With the backing of gay-cinema powerhouse TLA Releasing, Philadelphia’s QFest has become one of the big players in the queer film festival circuit. The 17th annual Qfest, which officially wraps today, offered a panoply of LGBT offerings including Judas Kiss (in which a thirtysomething man has a steamy one-night-stand with his college-aged self), the sex comedy Eating Out:Drama Camp, the John Waters-esque Mangus! ( in which a handicapped teen is determined to play Jesus in his school’s version of Jesus Christ Superstar), the lesbian-wedding doc Married in Spandex and What’s The Name of the Dame (which sees more than a dozen drag divas explaining the eternal importance of ABBA).
By all accounts, the 12-day series was a rousing success but it wasn’t without the occasional hiccup: Brent Corrigan was on hand to receive his Rising Star award but French porn star François Sagat, who was supposed to attend a screening of the documentary short Sagat was a no-show. “He called after his plane left to say he was sick and couldn’t make it,” explains TLA President Ray Murray. “It was a real shame because he was supposed to be the guest of honor at a special reception—and it was a first-class nonrefundable ticket.” Fortunately New York gossipmongers Michael Musto and Mickey Boardman were on hand to fill in for the tattooed top at the film’s Q&A, with what we were told was an expletive-laden chat that would’ve made Chi Chi LaRue blush. (We always said the mouth is the filthiest organ in the human body.)
Below, watch off-the-cuff interviews with cast and crew from the movies Longhorns and Jamie and Jessie Are Not Together, taken during a filmmakers’ reception at the TLA offices in downtown Philadelphia.
(Photos by Ted Huang, Heather Coutts and Patrick Hagerty; Videos by Le Ann Lindsay)
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Jeff R
Gentlemen: It would be helpful if you posted the names of the subjects of your photos. You’re doing a disservice to the lgbt talent attending the festival who appear in the photos. If the person (s) taking the photos is incapable of getting the names of said individuals, hire someone else. Very sloppy and very disappointing! Best, JeffR