Indianapolis LGBT Film Festival 2015

Full Festival Pass

Premiere Night Pass

Individual Film Tickets (Saturday and Sunday) Premiere Film Ticket (Friday Night)

STUDENT DISCOUNTS (WITH VALID STUDENT ID) Individual Films On Saturday and Sunday

IMA PARKING: There is a $5 fee for non-members to park in the underground garage or large surface lot closest to the Museum.

Full Festival and Premiere Night Passes available for presale at www.IndyLGBTFilmFest.com. All other tickets available Festival Weekend at the Box Office inside the Indianapolis Museum of Art, based on availability.

Seating for films guaranteed to Full Festival Pass Holders up to 15 minutes before showtime.

15 years of LGBT Film in Indianapolis, as seen through our covers, 2001 - 2015. It's because of our devoted, supportive audience and sponsors that we are able to continue each year.

We thank you very much!

TO THE 15TH ANNUAL INDIANAPOLIS LGBT FILM FESTIVAL.

THE COUNCIL

CITY OF INDIANAPOLIS

MARION COUNTY

ZACH

ADAMSON

Councillor, District 16

Dear Indianapolis LGBT Film Festival Attendees,

On behalf of the Indianapolis City Council, it is my pleasure to welcome you to the 15th annual Indianapolis LGBT Film Festival.

As you enjoy all of the wonderful feature films, shorts, and documentaries being showcased this weekend, please keep the Indiana Youth Group, the film festival beneficiary, close to heart.

Contemplate the difference they truly make in the lives of LGBTQ youth and families. As an IYG alumni from over 27 years ago, it’s really where I got my start in political activism. Celebrate the opportunity we all have here today to experience films that help us all feel connected to a larger world.

Take the time to shake the hand of and thank a film festival committee volunteer for putting in all of the countless hours of work that enable this event to continue to grow year after year.

To our out of town directors, actors, and guests: Indianapolis warmly welcomes you and invites you take some time to explore all that our vibrant city has to offer! We are excited to share with you a thriving LGBT community alongside a world class art and food scene. The beautiful Indianapolis Museum of Art is a superb indicator of what our city has to offer.

Again, welcome to the 15th annual Indianapolis LGBT Film Festival! My spouse Christian and I send our very best wishes and we’ll see you at the movies!

Lights, Camera, Action!

Zach Adamson City-County Councilor, District 16

200 E. Washington Street • Indianapolis, IN 46204

Cell: 317.683.9224 • Fax: 317.327.4230

adamsonforindy@aol.com

JUDGES

Love, loss, questions of identity and personal freedom: These five films explore those topics in fresh, interesting, and provocative ways. These are our nominees for the 2015 Best of Festival Awards. The winners are selected by our panel of judges and announced on Premiere Night.

Mark Harper Teacher of film and literature at IUPUI, Comic Books at the Herron School of Art and Design, and a former Director of the Indianapolis LGBT Film Festival.

Nicole Misencik

SkyTrak Weather Meteorologist at NBC a liate WTHR, Channel 13 in Indianapolis.

Keishana White President of the Developing Professionals Network and Chairperson of the Diversity Task Force at Angie's List.

Lindsay Hamman Works in Public Programs at the Indianapolis Museum of Art, programming performances, speakers and films.

Emmett Cooper and Naieem Abdool

Creators of Indianapolis-based salon Emmetts The Studio and the Emmetts Haircare line.

TOM IN AMERICA Director: Flavio Alves

Ryan Rambach

CHARLOTTE Director: Angel Kristi Williams

Jeremy Hersh

THE WATER GLOBE Director: Eric Kindler

GAY / LESBIAN FEATURE Director: William Sullivan USA, 98 Minutes

IMA / THE TOBY / FRIDAY / 7:30PM

Sequins Required is an independent film about The Bag Ladies, an Indianapolis troupe of drag queens, and their annual fund raising Bus Tour. It’s a poignant telling of their history, charity, and legacy of raising money for AIDS awareness, prevention, and relief for over 30 years.

Director: Melody L. Dunn USA

GAY FEATURE

Director: Joseph Graham USA, 93 Minutes

... A EUPHORIC NIGHT IN THE LIVES OF THREE GENERATIONS OF GAY MEN WHOSE PATHS CROSS IN PASSIONATE WAYS.

CHARLOTTE

LESBIAN SHORTS

She’s sweet, a tomboy, smart, and adores her mom. On a break from school, Alex hangs with her new friend Charlotte. Charlotte is beautiful, stylish, popular, and unlike any of Alex’s other friends. Their days are filled with watching reruns of old shows, doing each others hair, and things that teenagers do. When her new friend wants to play house, Alex innocently plays along and develops feelings she doesn’t understand.

Director: Angel Kristi Williams USA 11 Minutes

NO MATTER WHO

Director: Anne-Claire Jaulin France 19 Minutes

It's summertime and a troop of young girls are headed to scout camp. For Marie and Lise, it is a time for their first sparks of emotion, a time to learn more about desire and how one confronts a group and their morality.

ACTRESSES

Director: Jeremy Hersh USA 12 Minutes

For self-involved actresses, love is sometimes sprinkled with a touch of constructive criticism.

THE PARKER TRIBE

Director: Jane Baker USA 25 Minutes

Suburban Philadelphia, July 1975. Life is both hilarious and painful for Mary “Jo” Parker, a 13-year-old tomboy, fifth of seven in a large Catholic family Her wheelchair-bound brothers Matt and Daniel su er from muscular dystrophy, while parents Dorothy (Paula Pell) and Peter (David Koechner) hold everything together with a deflective balance of silence and humor. When Jo questions her feelings for another girl, she ponders the possibility that she will be the freak in her already bizarre family. But her self-discovery is put on hold when she learns Matt and Daniel are dying.

THE FIRST SESSION

Director: Ryan Logan USA 7 Minutes

Festival favorite Fawzia Mirza stars in this comedic short about two adventurous women, in search of a little relationship help, who visit an unconventional therapist and discover the healing power of the mango.

UNDER MY SKIN

Director: Vincent Pastor USA 7 Minutes

The story of two young women and their highly tormented passion.

PEPPER

Director: Patrick Aubert Canada 7 Minutes

The morning after a naughty encounter with another woman proves to be more than this sexy couple bargained for, as the balance of their relationship is tipped—and jealousies abound.

TOMORROW

SHORTS

New Year's Eve 1999 finds college-bound Clark and Trevor concerned about the future of their friendship. The countdown to the new millennium adds pressure to define themselves and act upon their feelings before the stroke of midnight. A request for Clark to be Trevor's wingman at the evening’s festivities leads them to a point where things will never be the same again. Self-discovery, anxiety, and optimism abound in this coming-of-age film.

Director: Leandro Tadashi USA 13 Minutes

INTERNATIONAL MALE

Director: Heath Daniels USA 7 Minutes

A financially strapped man, yearning for global adventure, invites an international cast of men to his apartment for a series of romantic escapades.

BEDDING ANDREW

Director: Blair Fukumara Canada 4 Minutes

On the eve of his 30th birthday, Andrew, a man with cerebral palsy, reflects on his first sexual encounter and how the event shaped his identity as a gay man.

THE WATER GLOBE

Director: Eric Kindler USA 17 Minutes

A dog named Boo’s human companion doesn’t get many dates. As the cool misty rains descend on an urban landscape, Boo finds an opportune moment to take a nap as his companion ruminates on his last date a year ago. With a setting that resembles a favorite downtown Indianapolis neighborhood, this short animation takes a slightly comic stroll through a process that, perhaps, showed little promise from the onset.

WEIRD IS WHO’S NOT WEIRD

16 Minutes

Alex feels attracted to Samuel, and even though his best friend warns him he has a girlfriend, something makes him think he is not that indi erent.

THE CREAM

Director: Jean-Marie Villeneuve

France 8 Minutes

Gilbert, a quirky young man, is out for a Sunday jog in the forest. When a muscular, athletic man passes him at tremendous speeds, Gilbert is left confused, curious, and ultimately aroused by his secret.

HOPEFUL ROMANTIC

Director: Matt Zarley USA 16 Minutes

A universal story about loving, letting go, and holding onto faith that there's somebody for everybody. The nearly dialogue-free narrative is articulated solely through a soulful pop score. George Takei co-stars.

Director: Cristopher Carballo Lerma Mexico

The State of Marriage examines the historic struggle for marriage equality in Vermont and its ongoing national impact. It tells the story of small-town Vermont lawyers Susan Murray and Beth Robinson who, with Boston-based attorney Mary Bonauto, won legal and social landmarks that paved the way for the entire marriage equality movement. Despite fierce opposition, Vermont became the first state to grant same-sex couples legal recognition through a groundbreaking 1999 State Supreme Court decision and through civil unions in 2000, and the first to legalize marriage equality by legislative vote in 2009. Human Rights Campaign national director Marty Rouse said, “They really changed the course of American history.” Beth is now one of eight openly LGBT judges serving on state supreme courts. Mary was also the lead attorney in the historic Supreme Court Obergefell v. Hodges decision, and in the 2003 Massachusetts marriage case. Along with Mary, Beth, and Susan, the film features Freedom to Marry founder Evan Wolfson, civil rights legend Representative John Lewis, Tony-winning playwright Terrence McNally and former Governor Howard Dean. Beth Robinson will be our special guest for a post-screening Q&A session.

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Director: Je rey Schwarz USA, 90 Minutes

America was a very di erent place in the not-so-distant, golly-gee past of the 1950s, as vibrantly recalled in this thoroughly entertaining new documentary on formerly closeted Hollywood heartthrob and golden-boy idol Tab Hunter. His blue-eyed, blond-haired California surfer stunning looks got him cast in frequently shirtless roles that propelled his career into superstar status. He became the prototype for young idols to come; so did the studios’ desire to hide his and others’ gayness.

IMA / THE TOBY / SATURDAY / 4:15PM

TOM IN AMERICA

Following the rapturously received I Am Divine, Director Je rey Schwarz returns with his fascinating portrait of Divine’s two-time leading man ( Lust in the Dust and Polyester ). Hunter, now 83 and happily retired, gratefully recounts his seemingly charmed life story and rollercoaster career with candor, wisdom, and sincerity. Based on his 2006 autobiography, the film traces Hunter’s dizzying rise to Hollywood superstardom, his secret life in an era when being openly gay was unthinkable, and his personal triumphs once the limelight finally passed him by. Showcasing many delightful movie and TV clips and rare photos, the documentary features revealing interviews with those who know and admire the actor, including his partner of 32 years and famous friends and co-stars such as John Waters, Debbie Reynolds, Robert Wagner, Portia de Rossi, and Clint Eastwood.

The film pays respect to Hunter and his classic Hollywood acting contemporaries (including his former lover Anthony Perkins) and examines the emotional and professional consequences of the discrimination they faced. Perhaps the trailblazing success of out thespians like Zachary Quinto and Matt Bomer will mean that tomorrow’s Tab Hunters will be spared appearing in sham relationships with pretty starlets, designed to protect their wholesome, bankable images and studio box o ce receipts.

For 50 years, Michael (Burt Young) and Betty (Sally Kirkland) have been united by one guiding principle: no secrets. But when a provocative Tom of Finland doll triggers Michael's long-buried desires, Betty discovers that secrets have been part of their life all along.

PRECEDED BY

Director: Flavio Alves USA 17 Minutes

LESBIAN FEATURE

A beautiful DJ is on the run after finding a bag of cash. Can she keep the money, conquer her demons, AND get the girl?

To all appearances E (Mandahla Rose) leads a glamorous life as the sexy star DJ at one of the hottest clubs in Sydney, a job with perks that include her pick of the beautiful women who come to dance to her tunes. But the reality is this daughter of Lebanese immigrant parents is so closeted that she broke up with the love of her life; entered into a sham marriage with her gay best friend, Matt; and even abandoned her once-promising musical career as a clarinetist. When she and Matt find a du el bag full of cash, the money seems like the ticket to a better life, but the pair are soon on the run—and on a road trip into the Outback that may lead E back to the one who got away. Writer-director Louise Wadley has fashioned a sexy Aussie crime caper that hums with suspense, flashes of humor, and second chances. E was left hollow by her decision to turn her back on her music and what might have been with Trish, all because she was afraid of being honest with her parents. On the road, she is ostensibly running from danger, but the situation forces her to confront what life in the closet has cost her. It also gives her the opportunity to make things right—that is, it will if she survives.

The stunning Mandahla Rose stars as E in All About E.

KISS ME KILL ME

GAY FEATURE

Director: Casper Andreas USA, 95 Minutes

The latest from writer-director Casper Andreas (Going Down In La-la Land, Between Love and Goodbye, Violet Tendencies, The Big Gay Musical), Kiss Me, Kill Me is a queer twist on the classic LA film noir thriller. Scripted by David Michael Barrett (Last Year’s Premiere Film Such Good People), the story follows Stephen Redding, a successful reality TV producer with a big house in the hills and a trophy boyfriend, Dusty Young. But at Stephen’s birthday party, Dusty discovers that Stephen had an a air with super hot Craigery. Humiliated, Dusty leaves the party and walks down to a convenience store. Stephen follows; trying to explain the a air is over, but—out of nowhere—Dusty sees a flash and blacks out. When he comes to, Dusty learns Stephen was murdered along with the store clerk. With the police closing in, it’s up to Dusty to track down the killer and clear his name as the prime suspect. Queer As Folk’s Gale Harold, Brianna Brown (Devious Maids), Van Hansis (Eastsiders), Craig Robert Young (The Last Ship), Shangela (RuPaul’s Drag Race) and Queer Eye For The Straight Guy’s Jai Rodriguez co-star in this over-the-top and very sexy murder mystery. Director Casper Andreas will be our special guest for a post-screening Q&A session.

WANT IT

An intruder breaks into a modern and luxurious home. He wants it. As he samples the lifestyle his senses are heightened. When the owner of the house returns unexpectedly, the tables are turned. A film about passion, longing, and desire in all its forms.

PRECEDED BY

Director: Lee Haven Jones UK 11 Minutes

MOVE OVER FIFTY SHADES OF GREY S&M SALLY IS GOING WHERE NO VANILLA LESBIAN ROMCOM HAS GONE BEFORE.

A provocative and hilarious ride, S&M Sall y details the unexpected journey that happens when your insecurities push you outside of your comfort zone. A feature-length queer comedy that explores taboo topics in the most charming of ways.

PRECEDED BY

SLEEP AWAKE

Director: Nora Meek USA 5 Minutes

Two people live one above the other in an apartment complex, and one's sadness seeps into the other's dreams. An animated film about longing, compassion, and being there for someone who needs you.

KILLING ME

GAY FEATURE

Director: Jim Hansen USA, 90 Minutes

Je ery Self, Bryan Safi, Edi Patterson and Drew Droege in You’re Killing Me

Joe and George meet, just as Joe is coming out to himself as someone who loves to kill. George, on the other hand, can't decide which wig to wear for his next YouTube video. As George's friends start disappearing, one by one, he must face the undeniable fact that Gretchen might not be coming back with crushed ice for his party.

#YouDontNeedIceForChardonnay.

LA comedy favorites Drew Droege, Je ery Self, Sam Pancake, and Jack Plotnick star as gay men so steeped in irony and sarcasm, they don't know a serial killer when they meet one. Joe (Matthew McKelligon) murders people and has no filter about revealing that, but the name-dropping, mimosa-chugging clique he's a part of always thinks he's kidding. Can they stop talking about who they saw at Target long enough to survive Joe? This Horror-Comedy from director Jim Hansen (Droege's hilarious Chloe shorts) also features Mindy Cohn (The Facts of Life) Funny or Die's Bryan Safi, and Matthew Wilkes. Jim Hansen and Je ery Self will be our special guests for a post-screening Q&A Session.

... GAY MEN SO STEEPED IN IRONY AND SARCASM, THEY DON'T KNOW A SERIAL KILLER WHEN THEY MEET ONE.

George has a killer new boyfriend in this original Horror-Comedy.

SEED MONEY

THE CHUCK HOLMES STORY

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Porn and politics meet between the sheets and on the streets in this sexy, stirring account of infamous provocateur and heroic philanthropist Chuck Holmes, who parlayed his success as the founder of pretty-boy empire Falcon Studios into life-saving LGBT activism.

Director: Michael Stabile USA, 72 Minutes

IMA / DEBOEST LECTURE HALL / SATURDAY /

8:30PM

It’s a story for the ages: closeted Indiana boy heads West to San Francisco, comes out in the fabulous 1970s, builds an adult-entertainment empire that redefines pretty-boy masculinity, befriends David Ge en and Bill Clinton, helps found the Human Rights Campaign, donates millions to community causes, succumbs to AIDS, and is honored as the namesake of the SF LGBT Center—all while indulging his obsessions in visionary porn epics. This bio, by turns salacious, poignant, and inspiring, belongs to infamous provocateur and philanthropist Chuck Holmes, the subject of the (a)rousing documentary Seed Money. As the founder of Falcon Studios, which made stars of a bevy of bronzed, blond Adonises, Holmes created hardcore extravaganzas like The Other Side of Aspen for the VHS era.

Holmes parlayed his success into fundraising and activism. Though many LGBT groups were happy to have his hard-earned money, they sometimes shunned their benefactor because of his background. Today, Holmes is rightfully recognized as a hero both for his liberating of a generation’s libido and for supporting its members through some of their darkest days. Director Michael Stabile celebrates Holmes via interviews with porn icons Chi Chi LaRue and Je Stryker, Scissor Sisters frontman Jake Shears, politicos Mark Leno and Carole Midgen, and Holmes’s longtime partner, Hot House honcho Steven Scarborough.

YOU. ME. BATHROOM. SEX. NOW.

Antonio finds out that his boyfriend is cheating on him. Heartbroken, he looks for solace in his favorite dive bar, where a mysterious visitor has a keen interest in him. A comedy about a man who tries to forget about love, in all the wrong places. Spanish with English subtitles.

PRECEDED BY

SPONSORED BY 501 EAGLE

Director: Francisco Lupini Basagoiti Spain 17 Minutes

Existing since the beginning of creation, the Androgyne is a symbol of man born physically or mentally between the two sexes. The Androgyne is simultaneously masculine and feminine, although not necessarily in equal amounts. Throughout his life, he is torn between male and female, Adam and Eve, inside and outside. Beautifully produced experimental animation, with music by The Mind Orchestra.

Director: Olga Guse Germany 7 Minutes

THE TEASER

Director: Adam Jones USA 8 Minutes

A revealing, avant-garde look at the journey of drug dependence for a young, gay man, based on the real-life experiences of its director, Adam Jones.

SCOUT’S OATH

Director: Ryan Rambach USA 13 Minutes

Scout's Oath is the story of former Boy Scouts of America o cial Len Lanzi, who was fired after publicly coming out as gay.

YOU ARE FREE

Director: James Fanizza

USA 10 Minutes

An amateur drag queen gets a once-in-a-lifetime chance to compete in a national pageant where he strives to go the distance to save his failing bar, overcome adversity, and fight for his self-respect.

QUEER YET GODLY

Director: Joshua Byron USA 4 Minutes

Working in abstraction and language, Queer Yet Godly is a meditation on religion and sexuality created on a 16mm educational film.

HEAVENLY PEACE

Director: Andreas Wessel-Therhorn USA 5 Minutes

A mischievous cherub manipulates a quarreling couple in time for the holidays—with some help from Barbra, in this amusing, animated short.

PINK MOON

Director: Sal Bardo USA 17 Minutes

In a society where heterosexuals are persecuted and abortion is forbidden, two teens are forced to hide an unplanned pregnancy before their secret romance is exposed.

ELECTRIC INDIGO

Director: Jean-Julien Collette France 24 Minutes

Indigo grew up in a family with two heterosexual fathers, united in the bonds of a non-sexual marriage, who had decided to raise a daughter together. Unbeknownst to Indigo, her mentally unstable mother was the third member of their unusual relationship. When her mother suddenly reappears on the eve of Indigo’s sixteenth birthday, dramatic changes occur.

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Director: Hillevi Loven USA, 75 Minutes

Executive produced by Susan Sarandon and helmed by Hillevi Loven, Deep Run is a compelling portrait of courageous Southern queer youth on a quest for belonging within their families of origin and within a community where faith is a sacred, binding commonality.

With the almighty power to uplift or destroy, churches are the center of family and community life for the young couple. But faced with blatant religious exclusion, they see pressures continue to grow as they seek spiritual refuge while dodging depression, addiction, violence, and suicide. This attempt to live out loud—a daunting challenge in rural North Carolina, where conservative Christianity rules—tests Cole and Ashley’s love for each other and for their God, until sudden events lead to a greater spiritual awakening and an even more unshakable faith.

For a long time, LGBT people were either left on the sidelines or completely pushed o the court of professional sports. But now that last closet—or locker-room—door is bursting open thanks to a growing number of bold activist athletes who are daring to come out. Their stories, and the ongoing challenges facing professional LGBT athletes, are told in Out To Win, the riveting new documentary from award-winning director Malcolm Ingram (Small Town Gay Bar).

videos fused together, this documentary retells how Jinkx came from a small-town stage performer in Portland, Oregon, to being crowned RuPaul’s Drag Race queen—and all the moments in between. Friends and family recall Jinkx's early flair for flamboyance. Footage from shows and personal interviews allow for the makeup to be removed, and paint a clearer picture of the person under the wig. Monsoon discusses her own personal challenges, as well as her biggest influencers on his way to the top, and guides us through the outrageous performances that honed her unique creation. It's not just any drag queen who cites Meryl Streep and Little Edie Beale as influences, and as this fascinating film reveals, Jinkx Monsoon is nothing if not one of a kind. Though Jinkx is no longer the Queen of Drag Race, it will always be Monsoon season, as RuPaul so lovingly said.

Drag Becomes Him provides an intimate glimpse inside the life of internationally acclaimed drag performer Jinkx Monsoon.

... IT'S NOT JUST ANY DRAG QUEEN WHO CITES MERYL STREEP AND LITTLE EDIE BEALE AS INFLUENCES.