After shifting to lat summer last year because of financial troubles, San Diego‘s LGBT film festival, FilmOut, returns to its regular spring schedule today. Running until June 3, the 14th annual fest offers a slew of queer films and shorts, plus a special screening of Del Shores’s 2000 black comedy Sordid Lives, followed by a honorary award to the director.
The fun begins tonight with the West Coast premiere of Cloudburst, a road-movie dramedy about two older lesbians who escape from their nursing home to get hitched in Canada. Directed by Thom Fitzgerald (3 Needles), the film stars Oscar winners Olympia Dukakis and Brenda Fricker as the aging couple, and Ryan Doucette (right, with Dukakis), as the hunky hitchhiker they pick up on their way to freedom.
On Friday, it’s a double dose of gay sex: In the British comedy Buffering (trailer above), a young gay couple turn to producing Internet porn to help make ends meet. But their newfound success—and the barely clothed jock next door—add strain to their relationship.
The same night sees a screening of the short Man 2 Man: A Gay Man’s Guide to Finding Love. Directed by Christopher Hines, Man 2 Man is a documentary following a diverse group of gay men, including a few San Diego boys, as they search for true love (or is it just lust?) in a complicated 
dating world.
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On Saturday, Zenne Dancer offers a unique look at Turkey’s gay scene through the eyes of three men: Daniel, a German photojournalist in Istanbul; Can, a flamboyant male belly dancer with lots of love and support from his family; and Ahmet, whose quest for honesty and liberty results in a tragic end.
Also on Saturday, Swedish filmmaker Alexandra-Therese Keining’s Kiss Me pushes the sexual envelope when two young women fall in love. The only problem: They’re about to be step-sisters.
Other FilmOut highlights include the romantic comedy That’s What She Said, the trans-boy/hustler romance Romeos and the West Coast premiere of Speechless. Check the FilmOut website for a full schedule of events.
marc
Cloudburst is amazing. I saw it in toronto during the inside out film festival. It is definitely a breakout film for all concerned. I will definitely be seeing it again
whogonchkmeboo
Au courant! This movie looks so great!
D P
I just saw ‘Cloudburst’ last night and enjoyed it. Thank you Matt Dalton for telling us about Ryan Doucette, but ‘hunky’ does not quite describe him. While being drawn to see this movie because of the star shine of Olympia Dukakis, Doucette stole my attention away starting with his first appearance in the movie.
I’m looking forward to seeing more of this actor in the movies. Olympia Dukakis is terrific as a butch lesbian, too.