SHORTS PROGRAMS

Blend Into My Favorite Color

SATURDAY | JULY 15 | 11:00AM | REDCAT

This block of animated short films showcases queer narratives and talented LGBTQ+ animators from Croatia, Finland, France, Italy, and here at home. Stories bound by love, trust, epic adventure, and fantasy; these are the stories of love amidst colonial violence, firsttime trips to buy makeup, a superhero, an imaginative nonbinary teen named Frog, and a rumination on the memory of a former relationship. Representing a range of queer narratives, animation styles, and techniques not only through words, but through race, ethnicity, gender, and sexuality.

ASpotforFrog (Dir. Evan Bode) 16 Min. Aikāne (Dir Daniel Sousa, Dean Hamer, Joe Wilson) 14 Min. Blush-An Extraordinary Voyage (Dir. Iiti Yli-Harja) 15 Min. Christopher at Sea (Dir. Tom C J Brown) 12 Min. Hospes (Dir. Stephanie J Williams) 12 Min. Pentola (Dir. Leo Černic) 5 Min. Route 70+ (Dir. Nerina Penzhorn) 2 Min. Strange Acts Of Love (Dir. Masashi Yamamoto) 6 Min. The A Bun Dance (Dir. Erial Tompkins) 1 Min. Y (Dir. Matea Kovac) 7 Min.

Express Yourself

THURSDAY | JULY 20 | 5:00PM | DGA 2

Discovering your authentic queer and/or trans self often requires plenty of solitude and soul-searching, but externalizing your thoughts and feelings through performance can unlock the power of your identity and gender expression with catharsis and pride. Whether throwing yourself biceps first into the beauty and brawn of body-building, pushing your skills to the limit within the skateboarding community, melding activism with art, or even using cinematic tools as a means to bend documentary and narrative form towards personal and collective histories, the filmmakers within this expansive collection of short films boldly turn their characters and themselves inside-out to reveal expressive shades of personal revelation.

Compton’s ‘22 (Dir. Drew de Pinto) 17 Min. Flores del Otro Patio (Dir. Jorge Cadena) 16 Min. Les Sports X-trem (Dir. Gio Ventura) 19 Min. Merman (Dir. Sterling “Master Sterling” Hampton IV) 11 Min. Rumpelstiltskin (Dir. Ethan Fuirst) 8 Min. The 25th Filial Exemplar (Dir. Leon Cheo) 15 Min. Transenders (Dir. Diane Russo Cheng) 10 Min.

GURL, BYE!

Femmes, butches, and enbies—oh my! She’s gotta have these vivid, unforgettable short films that celebrate and all aspects of queer femininity. Spanning the grief cycle of a breakup, forbidden desires, passion, music, the powerful fluidity of femme desire, longing, intersectional identity, and ancestral power, this talented group of filmmakers take us on a journey from ancestral power in the South Side of Chicago to long-lost South Asian lovers. These films about lesbian love celebrate femininity in its diversity of expressions, experiences, and identities. Tonight, we embrace our queerness and femininity!

100% USDA Certified Organic Homemade Tofu (Dir. Gbenga Komolafe) 14 Min. A History of Sitting in Waiting Rooms (Or Whatever Longer Title You Prefer) (Dir. Lorena Russi) 9 Min. As You Are (Dir. Daisy Friedman) 15 Min. Brush (Dir. Summer Sveinson) 6 Min. Complicated Order (Dir. Emmie Lichtenberg) 15 Min. The Funnel (Dir. Charlene A. Carruthers) 17 Min. The Little Things (Dir. Camrin Williams)

1 Min. WTCHSONG (Dir. Lina Bembe) 4 Min. Your Love (Dir. Sundeep Morrison) 4 Min.

HI GAY!

SATURDAY | JULY 15 | 11:00AM | DGA 1

We may not have John Travolta, but there is certainly some Saturday night fever with these films. So dust off your dancing shoes and join us as we collectively experience butterflies for the first time, embarrassing run-ins, loss and regret, musical journeys, unfathomable happenings, or even a revival of a long- forgotten boy band. The films in this program feature dynamic, gay protagonists as they embrace moments of personal realizations and urge us to join in on the celebration.

IS THIS THE REAL LIFE, IS THIS JUST FANTASY?

SUNDAY | JULY 16 | 11:00AM | DGA 1

We’ve all heard that old Joan Didion quote “we tell ourselves stories in order to live,” but it feels especially true for queer people. We are a resilient, creative, loud, and passionate community, and it is stories like these —unbelievably true stories—that give us the model and the inspiration to thrive in a time that feels like it’s slouching towards fascism. Whether it’s an incarcerated trans artist, a captivating musician, an aspiring nurse with grand ambitions to build a life that reflects her true self, or three artists’ interpretation of actress Maria Schneider’s testimony about her experience on Last Tango in Paris, these documentaries showcase the immensity, diversity, and expansiveness of queer experience.

Here, Hopefully (Dir. Hao Zhou) 11 Min. Hold On To Me (Dir. Te Shima Anusha Brennen, Rajvi Desai) 5 Min. How to Carry Water (Dir. Sasha Wortzel) 15 Min. Love,Jamie (Dir. Karla Murthy) 21 Min. Maria Schneider, 1983 (Dir. Elisabeth Subrin) 25 Min. Relighting Candles: The Tim Sullivan Story (Dir. Zeberiah Newman, Michiel Thomas) 21 Min. trip (Dir. Pea Nunez, Macarooni) 1 Min. VincintThere Will Be Tears (Dir. Ryan Nordin) 3 Min.

After Sunset, Dawn Arrives (Dir. Andy Yi Li) 17 Min. EITR (Dir. Fateema Al-Hamaydeh Miller) 14 Min. ElIntercambio(TheExchange) (Dir. Marco Berger) 25 Min. Fanatic (Dir. Taran Killam) 16 Min. Repair (Dir. Bertil Nilsson) 11 Min. Right In Front of You (Dir. Nicolas Jara)

1 Min. Stay Lost (Dir. Chris Coats) 12 Min.