Queer Media Festival at HOME
Tom Grieve, Cinema Editor
Queer Media Festival returns to HOME this Saturday with a packed schedule of in-conversations, films, performances, workshops and, to top it all off, an afterparty with giants of the queer club scene, DJs Jamie Bull (HomoElectric) and Claud Cunningham (Black Angel).
Once again the festival have lined up a diverse set of panelists and speakers: 70% women and 40% from the BAME community. The aim is to provoke, inspire and connect the next generation of LGBT filmmakers, programmers and audiences. So, grab a wristband and you can dip in and out of sessions which include industry professionals from BBC, Channel 4 and Gay Star News, the Executive Director of UK Black Pride, award-winning theatre creators and the artists behind the @Gaybar project
Film-wise, the day will start with a selection of shorts, each selected by QueerMedia16’s young programmers. Hot new doc, Jewel’s Catch One – which tells the story of Jewel Thais-Williams, who broke down racial and cultural barriers while running the oldest Black-owned gay disco in America – will play at 2pm. Then, later on, there will be a chance to see Strike a Pose, which charts the lives of the seven backup dancers who famously joined Madonna on her Blonde Ambition tour. The screening will be accompanied by a live dance piece from House of Ghetto and short film, Voguing: The Message.
