SCENE Festival
Tom Grieve, Cinema Editor
SCENE is a brand new LGBTQ+ film and television festival coming to Manchester this August. The weeklong festival is hosted at venues across the city, including HOME, Aviva Studios, People’s History Museum, New Century and the Gay Village, and promises a diverse array of screenings, special guests, parties and panels as it celebrates queer stories on screen, with a local twist.
With everything from outrageous cult films to radical documentaries, tender drama and raucous comedy, SCENE is designed to extend the spirit of Manchester Pride Festival, and showcase the variety and magic of LGBTQ+ film and TV.
Opening night is reserved to commemorate the 25th anniversary of influential drama Queer as Folk with a celebration featuring a panel and after-party. The series spotlighted Manchester’s Canal Street, and there will be appearances from writer Russell T Davies, executive producer Nicola Shindler, and actress Denise Black, amongst others, who will discuss the series and its relationship to the city.
Opening night is reserved to commemorate the 25th anniversary of influential drama Queer as Folk with a celebration featuring a panel and after-party.
Audiences can also look forward to a Q&A screening of BBC hit drama, Lost Boys & Fairies, made by Leeds-based production company Duck Soup Films, writer Daf James and star of the series Sion Daniel Young. Other guests include Emmy Award nominee and longtime activist David Weissman, who will discuss his seminal documentaries about 70s San Francisco, and filmmaker Erica Rose who will be in attendance for a Q&A following The Lesbian Bar Project: FLINTA, at Vanilla, Manchester’s “last lesbian bar”.
Festival partner HOME delivers a curated season dedicated to iconic filmmaker John Waters with screenings of cult movies Pink Flamingos and Female Trouble accompanied by a Saturday night party dubbed “The Filthiest Carnival Alive” which will see raucous drag queens, circus performers, DJs, and side stalls inspired by the films of “The Pope of Trash”.
While at People’s History Museum there’s a chance to see Striking With Pride: United at the Coalface — a new documentary exploring the unlikely alliance forged between the gay men and lesbians of London, and the striking miners of South Wales, between the 1984 and 1985 London Prides.
Head of Events at CityCo (producers of SCENE Festival), Gary Williams says, “SCENE promises a week of solidarity, diversity, and enjoyment. LGBTQIA+ representation on screen allows us to share our stories, break down barriers, and grow our community.”
To help make the festival accessible for everybody, all events are priced at £15 or under with many being £5 or free including a free outdoor screen on FirstStreet. Ticket profits will be donated to Manchester Pride Charity and ticket partner Skiddle will also donate the booking fee for any events booked through their site.
