Out of the blue

The hugely controversial Section 28 banned positive representations of homosexuality in British schools and forms a backdrop to director Georgia Oakley’s debut film. She tells James Mottram that the fight against discrimination is far from over

When first-time filmmaker Georgia Oakley came across Section 28, she was shocked. Enacted in 1988, this disturbing legislation, also known as Clause 28, was designed to prohibit the ‘promotion of homosexuality’ by local authorities. ‘I was at school until 2006 and the law was repealed in 2003,’ she explains. ‘So most of the time that I was at school, it was a law. None of my friends or I really knew about it.’

Immediately, she realised it was fertile ground for a film. The focus is Jean (Rosy McEwen), a gay PE teacher working in a Newcastle school at the time Section 28 is instigated. Like her director, McEwen (The Alienist) was taken aback by the legislation, and the way it had slipped through the cracks. ‘It was a shameful secret that was buried, and then just sort of abolished, like a gust of wind,’ says McEwen. ‘It just went hidden because people felt so embarrassed about it.’

When Blue Jean premiered at Venice last September, it immediately chimed with critics and viewers, winning the People’s Choice Award. More recently, it claimed four British Independent Film Awards, including Best Lead Performance for McEwen and Best Debut Screenwriter for Oakley. The BAFTAs may yet recognise the film too, though McEwen is simply delighted that the work is out there. ‘You just feel, “I’m so grateful that people are listening”.’ desperate to just be free and be the person that she wants to be. But she’s backed into a corner.’

The story was partly inspired by real experiences, notably of Professor Catherine Lee, who was an advisor on the set. While she’s now lecturing at the Anglia Ruskin University, Lee taught in secondary schools during the late 80s. Oakley was even privy to her diaries, which hinted at Lee’s struggles with her sexuality at the time. One entry recounted a particularly painful moment where, like Jean, she met a pupil in a gay bar.

‘She just completely ignored them, and just walked out of the bar,’ reports Oakley. ‘The next day the student went to find her in order to come out, saying, “I think I might be gay and I haven’t told anyone yet”. Catherine said, “you’re not. And if you are, don’t be, and never go back to that disgusting place again”. She shared that with us and I could hear the pain that was still so palpable in her voice.’ While Lee’s candid admissions showed that gay people were once forced to hide their true selves, progress still needs to be made. Take Florida’s controversial ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill, which restricts teaching about sexual orientation and gender issues. ‘There’s still so much going on,’ sighs McEwen. ‘There’s still so many micro and macro aggressions.’

Despite queer cinema increasingly showing narratives that move away from the ‘trauma’ of being gay, Oakley was adamant that she had to go dark. ‘Obviously, I would like for queer films to be made about every part of the experience. Happy endings are great, and we deserve them, but I didn’t want to feel like I had to make a film that was all about the positives of being gay.’

Blue Jean is in cinemas from Friday 10 February.