Director Andrea Meyerson returns to the world of lesbian comedy and follows up with another randy romp through the world of stand-up routines and private musings of 4 top lesbian comedians. The film showcases Elvira Kurt, Rene Hicks, Sabrina Matthews and Vickie Shaw – 4 very different women, 4 very different styles of comedy –as they strut their funny stuff on stage and off.
Winner of several glbt film awards, “Laughing Matters…More” makes us remember once again the importance of laughter, even – and maybe especially -- in challenging times . Delight in the very funny ways these talented artists skewer the forces of evil and then poke fun at ourselves: let them entertain you.
Director Meyerson will join Bent Lens Cinema after the screening for Q&A.
Followed at 9:30 by:
Fabulous! The Story of Queer Cinema
Directors - Lesli Klainberg, Lisa Ades [82 mins]
If you've ever been curious about just how we got here, cinematically speaking, this film tells that story, brought to life via interviews with top GLBT directors, writers, actors, and critics, interwoven with famous clips from films that made the genre what it is today.
From Kenneth Anger's 1947 groundbreaking work "Fireworks" to Andy Warhol, the Rocky Horror Picture Show, Derek Jarman, John Cameron Mitchell, Wilson Cruz, Christine Vachon, John Waters, Ruby Rich, Gus Van Sant, even Ang Lee -- the makers of the genre talk about their films in the context of the GLBT movement and as catalysts for the development of independent film in general.
If you've forgotten the steamier scenes from "Desert Hearts" or "Tongues Untied" or "Watermelon Woman" you can see them again in "Fabulous!"
The film is a must-see for anyone interested in queer cinema as a genre, or even those who want to remember your own coming out history and the important role film played. Film -- the projection of images and stories of our true selves -- made it possible to see what life could be.
The Bent Lens Salon will follow "Laughing Matters...More" in the lobby of the Dairy Center starting at 9:00pm. Join us for "Fabulous" at 9:30, or stay longer at the Salon.
Tickets: $10 general admission/$5 seniors and students
Director: Malcolm Ingram; 81 minutes
Malcolm Ingram blew the Sundance Festival away this year with his astounding portrayal of the fight for equality and freedom in glbt communities in the Deep South -- where social outlets are few and far between. However, in the face of cruelty, ridicule, and even violence, local glbt patrons manage to find sanctuary in the only place they are offered within hundreds of miles – their local gay bar. The film presents an intimate portrait of two bars in Mississippi, Rumors and Crossroads, and their stalwart, brave patrons. The film introduces us to their proprietors as they struggle to stand their ground in hostile terrain. What resonates throughout the film is how grateful patrons are for these bars. They are family to each other in their small town in Mississippi, where many of them are not welcome at home. Ingram deftly balances the joy and pain of this world, bringing us in close to a world most cannot imagine.
Bent Lens Cinema dedicates tonight’s film in gratitude to all those who helped make The Yard of Ale a reality for Boulder’s glbt community during the many years it was a safe haven for us all.
Director Ingram will be on hand for discussion after the film.
Preceded by:
Director: Eric Smith, 29 mins
Irene Williams, native New England beach child, moved to Miami’s South Beach when she was a young adult in the 1940s and has made it her home ever since. Known as something of a tourist attraction on the strip she rules between her office and her apartment, Williams defies definition and categories. Part fashionista, part entrepreneur, Williams makes the best dressed drag queen list every year…except she’s a (bio)woman!
The film has won awards for “Best Short Documentary” in almost every locale it has played. Irene Williams – in person and on the big screen – never fails to entertain. For a look into Irene’s world, go to www.worldloveproductions.com.
Saturday’s program followed by the Bent Lens Salon.
Tickets: $10 general admission/$5 seniors and students
Co-Directors: Victor Silverman, Susan Stryker; 57 mins
Three years before the famous rioting at New York's Stonewall Inn, there was a riot in San Francisco at Gene Compton's Cafeteria. On a hot summer's night in 1966, in the city's Tenderloin district (so-called as a center for prostitution), a group of transgender women, drag queens and gay street-hustlers fought back for the first time in history against everyday police harassment. A riot ensued that night in which the resisters are said to have gotten the better of police using only their high heeled shoes and heavy purses. This act of resistance was a dramatic turning point for the transgender community, and the beginning of a new human rights struggle that continues to this very day. Using contemporary interviews with trans-women who were part of the resistance that night, as well as archival footage, the film shows the connection between the movement for transgender rights and other contemporary social movements for civil and human rights.
Preceded by:
The Aggressives
Director: Daniel Peddle; 75 minutes
In the tradition of “Paris is Burning” the women featured in The Aggressives are active in New York’s glbt ball scene – but from the female-to-male experience. They don’t aspire to be men, and they don’t identify as drag kings, though they do participate in NYC’s predominantly African-American lesbian drag balls. This fascinating documentary reveals the lives of a varied group of self-described aggressive women as the film follows them in their daily lives and when they come alive to compete at the balls. Homeboy Marquise fosters a masculine image by strapping her chest until suddenly forced to live as a woman after enlisting in the army. Passing as a femme boy, Tiffany doesn’t identify as a lesbian because she only dates transgender men. Raw and uninhibited ex-con Octavia goes from drug dealer to construction worker. Androgynous Kisha balances her aggressive life with a career as a fashion model. Think you figured out transgendered identities and female-masculinity? The Aggressives will challenge every notion you thought was safe.
Tickets: $8 general admission; $4 seniors and students
Fabulous! The Story of Queer Cinema 
In the tradition of “Paris is Burning” the women featured in The Aggressives are active in New York’s glbt ball scene – but from the female-to-male experience. They don’t aspire to be men, and they don’t identify as drag kings, though they do participate in NYC’s predominantly African-American lesbian drag balls. This fascinating documentary reveals the lives of a varied group of self-described aggressive women as the film follows them in their daily lives and when they come alive to compete at the balls. Homeboy Marquise fosters a masculine image by strapping her chest until suddenly forced to live as a woman after enlisting in the army. Passing as a femme boy, Tiffany doesn’t identify as a lesbian because she only dates transgender men. Raw and uninhibited ex-con Octavia goes from drug dealer to construction worker. Androgynous Kisha balances her aggressive life with a career as a fashion model. Think you figured out transgendered identities and female-masculinity? The Aggressives will challenge every notion you thought was safe. 
