The selected films, chosen from more than 100, range from comedies and documentaries to serious dramas.
The special weekend, slated for Oct. 13-15, will also include guest appearances by writers, producers, actors and directors. The screenings are held at The Neon movie theater in downtown Dayton.
WHAT TO EXPECT
This year’s films range from a short film directed, produced and starring Danny DeVito entitled “Curmudgeons” that centers around a potty-mouthed octogenerian residing in an assisted living facility, to the first-ever feature documentary, “Rebels On Pointe,” celebrating the world famous Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo. The all-male, comic ballet company was founded more than 40 years ago on the heels of New York’s Stonewall riots and and has a diverse cult following around the world. The film will be shown at 3:30 p.m. Sunday afternoon.
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The weekend kicks off on Friday evening with "Freak Show" a film about Billy Bloom, a high school student who decides to run for Homecoming Queen. The movie stars Alex Lawther, Abigail Breslin, Bette Midler, AnnaSophia Robb and Laverne Cox. A comedy entitled "Pushing Dead," featuring actor Danny Glover, will be shown on Sunday afternoon and is the story of a man who's been HIV-positive for decades and accidentally deposits a $100 birthday check from his mother — resulting in the loss of his government assistance. His only options are both long shots: take on an impossible bureaucracy, or somehow come up with $3,000 a month to buy his own medication.
Jennifer Kroot's documentary, "The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin," is slated for Saturday afternoon and focuses on the creator of the popular nine 'Tales of the City" novels. The film offers a look at a journey that took Maupin from the jungles of Vietnam to the bathhouses of '70s San Francisco to the front line of the American culture war. The film includes some of his friends — Neil Gaiman, Laura Linney, Olympia Dukakis, Sir Ian McKellen and Amy Tan.
Seven shorts, including DeVito’s film, will be featured on Saturday afternoon.
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COMING HOME
Alexander says she’s delighted that there is now a flourishing LGBT community in Dayton and that her film was chosen to headline the festival. “I hope to see lots of familiar faces in the audience!” she says.
A 1993 graduate of Beavercreek High School, Alexander says that out of a student body of around 1,500 students, she knew only one who was out as gay. “Of course, many of my classmates came out further into adulthood. It’s just a shame that an environment of acceptance didn’t exist when they were younger.”
Her film, "Sensitivity Training," will be shown on Saturday night of the festival and was shot entirely on location in L.A., Alexander's current home. "I play a bubbly, overenthusiastic life-coach. My character is a Ph.D. with a rich home life who happens to be a lesbian," Alexander says. " The fact that she's gay only comes into play when another character wonders if she's attracted to my character."
Alexander thinks it’s awesome that the storytelling her writer/director Melissa Finnell is offering up is not focused on a character whose sexual identity creates obstacles for her. “It just happens to be part of who she is.”
Having access to the arts in Dayton during her formative years, she says, instilled great interest in the arts. “When I was at Beavercreek there was no drama program, just a musical and a Shakespeare play each year,” she recalls. “I gained most of my exposure to contemporary plays through the BHS Speech & Debate program — and awesome coach/teacher Becky Harding, who helped to cultivate my interest in comedy.”
Known for her improvisational skills, Alexander has fond memories of staying up late at night to watch stand-up comics on Letterman or VH1. “My parents were cool enough to take me to see Paula Poundstone at Joker’s or Wiley’s — I can’t remember which one — for my 16th birthday. I heckled her and she heckled right back. She was like the coolest lady in comedy back then. I still love listening to her on ‘Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me!’ on NPR!’”
Aleander’s involvement in Muse Machine provided a ticket to see every show in town “including the great work done by the Human Race Theater Company.” As a participant in Muse’s annual musical, she had the opportunity to perform at the Victoria Theater. “That was thrilling,” she says.
She’s be on hand for the Festival’s opening night film and party and will participate in a Q&A session — along with director Finnell — after the screening of her film on Saturday night. “My folks still live in the area and I do have a 5-year-old and 3- month-old, so besides hanging with the grandparents we’ll definitely fit in a trip to Young’s as well as some pumpkin patch and hayride action,” she says.
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WANT TO GO?
What: 2017 LGBT Film Fest
When: Friday, Oct. 13 through Sunday, Oct. 15
Where: The Neon movie theater, 130 E. Fifth St., Dayton
Tickets: Although weekend passes are already sold out, individual tickets are $8 each and may still be available. It's suggested that you call The Neon at (937) 222-8452 to see if any tickets to a specific film are available for purchase. Those without tickets may join a "Rush Line" to purchase any unclaimed tickets up to one hour before the screening.
Free parking across the street from the theater. For a complete list of films and special guests, see www.daytonlgbt.com or call THE NEON at (937)222-8452.
HERE’S THE LINE-UP
7:30 p.m., Friday, Oct. 13: "Walk for Me" ( a short film by Elegance Bratton, USA) and "Freak Show" (a feature film by Trudie Styler) ALSO: An After Party at Mudlick Tavern, 135 E . Second St.
12: 30 p.m., Sat. Oct. 14: Top Drawer Shorts from the U.S., France, the U.K. and Austrailia.
2:30 – BAYARD & ME – Matt Wolf, USA – 17 minutes. THE UNTOLD TALES OF ARMISTEAD MAUPIN – Jennifer Kroot, USA – 91 min
7:30 – sponsored by Greater Dayton LGBT Center
ETAGE X – Francy Fabritz, Germany – 14 minutes
SENSITIVITY TRAINING – Melissa Finell, USA – 87 minutes
9:45 – sponsored by MJ’s On Jefferson & Johnny
ALASKA IS A DRAG – Shaz Bennett, USA – 83 minutes
Sunday, Oct. 15
1:00 – sponsored by Equitas Health & David Lauri
PUSHING DEAD – Tom E. Brown, USA – 110 minutes
3:30 – sponsored by Square One Salon and Spa
REBELS ON POINTE – Bobbi Jo Hart, Canada, Italy, Japan, USA – 90 minutes
5:30 – sponsored by Marion’s Piazza
GOD’S OWN COUNTRY – Francis Lee, UK – 104 minutes
FREAK SHOW –When others call Billy Bloom theatrical, he takes it as a compliment; when his classmates feel provoked by his drive to be different, it only motivates him further. “The nail that sticks out gets hammered down,” his father warns him. That does not deter Billy from deciding to run for homecoming queen. Somewhere in-between David Bowie, Lady Gaga, Freddy Mercury and Oscar Wilde in the transgressive space of pop culture – we get a film with wit, heart and a dazzling cast. Starring Alex Lawther, Abigail Breslin, Bette Midler, AnnaSophia Robb and Laverne Cox.
WALK FOR ME - Hanna Kendricks is set to make her Femme Queen debut under the shimmering lights of New York’s Ballroom scene.
SOMETHING NEW - After a break up, Jonah struggles to open up to a new relationship with awkwardly, hilarious results.
HAYGOOD EATS - A bickering husband-and-wife catering team (or is it husband-and-beard?) is shooting a cheesy TV ad, and we get to see the hilarious outtakes.
CURMUDGEONS - A potty-mouthed octogenarian in an assisted living facility gets a big-time surprise engineered by his daughter
THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAILS - Set in mid-19th-century France, a trainee school teacher in a young girl’s convent suffers unbearable pains.
IMAGO - A 15-year-old makes the life-altering decision to never again let anyone bully them; not even their own father.
BOOTWMN - A heart-warming, intimate and endearing portrait of the queering of a traditional art form.
PICKING UP - Nathan is being ignored at the local gay club, but when he is taken under the wing of a drag fairy godmother, he finds that his self-image gets a much needed makeover
THE UNTOLD TALES OF ARMISTEAD MAUPIN – Jennifer Kroot’s documentary about the creator of Tales Of The City moves nimbly between playful and poignant and laugh-out-loud funny. With help from his friends (including Neil Gaiman, Laura Linney, Olympia Dukakis, Sir Ian McKellen and Amy Tan), Maupin offers a disarmingly frank look at the journey that took him from the jungles of Vietnam to the bathhouses of 70’s San Francisco to the front line of the American culture war.
BAYARD & ME – Bayard Rustin was the organizer of the March on Washington and one of the leaders of the civil rights movement. In the 1980s, Bayard adopted his younger lover to obtain the legal protections of marriage – a little-known phenomena with connections to the civil rights movement.
SENSITIVITY TRAINING – Serena is a misanthropic microbiologist, great with bacteria but horrible with people. After crossing a line with a colleague, Serena is forced into sensitivity training with Caroline, the bubbly woman assigned to be her coach. Caroline and her sunny disposition represent everything Serena hates, but she is determined to make Serena an acceptable human. While Serena does her best to get rid of Caroline, she may have finally met her match.
ETAGE X - An accidental meeting in an elevator at a department store leads two older women to their limits and forces them to improvise.
ALASKA IS A DRAG – Tough, but diva fabulous, Leo, an aspiring drag superstar, is stuck working in a fish cannery in Alaska. He and his twin sister are trapped in the monotony of fist fights and fish guts. Out of necessity, Leo learned to fight back, which catches the attention of the local boxing coach. When a new boy moves to town and wants to be his sparring partner, Leo has to face the real reason he’s stuck in Alaska.
PUSHING DEAD – When a struggling young man—HIV-positive for 20+ years—absent-mindedly deposits a $100 birthday check from his mother, he loses his government assistance. His only options are both long shots: take on an impossible bureaucracy, or somehow come up with $3,000 a month to buy his own medication. A comedy about the serious world we live in.
REBELS ON POINTE – Exploring universal themes of identity, dreams, family, loss and love, Rebels on Pointe is the first-ever feature documentary celebrating the world famous Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo. The all male ballet company was founded over 40 years ago on the heels of New York’s Stonewall riots and has a diverse cult following around the world.
GOD’S OWN COUNTRY - Johnny Saxby works long hours in brutal isolation on his family’s remote farm in northern England. He numbs his lonely existence with nightly binge-drinking and casual sex. When a handsome Romanian migrant worker arrives to work on the family farm, Johnny suddenly finds himself dealing with emotions he has never felt before.
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