screen organisation and runs from February 13 to 23, 2014. Grab the lift out in this week’s edition to catch a glimpse of the 10 films announced for the festival’s 21st birthday celebration.

If you want to show your support for Queer Screen, head to the Fundraising Trivia event taking place at the Warren View Hotel in Enmore on December 8 – there’s trivia, a silent auction and great prizes up for grabs, with all funds raised going towards staging next year’s Mardi Gras Film Festival.

INFO: Fundraising Trivia, Warren View Hotel Enmore December 8. queerscreen.org.au

View the lift out online via the Star Observer website. Tickets are available now at queerscreen.org.au.

REACHING FOR THE MOON: Lesbian-themed highlight of the 2014 Mardi Gras Film Festival.