Queer West Arts and Culture Festival Founded
in 2001, incorporated as a Toronto Ontario not-for-profit charity in 2008, #1752698.
The Centre produces performing arts festivals
and events for the purposes of educating and advancing the public’s understanding
and appreciation of performing arts and to educate artists through participation
in such festivals and related workshops. We are open
to all orientations, with a focus on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, transgendered,
questioning and two-spirited communities.
queering boundaries
Queering Boundaries means going beyond a fixed identity and embracing fluidity.
Though situated in the West of Toronto, we see the literal city borders and
boundaries as contested and in flux.Through the medium of film, the Queer West
Film Festival will push for a more inclusive and complex queer identity; a queer
identity that is necessarily shaped through interactions with place, space and
community. At the same time, the sites, sounds and boundaries of Toronto's "West
End" will be (re)claimed, (re)presented and (re)named as "queer".
Toronto is a city where queers come from different spaces, converging and
diverging to create their own sense of community, and the Queer West Film Festival
emphasizes that sense of connectedness.
Queer West Film Festival - Mission Statement - Our mission is to provide
a voice for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered and queer youth by presenting
films and videos that only represent the diversity of the GLBT community. By
providing innovative, diverse, accessible, quality screen events, which promote/stimulate,
educate, enlighten, support queer cultures and entertain us all.
OUR FESTIVAL doesn't receive Arts or foundations grants and or City Funding
We have no grant writers, we have a callout, no one has offered to help us,
as yet). Which means our festival will remain small, for the foreseeable future.
We still manage to produce a fun filled seven to ten day queer arts festival
every year. Paid for by private donations, fundraising, gallery, venues, in-kind
services and local business sponsorship and through entrance fees (Usually PWYC
or $5 about 2%. 98% of the events are free All performers are paid a reasonable
amount to cover costs. We've never had a deficit in ten years.
1st Queer West Film Festival 2008
Forest Lightbody - Program Director.
Guest Speakers on June 18, 2008
Two
guests speakers were on hand for Q & A following the videos. Kristyn Dunnion a self described saucy tart, Dunnion
is the author of novels Missing Matthew and Mosh Pit. Her short stories
are published in numerous collections. She earned a BA in English and
Theatre at McGill University, and an MA in English at the University of
Guelph. She has written articles and book reviews and has interviewed
other authors for radio and print media. She enjoys facilitating workshops
for emerging writers of all ages, but especially loves meeting with teens
and young adults to talk about reading, writing, and life in general.
BIG BIG SKY a Duuion, demo video for the new speculative
fiction novel by Dunnion. Teenaged assassin warrior women complete intensive
military training as high-grade biodegradable weapons of the future. Big
Big Sky is part anarchist fable, part distopian fiction, and part lesbian
love story. The Video Short as produced by Dunnion and Helen Prancic.
BIG BIG SKY is published by Red Deer Press, 2008.Purchase your copy at
any tonight or t This Ain't The Rosedale Library (Nassau Street, Kensington
Market) and Another Story (315 Roncesvalles). .Visit www.kristyndunnion.comSpeaking and Q&A at 10:10 pm
Film-maker Robert Thomson, who works at Woody's talking
about his two films Shot during the brutal snowstorms of January and February
2008,"Waiting" is Robert Thomson's first attempt
at filmmaking. Originally intended to be a black comedy with an all drag
cast, the weather prevented "Waiting" from evolving as conceived
and, in the end, the weather itself ended up being a character in the
film, providing an ideal background for the character's seated frustration
and inertia.Mark Rosenbauer's music adds the perfect texture to this moody
piece.
Armed with a new camera and a lifetime of cinematic longing, Thomson followed
up "Waiting" with "Waking Up," which he considers his next
logical step in the process of spiritual awakening. Shot in May and early June
of 2008, this short film is a collage of moods and images,and reflects a more
hands-off approach to life and filmmaking. "Waking Up" is about
awareness and stillness. Visit Robert Thomson's web site: roberthomson.comSpeaking and Q&A at 11:15 pm
Event Details: Wednesday June 18, 2008 we held the 1st annual Queer West
Film & Video Fest @ Good Catch General Store 1556 Queen St. W. Parkdale
. Doors opened at 8 pm the show ran from 9:00 PM to 11:00 PM An outdoor back
parking lot www.goodcatch.caand on Saturday Evening August 23rd we saw incredible two hours of some
of the best queer youth film making today. A premier event, with many submitted
videos, never previously shown publicly in Toronto by underground queer filmmakers.
Both evenings were in the back parking lot of Good Catch General Store.
Good Catch Owner Jola Slovobak, donated 60 comfortable chairs. The movie screen
was a white bed-sheet hung on one of the walls of the adjacent building. Every
20 minutes Slovobak would come out of her store and raffle off crafts, to help
us raise funds, since we couldn't charge a fixed admission. The event was PWYC.
Everyone raved about Jola's chocolate covered popcorn. all 60 chairs were filled
and 25 people stood a back or sat on the ground. Our first Film festival raise
$200, after we paid the driver from delivery of the chairs.
We also held our first Queer West Youth Film Festival on August 23, 2008.
A question-and-answer session took place after the showing of the films with
film directors. "There were many films not previously shown publicly in
Toronto. The event took place in the back parking lot of Good Catch General
Store; doors open at 8 p.m. with shows running from 9 to 11 p.m. There was no
reserve seating and seating was on a first-come, first-seated basis, 60 chairs
only. We had film break at about 10:10 p.m. unfortunately at 10.30 pm there
was a sudden thunder shower, cancelling the balance of the outdoor show.
2nd annual Queer West Film Festival 2009
Forest Lightbody - Program Director.
Films shorts screened at the Saturday June 20 festival
1. Brown Like Me (27 min), short documentary of the journeys of queer
South Asian youth. from Rahim Thawer and Ms Mohini Datta-Ray from ASAAP Alliance
for South Asian AIDS Prevention.
2. If Tomorrow Comes (7 min) , a tongue-in-cheek chick-flick of a love
story about two boys breaking up and getting back together, Danielle Steele
style. From From irondvds.com
3. Pedro Levantate ( 14 min) - Director Jose Sunsin brings us into the
lives of a Spanish Father and his son, only this time the Father is matchmaker,
setting up his son with the local mechanic -- that way his boy can get a date
and a job! But there is trouble in auto paradise with Loan Sharks threatening
the lovebirds in this action- comedy. From irondvds.com
4. Don't Show This Film! (16 min) Two gay characters from an erotic
book are stuck in a box at the border --what's a couple of guys to do? Enjoy
this hilarious, informative take on the history of Canadian censorship, by award
winning writer Rosemary Doyle. Actors Ami Heller, Trevor Covelli, Joanna Swan
and Mark Purvis ensure you'll never cross the boarder the same way. From irondvds.com
5. Katrina del Mar's - A Beautiful Death (6 min) Lesbian
vampires play rock ‘n’ roll and board games before devouring their latest virginal
victim; a rockstar. By New York Director: Katrina del Mar. www.myspace.com/katrinadelmar
| www.katrinadelmar.com
6.Katrina del Mar's - Gang Girls 2000 ( 27 min.) The celebrated
photographer of New York’s underground freaks and rockers brings her aggressively
sexual images to life on screen, presenting a lesbian rumble in the tradition
of Hollywood’s best b-movie bad girls. In Glorious GlitterVision! In Luxurious
Leatherama! What these girls do, you will Not Believe! Bike riding ChicKettes!
Truck driving Sluts! ! Yes, ladies and gentlemen this is IT! The Cinematic Triumph
of Katrina del Mar's unfettered imagination! Shot in glorious super 8mm on the
rough streets of New York City! A cast of 30 beautiful women driving fast cars,
wearing tight pants, eating candy, fighting, kissing and riding horses! The
girl gang movie that started it all! Four foxy girl gangs tear it up on the
streets of the Lower East Side, and rumble on the beach at Coney Island."
By legendary New York City lesbian filmmaker, Katrina del Mar.. www.myspace.com/katrinadelmar
| www.katrinadelmar.com
We would like to thank ASAAP
(Alliance for South Asian AIDS Prevention) for loaning us their DVD Projector.
We really appreciate their kind offer.
The Details: Saturday June 20, 2009 at Fixt Point Theatre, 1550 Queen
St W. beside Mitzi's Sister and Good Catch General Store. (Parkdale) PWYC
Doors: 8 pm to 10:30 pm. Queer West Village, Toronto Ontario
3rd annual Queer West Film Festival 2010
Saturday August 14th, 2010— 3rd annual Toronto International
Queer West Film Festival
Where: The Revue Cinema (244 Seats)
Address: 400 Roncesvalles Avenue
Start Time: 4 pm
End Time: 6 pm
Impromptu after party at the Local right next to the Revue
Film directors will attend, and a Q & A follows time permitting
Cover $5/PWYC
About Queer
West Film Festival
Casey Reid - Program Director.
QUEER WEST FILM FESTIVAL 2010 – FINAL FILMS SELECTION
DIRECTOR: Pablo Herran de Viu
TITLE: MISUNDERSTOOD 15:53 min
ABOUT: Alvaro understands that in order to project a sincere smile, you must
understand and accept yourself first.
DIRECTOR: Ilona Alex Abramovich
WEB SITE www.ilona6.com
TITLE: Where Is The Support? 4 min
ABOUT: A short film that portrays the complexities and painful impact that coming
out has.
DIRECTORS: Ilona Alex Abramovich and Amy Siegel
TITLE: Out on the Street 11 min
ABOUT: This short film explores LGBTQ youth homelessness in Toronto and the
lack of support available. Several people’s lived experiences are shared.
DIRECTOR: Abby Lambert
WEB SITE vimeo.com/user2499436
TITLE: Confession 1:56 min
ABOUT: Struggling with her gender identity, a female confesses, to herself,
a desire to be masculine. This is revealed through grooming routines.
DIRECTOR: Abby Lambert
TITLE: Self Serve 2:09 min
ABOUT: A woman finds power and pleasure in her domestic work comparable to a
man in uniform.
DIRECTOR: Francoise Doherty
WEB SITE en.wikipedia.org/Doherty
TITLE: Girl Bunnies. HOCKEY. 5 min
ABOUT: A musically animated stop motion story of a homo-girl-rabbit-world. Coco
loves hockey, but she REALLY loves hockey girl.
DIRECTOR: Kyisha Williams
TITLE: Red Lips 10 min
ABOUT: Explores racialized/queer/trans/femme sexualized and criminalized identity.
It articulates and challenges interpersonal and systematic violence – while
celebrating the ways in which we survive and celebrate ourselves
DIRECTOR: Jakeb Anhvu
TITLE: S.W.A.Y 5 min
ABOUT: This short documentary tells the story of Andie Hider. Andie was born
with a condition called Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome or A.I.S, which has
been incorrectly labeled “hermaphrodite”.
DIRECTOR: David Aronson
TITLE: Night Nurse 16:10 mins
ABOUT: Night Nurse details the troubled life of a youngster in the throes of
depression and the lascivious nurse taking care of him.
We were also proud to screen the boundary queering work of Toronto’s LGBT Triangle
Program through a brief 15 year retrospective. http://triangleprogram.ca/about-2/
We were excited to screen films that question the boundaries of the home,
the body and the mind since 2008. Films that create a dialogue about racialized/trans/queer
identity. Films that rethink and redefine the queer subject on screen. Mostly,
the films screened at the Queer West Film Festival strive to broaden the notion
of identity through each films narrative (de) construction.
The 4th annual Queer West Film Festival 2011.We are unable to find a sponsor 2011 Queer West Film Festival which was
to be held Sat Aug 13th, 2011. The Revue Cinema could no longer hold the
date for us, as they were going to press with the August calender. We have
decided instead to feature the twelve different LGBT films we selected as
winners for this years festival, on our web site quietly and without publicity..
See Them Here!
Get Social - Join us on:
Who we Are
Queer West Arts and Culture Festival Founded in 2001, incorporated as a Toronto Ontario not-for-profit charity in 2008, #1752698. The Centre produces performing arts festivals and events for the purposes of educating and advancing the public’s understanding and appreciation of performing arts and to educate artists through participation in such festivals and related workshops. We are open to all orientations, with a focus on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, transgendered, questioning and two-spirited communities.
queering boundaries
Queering Boundaries means going beyond a fixed identity and embracing fluidity. Though situated in the West of Toronto, we see the literal city borders and boundaries as contested and in flux.Through the medium of film, the Queer West Film Festival will push for a more inclusive and complex queer identity; a queer identity that is necessarily shaped through interactions with place, space and community. At the same time, the sites, sounds and boundaries of Toronto's "West End" will be (re)claimed, (re)presented and (re)named as "queer".
Toronto is a city where queers come from different spaces, converging and diverging to create their own sense of community, and the Queer West Film Festival emphasizes that sense of connectedness.
Queer West Film Festival - Mission Statement - Our mission is to provide a voice for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered and queer youth by presenting films and videos that only represent the diversity of the GLBT community. By providing innovative, diverse, accessible, quality screen events, which promote/stimulate, educate, enlighten, support queer cultures and entertain us all.
OUR FESTIVAL doesn't receive Arts or foundations grants and or City Funding We have no grant writers, we have a callout, no one has offered to help us, as yet). Which means our festival will remain small, for the foreseeable future. We still manage to produce a fun filled seven to ten day queer arts festival every year. Paid for by private donations, fundraising, gallery, venues, in-kind services and local business sponsorship and through entrance fees (Usually PWYC or $5 about 2%. 98% of the events are free All performers are paid a reasonable amount to cover costs. We've never had a deficit in ten years.
1st Queer West Film Festival 2008
Forest Lightbody - Program Director.
Guest Speakers on June 18, 2008
Two guests speakers were on hand for Q & A following the videos. Kristyn Dunnion a self described saucy tart, Dunnion is the author of novels Missing Matthew and Mosh Pit. Her short stories are published in numerous collections. She earned a BA in English and Theatre at McGill University, and an MA in English at the University of Guelph. She has written articles and book reviews and has interviewed other authors for radio and print media. She enjoys facilitating workshops for emerging writers of all ages, but especially loves meeting with teens and young adults to talk about reading, writing, and life in general.
BIG BIG SKY a Duuion, demo video for the new speculative fiction novel by Dunnion. Teenaged assassin warrior women complete intensive military training as high-grade biodegradable weapons of the future. Big Big Sky is part anarchist fable, part distopian fiction, and part lesbian love story. The Video Short as produced by Dunnion and Helen Prancic. BIG BIG SKY is published by Red Deer Press, 2008.Purchase your copy at any tonight or t This Ain't The Rosedale Library (Nassau Street, Kensington Market) and Another Story (315 Roncesvalles). .Visit www.kristyndunnion.com Speaking and Q&A at 10:10 pm
Film-maker Robert Thomson, who works at Woody's talking about his two films Shot during the brutal snowstorms of January and February 2008,"Waiting" is Robert Thomson's first attempt at filmmaking. Originally intended to be a black comedy with an all drag cast, the weather prevented "Waiting" from evolving as conceived and, in the end, the weather itself ended up being a character in the film, providing an ideal background for the character's seated frustration and inertia.Mark Rosenbauer's music adds the perfect texture to this moody piece.
Armed with a new camera and a lifetime of cinematic longing, Thomson followed up "Waiting" with "Waking Up," which he considers his next logical step in the process of spiritual awakening. Shot in May and early June of 2008, this short film is a collage of moods and images,and reflects a more hands-off approach to life and filmmaking. "Waking Up" is about awareness and stillness. Visit Robert Thomson's web site: roberthomson.com Speaking and Q&A at 11:15 pm
Event Details: Wednesday June 18, 2008 we held the 1st annual Queer West Film & Video Fest @ Good Catch General Store 1556 Queen St. W. Parkdale . Doors opened at 8 pm the show ran from 9:00 PM to 11:00 PM An outdoor back parking lot www.goodcatch.ca and on Saturday Evening August 23rd we saw incredible two hours of some of the best queer youth film making today. A premier event, with many submitted videos, never previously shown publicly in Toronto by underground queer filmmakers. Both evenings were in the back parking lot of Good Catch General Store.
Good Catch Owner Jola Slovobak, donated 60 comfortable chairs. The movie screen was a white bed-sheet hung on one of the walls of the adjacent building. Every 20 minutes Slovobak would come out of her store and raffle off crafts, to help us raise funds, since we couldn't charge a fixed admission. The event was PWYC. Everyone raved about Jola's chocolate covered popcorn. all 60 chairs were filled and 25 people stood a back or sat on the ground. Our first Film festival raise $200, after we paid the driver from delivery of the chairs.
We also held our first Queer West Youth Film Festival on August 23, 2008. A question-and-answer session took place after the showing of the films with film directors. "There were many films not previously shown publicly in Toronto. The event took place in the back parking lot of Good Catch General Store; doors open at 8 p.m. with shows running from 9 to 11 p.m. There was no reserve seating and seating was on a first-come, first-seated basis, 60 chairs only. We had film break at about 10:10 p.m. unfortunately at 10.30 pm there was a sudden thunder shower, cancelling the balance of the outdoor show.
2nd annual Queer West Film Festival 2009
Forest Lightbody - Program Director.
Films shorts screened at the Saturday June 20 festival
1. Brown Like Me (27 min), short documentary of the journeys of queer South Asian youth. from Rahim Thawer and Ms Mohini Datta-Ray from ASAAP Alliance for South Asian AIDS Prevention.
2. If Tomorrow Comes (7 min) , a tongue-in-cheek chick-flick of a love story about two boys breaking up and getting back together, Danielle Steele style. From From irondvds.com
3. Pedro Levantate ( 14 min) - Director Jose Sunsin brings us into the lives of a Spanish Father and his son, only this time the Father is matchmaker, setting up his son with the local mechanic -- that way his boy can get a date and a job! But there is trouble in auto paradise with Loan Sharks threatening the lovebirds in this action- comedy. From irondvds.com
4. Don't Show This Film! (16 min) Two gay characters from an erotic book are stuck in a box at the border --what's a couple of guys to do? Enjoy this hilarious, informative take on the history of Canadian censorship, by award winning writer Rosemary Doyle. Actors Ami Heller, Trevor Covelli, Joanna Swan and Mark Purvis ensure you'll never cross the boarder the same way. From irondvds.com
5. Katrina del Mar's - A Beautiful Death (6 min) Lesbian vampires play rock ‘n’ roll and board games before devouring their latest virginal victim; a rockstar. By New York Director: Katrina del Mar. www.myspace.com/katrinadelmar | www.katrinadelmar.com
6. Katrina del Mar's - Gang Girls 2000 ( 27 min.) The celebrated photographer of New York’s underground freaks and rockers brings her aggressively sexual images to life on screen, presenting a lesbian rumble in the tradition of Hollywood’s best b-movie bad girls. In Glorious GlitterVision! In Luxurious Leatherama! What these girls do, you will Not Believe! Bike riding ChicKettes! Truck driving Sluts! ! Yes, ladies and gentlemen this is IT! The Cinematic Triumph of Katrina del Mar's unfettered imagination! Shot in glorious super 8mm on the rough streets of New York City! A cast of 30 beautiful women driving fast cars, wearing tight pants, eating candy, fighting, kissing and riding horses! The girl gang movie that started it all! Four foxy girl gangs tear it up on the streets of the Lower East Side, and rumble on the beach at Coney Island." By legendary New York City lesbian filmmaker, Katrina del Mar.. www.myspace.com/katrinadelmar | www.katrinadelmar.com
We would like to thank ASAAP (Alliance for South Asian AIDS Prevention) for loaning us their DVD Projector. We really appreciate their kind offer.
The Details: Saturday June 20, 2009 at Fixt Point Theatre, 1550 Queen St W. beside Mitzi's Sister and Good Catch General Store. (Parkdale) PWYC Doors: 8 pm to 10:30 pm. Queer West Village, Toronto Ontario
3rd annual Queer West Film Festival 2010
Saturday August 14th, 2010— 3rd annual Toronto International Queer West Film Festival
Where: The Revue Cinema (244 Seats)
Address: 400 Roncesvalles Avenue
Start Time: 4 pm
End Time: 6 pm
Impromptu after party at the Local right next to the Revue
Film directors will attend, and a Q & A follows time permitting
Cover $5/PWYC
About Queer West Film Festival
Casey Reid - Program Director.
QUEER WEST FILM FESTIVAL 2010 – FINAL FILMS SELECTION
DIRECTOR: Pablo Herran de Viu
TITLE: MISUNDERSTOOD 15:53 min
ABOUT: Alvaro understands that in order to project a sincere smile, you must understand and accept yourself first.
DIRECTOR: Ilona Alex Abramovich
WEB SITE www.ilona6.com
TITLE: Where Is The Support? 4 min
ABOUT: A short film that portrays the complexities and painful impact that coming out has.
DIRECTORS: Ilona Alex Abramovich and Amy Siegel
TITLE: Out on the Street 11 min
ABOUT: This short film explores LGBTQ youth homelessness in Toronto and the lack of support available. Several people’s lived experiences are shared.
DIRECTOR: Abby Lambert
WEB SITE vimeo.com/user2499436
TITLE: Confession 1:56 min
ABOUT: Struggling with her gender identity, a female confesses, to herself, a desire to be masculine. This is revealed through grooming routines.
DIRECTOR: Abby Lambert
TITLE: Self Serve 2:09 min
ABOUT: A woman finds power and pleasure in her domestic work comparable to a man in uniform.
DIRECTOR: Francoise Doherty
WEB SITE en.wikipedia.org/Doherty
TITLE: Girl Bunnies. HOCKEY. 5 min
ABOUT: A musically animated stop motion story of a homo-girl-rabbit-world. Coco loves hockey, but she REALLY loves hockey girl.
DIRECTOR: Kyisha Williams
TITLE: Red Lips 10 min
ABOUT: Explores racialized/queer/trans/femme sexualized and criminalized identity. It articulates and challenges interpersonal and systematic violence – while celebrating the ways in which we survive and celebrate ourselves
DIRECTOR: Jakeb Anhvu
TITLE: S.W.A.Y 5 min
ABOUT: This short documentary tells the story of Andie Hider. Andie was born with a condition called Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome or A.I.S, which has been incorrectly labeled “hermaphrodite”.
DIRECTOR: David Aronson
TITLE: Night Nurse 16:10 mins
ABOUT: Night Nurse details the troubled life of a youngster in the throes of depression and the lascivious nurse taking care of him.
We were also proud to screen the boundary queering work of Toronto’s LGBT Triangle Program through a brief 15 year retrospective. http://triangleprogram.ca/about-2/
We were excited to screen films that question the boundaries of the home, the body and the mind since 2008. Films that create a dialogue about racialized/trans/queer identity. Films that rethink and redefine the queer subject on screen. Mostly, the films screened at the Queer West Film Festival strive to broaden the notion of identity through each films narrative (de) construction.
The 4th annual Queer West Film Festival 2011. We are unable to find a sponsor 2011 Queer West Film Festival which was to be held Sat Aug 13th, 2011. The Revue Cinema could no longer hold the date for us, as they were going to press with the August calender. We have decided instead to feature the twelve different LGBT films we selected as winners for this years festival, on our web site quietly and without publicity.. See Them Here!
Festival Artistic Director
Matthew Drobnich, Artistic Director queerwestartsfestival@gmail.com
Bookings - Event Management - Volunteers
Michael F. Paré, - President of QueerWest.org - Call or Text 416-879-7954 queerwestinfo@gmail.com
Toronto Queer West Arts Centre is now on Facebook - JOIN US: facebook.com/Toronto-Queer-West-Arts-Centre
Queer West Arts Festival Guide 2012:
Queer West Arts Festival: About The Queer Arts Festival? | Arts Festival Official Events 2012 | Smash Words Poetry | Business Partners & Sponsors | Arts Festival 2011
Queer West Film Festival: About Film Festival | Film Festival 2010 | Film Festival 2011
Historical Archive: History Gay Festivals in Toronto 1964-2010 | History of Gay Toronto 1793-2008
Other Festivals: International Queer Arts Festivals | International Queer Film Festivals | Pride Festivals Canada & USA
QUEER WEST VILLAGE SCENE Accommodations | Arts Centre Contact Info | Bar & Restaurant Guide | Businesses | Events Cycling | Events Galleries | Events Theatre | Events Today? | Events Weekly & Monthly | Gay Toronto History | Local News | Queer West Arts Festival | Queer West Film Festival | Smash Words Poetry Festival | West Village Travel Guide | West Village Street Map | Site Map