**Expected to attend: Director Stephen Cone
USA/86 Minutes - REGIONAL PREMIERE
HENRY GAMBLE’S BIRTHDAY PARTY spans the 24 hours containing the birthday pool party of 17-year-old preacher’s kid Henry Gamble.
The night before the party, Henry and his friend Gabe, have a sleepover. Typical teenage boy chat quickly turns sexual, and it’s silently implied that Henry, on a search for identity, has a crush on Gabe.
As dawn arrives on the day of the party, Henry’s mom Kat wakes in a state of limbo, middle-aged, with a secret. A little while later, Pastor Bob is making breakfast, and they are joined by Henry’s 19-year-old sister Autumn, home from college for the party. Later that afternoon, guests begin to arrive – the assistant pastor, youth minister, husbands and wives; sons and daughters trapped between youth and adulthood, as well as Henry’s own teenaged church and “secular” friends, including the closeted young Logan, who has eyes for Henry.
As day turns to night and clothes come off, Henry & Co. carefully navigate the religious strictures and sexual secrets held within the community, all struggling to tread the public and private, and their longing, despite themselves and their faith, for earthly love.
UK/97minutes - REGIONAL PREMIERE **MUST BE 18 OR OLDER TO ATTEND**
DOCUMENTARY - Pioneering erotic filmmaker Peter de Rome tells his astonishing life story with humour and charm in this surprising and heart-warming documentary – the feature debut of director Ethan Reid.
Spanning more than eight decades of gay experience in Britain and the US, Peter de Rome Grandfather of Gay Porn charts its subject's journey from cinematic outlaw to celebrated film icon with contributions from friends and collaborators.The film was completed shortly before De Rome's death, and features extensive extracts from his varied and often explicit work - from his early 8mm experiments in the 1960s to his extraordinary feature films - to create a vivid portrait of a true one-off.
USA/90 minutes - REGIONAL PREMIERE
Indiewire called it “a gay horror camp classic in the making.”
An intriguing mix of horror, camp and romantic comedy, YOU'RE KILLING ME demonstrates what happens when narcissistic, wannabe Internet star George meets Joe, a monotone serial killer.
USA/86 minutes - ARKANSAS PREMIERE
Over the course of one meditative Friday afternoon, two closeted Muslim teens have their secretive lives rattled by lingering FBI surveillance. NAZ & MAALIK examines the mysterious forces that animate teenage minds.
Zac and Luc, Directed by Robert W. Gray
Canada - 14:36
A split-screen film telling two versions of the entire story of a relationship. Each memory becomes intertwined with all the others: the firsts, the lasts, the middles, each of the small nothing moments that add up to something in the end.
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Camouflage, Directed by Stephan Kämpf & Andreas Kessler
Germany - 7:40
During a military exercise in the woods, two soldiers cover each other's faces in camouflage paint. In such a delicate situation, in which every trembling of the finger is perceivable, Max tries to find out the truth about Christian. He fears to become a target of the group himself, if his best friend actually turns out to be gay. As Max feels more and more pressured by his surrounding, he pushes Christian to confess.
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Warpaint, Directed by Al Benoit
USA - 16:02 **REGIONAL PREMIERE**
Watch the trailer!
Warpaint tells the story of Carey and Audrey, two seventeen year old girls who fall in love over a summer at their parents' lake houses.
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Midnight, Directed by TR Wilkinson
USA/Australia - 19:59 **REGIONAL PREMIERE**
Watch the trailer!
Shane and Aiden decide to experiment with an open relationship. Can their relationship survive it?
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Brace, Directed by Sophy Holland & Alicya Eyo
UK - 24:13
Watch the trailer!
After coming out and leaving his girlfriend, Adam dreams of finding acceptance within London's gay scene. His burgeoning freedom is soon challenged when he meets Rocky, a handsome stranger who is harboring a secret that he desperately wants to share with Adam. As their bond strengthens and Rocky prepares to reveal his secret to Adam, their fledgling romance is ruptured by a cataclysmic event that forces the truth to come out in the most explosive manner.
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Good Morning, Directed by Nicholas Vaky
Taiwan - 4:57 **WORLD PREMIERE**
A woman wakes up in what seems to be an ideal world, but is it?
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Waiting Room, Directed by Kira Trinity
USA - 16:30 **REGIONAL PREMIERE
Elijah was a good guy, but now he's dead. Luckily, sassy Jesus got his back.
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Narrative Shorts Block #4
Pretty Boy, Directed by Cameron Thrower
USA - 32 **REGIONAL PREMIERE**
Watch the trailer!
Sean is taken to a motel and is given a prostitute for his 18th birthday by his father. He must sleep with her to "fix" his questionable homosexuality. Aside from acceptance, "Pretty Boy" is about confidence, finding an inner strength, and being who you are meant to be.
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Perpetual, Directed by Peter Ahlen
Denmark - 26:00 **INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE**
The young Sebastian explores her sexuality and looking for love online. He meet with the older Jacob in a seedy sex club. In the new and dark surroundings Sebastian surrender to the present and in their subsequent meetings Sebastian falls in love with Jacob. Outside the dark compartment and the intense togetherness, the realities starts to show and perhaps it is more lust for the young body and not love Jacob is looking for?
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hopefulROMANTIC, Directed by Benjamin Pollack
USA - 16:30
Watch the trailer!
hopefulROMANTIC is an original musical film about one man's (Matt Zarley) emotional journey through love, heartbreak, and healing. It's a universal story about loving, letting go, and holding onto faith that there's somebody for everybody. The nearly dialogue-free narrative is articulated solely through Matt Zarley and Andy Zulla's soulful pop score...introducing a fresh new format in musical storytelling. George Takei co-stars.
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Caged, Directed by Lazlo & Dylan Tonk
Netherlands - 13:14
When a high school track athlete discovers that his teammate and best friend is gay he must risk either his friendship or his reputation.
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Dos Almas, Directed by Danielle Villegas
USA - 15:45
Watch the trailer!
1850, deep in the western wilderness, a woman finds herself alone and vulnerable. Worlds collide when two spirit natures are revealed.
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Tomorrow, Directed by Leandro Tadashi
USA - 13:20
Watch the trailer!
New Year's Eve 1999 finds college-bound Clark and Trevor concerned about the future of their friendship, and a request for Clark to be Trevor's wingman ensures things will never be the same again.
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A Little Bit Country, Directed by Amy Coop
UK - 6:39
Dylan is a teenager who harbours a dark secret. Whilst he may look like many other sulky teen, he hides another side to his personality away from the world.
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Carpe Jugular, Directed by Kai Stänicke
Germany - 5:17
Expected to attend: Director Jon Bush and subject Mario Diaz
USA/70 minutes - ARKANSAS PREMIERE **MUST BE 18 OR OLDER TO ATTEND**
**Expected to attend: Reel in the Closet Director Stu Maddux
SHORT FILM SCREENING BEFORE FEATURE:
The DAMN Deal, Directed by Elizabeth Gracen *DIRECTOR IS A NATIVE ARKANSAN
USA/MADE IN ARKANSAS/25:06 - REGIONAL PREMIERE
In 1997, filmmaker and former Miss America, Elizabeth Ward Gracen, interviewed three young female impersonators who competed in the Miss Gay America Pageant system. The lost footage, now restored, explores gender identity in the South during the late 20th century.
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Reel in the Closet, Directed by Stu Maddux
USA/82 minutes - REGIONAL PREMIERE
Reel In The Closet is a feature-length documentary that transports us into LGBT life of the past through rare home movies of the people who lived it. Many of the moving images in this film are shown for the first time. Many more wait to be discovered in people’s closets but are being thrown out- sometimes on purpose.
The completed film is a “crowd work in progress”. More closets are opened each day containing home movies that reveal more of the LGBT experience. These new treasures are regularly added to the documentary and to this online community.
FREE SCREENING IN THE LOBBY BAR
USA/67 minutes - ARKANSAS PREMIERE
A bird’s eye view of the issues faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people from the early 20th century to the present. Director Laura D’Antoni examines bullying, coming out, history, religion and suicide through a series of interviews of LGBT people sharing their own experiences. Paralleling the stories is the biography of Miami-Dade educator Robert Loupo, whose own experiences with suicide and assault led him to create the "Safe Schools South Florida" to train teachers to recognize and intervene in anti-gay bullying.
FREE SCREENING IN THE LOBBY BAR
A Mississippi Love Story
USA - 13:06
Watch the trailer!
A Mississippi Love Story introduces the viewer to Eddie and Justin, together living what might otherwise be considered an ordinary life during an extraordinary time in history. It provides a glimpse into the relationships the two have with one another, and with family, friends and their Deep South hometown. Against the backdrop of legal battles about same-sex marriage, Eddie and Justin share their personal take on what love really means.
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And Counting, Directed by Michelle Wood
USA - 14:33
Taking you on an experimental odyssey, “And Counting” celebrates one man's unexpected journey of living longer with HIV than he ever imagined possible.
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Purpose in the Pulpit, Directed by Carter McCall
USA - 7:56
Watch the trailer!
Pastor Dennis Massenberg reflects on the internal struggle he faced in reconciling his faith and his sexuality on the path to establishing his own church.
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Born Wrong, Directed by Rob Daglish
UK - 8:21
"Born Wrong" is an experimental film about my family coping and reacting to my brother going through a sex change. The film is a visual snap shot of the emotional turmoil one feels when making such a transition, as well as the emotions of those closest to them.
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First Clue, Directed by Susan Sullivan
USA - 6:24
Watch the trailer!
First Clue poses the question “What was your first clue you were a lesbian?” The answers are playful and poignant prequels to our “when did you know?” and “coming out” stories. Charming and upbeat, First Clue reveals our earliest intuitions that we knew and delighted in who we were until we were taught otherwise. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Stella Walsh, Directed by Rob Lucas
USA - 15:38
Watch the trailer!
The tragic story of the greatest female athlete in the world, her murder and the gender controversy that followed...
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**Expected to attend: Director Matthew Doyle, Stars Remy Mars and Antonio Biaggi
USA/82 minutes - WORLD PREMIERE
Chasing Pavement stars Remy Mars as Elijah Young, an 'urban' porn star who is preparing to leave the adult entertainment industry and start a new career as a chef. His new roommate, Takeshi, played by Tokio Sasaki, is a Japanese immigrant who is looking for a new start in the information technology field. Takeshi, who feels completely invisible in the United States, becomes obsessed with his extremely visible flatmate. Takeshi's obsession culminates in a violation of boundaries that brings the two together for a moment of intimacy that neither will soon forget. The movie also stars Antonio Biaggi as Bryson Colon, a man with a troubled past who frequently hires Elijah as an escort, but wants much more.
Spain/61 minutes - REGIONAL PREMIERE
A lo-fi spin on Philip K. Dick’s "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep,” famously adapted by Ridley Scott in 1982’s “Blade Runner”.
You have to be vigilant. Someone wants to harm you. Spain in 2052 is an abandoned construction site and gunshots echo on empty walls.
It is the year 2052, on Earth, in Spain, and the final days of almost everything. The city is a string of abandoned construction sites. Everyday there are fewer people and not all of them are human. A sheep costs four and a half million pesetas and you have to spend a lot of bullets to pay for one.
Lady of The Night, Directed by Laurent Boileau
France - 9:40
The annual dinner commemorating the death of Cornelius, revives Samuel’s memories. He never revealed his homosexuality to Cornelius’s family, whom he had invited that evening. After their departure, he becomes a Queen of the Night, in tribute to his lost love.
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My Personal Art History, Directed by Neil Ira Needleman
USA - 3:11
A poignant "love- story in waiting" told with famous paintings by Courbet, Renoir, Boucher, Degas, Rubens, and many others.
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Nothing, Directed by Keith Curry
USA/MADE IN ARKANSAS - 19:00 **NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE**
Watch the trailer!
The day in the life of man who has to decide on avenging his brothers death or choose life.
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You.Me.Bathroom.Sex.Now, Directed by Francisco Lupini Basagoiti
USA - 17:20
Watch the trailer!
A comedy about a man who tries to forget about love in all the wrong places. When Antonio finds out that his boyfriend is cheating on him three days before Christmas, he decides to find solace amongst friends at the neighborhood dive.
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The Last Girl, Directed by Bjarke de Koning
Denmark - 13:07
Watch the girl!
Life is not the same after a holiday with Jesper and there is no avoiding the truth now.
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Intrinsic Moral Evil, Directed by Harm Weistra
Netherlands - 10:45
Watch the trailer!
A tale of identity and coming of age. But above all, a game with the viewer’s perception and expectations.
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Life in Colors, Directed by Mark Margason
USA - 13:02
Watch the trailer!
Life in Colors' follows a few brief moments in the lives of two women from the United Kingdom in the 1940's, it takes us on a journey of their passion, love and desire to be together in a world that is against that love.
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Devin, Directed by Jesus Martinez
USA/ Made in Arkansas - 4:00
A person fights to keep an unlikely friend alive.
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**Expected to attend: Co-Director/Cinematographer Dylan Hansen-Fliedner and Co-Director/Actor Jay Jadick
USA/86 minutes - REGIONAL PREMIERE
Lee, a drug-addled yet sensitive musician, is in love with Will, an ambitious poet. Volatile and intense, Will is hesitant to make himself vulnerable to Lee’s affection. After a year apart, the two reunite for a weekend at Lee's home in the country. Not knowing how to be free and connected at the same time, the men struggle to find what they are driving towards.
Edge Los Angeles said "It has a good narrative, which is propelled by that raw energy of a project that is fuelled by that passion of talented and innovative first time filmmakers."
Some Rainbows Never Gery (Australia/15:00)
Director: Peter Jacobsen
Jim, Allan and Ian, three older gay men from Melbourne, Australia, openly discuss why they chose to marry women in the 1960s, the period of heartbreak which followed and their eventual self-discovery.
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Water (Mexico/12:00)
Director: Ricardo Esparragoza
The life of Daniel, an introverted teenager, takes a turn with the arrival of his new swimming classmate. The outgoing personality of Carlos, makes Daniel doubt about his personality and sexuality.
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Border Woods (USA/21:03)
Director: Miles Carey
When Rowan loses track of his high-school friends in the woods the night of their goodbye camping trip before college, he is plunged into a fantastical world where he must face his hopes, fears, and sexuality, as he is pushed ever closer to the border with the unknown.
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Plunge (Australia/5:30)
Director: Kate Lefoe
A romantic day trip tests the relationship of two young lovers.
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Falling Angels (Denmark/27:36)
Director: Maria Winther Olsen
Julia - the priest's daughter - falls in love with the beautiful Barbara, who just moved to the island. A story about forbidden love and the impossible choices it leads to.
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A Kiss From Your Lips (USA/3:30)
Director: Allison Tate
A young swing dancer looks for her perfect dance partner.
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Southern Pride (USA/Made in Arkansas/7:19)
Director: Nick Lane
When it seems their young son will be proposing to his girlfriend over dinner, a southern gay couple go on a walk and get into a fiery debate about the pros and cons of marriage.
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**Expected to attend: S&M Sally Director Michelle Ehlen
SHORT FILM SCREENING BEFORE FEATURE:
Bad at Dancing, Directed by Joanna Arnow
USA/11:27 - Silver Bear winner at Berlin Film Festival
A perpetual third wheel and awkward outsider, Joanna increasingly inserts herself into the relationship of her more charismatic roommate Isabel. The two women test each other’s sexual and emotional boundaries in this surreal dark comedy.
S&M Sally, Directed by Michelle Ehlen
USA/79 minutes - REGIONAL PREMIERE
When Jamie finds out her girlfriend Jill has spent time exploring BDSM, her insecurities about falling behind in the bedroom push her to propose that they start going to underground clubs. Identifying as the butch one in a traditional butch/femme couple, Jamie assumes she will take the dominant role in their escapades, with Jill as her submissive, but Jill has ideas of her own. A provocative and hilarious ride, S&M Sally details the unexpected journey that happens when your insecurities push you outside of your comfort zone.
