The AfterEllen.com 2008 Visibility Awards
LESBIAN COUPLE OF THE YEAR (INTERNATIONAL)
Gro Hammerseng and Katja Nyberg
The teammates in life and on the field currently resident in Denmark have long been celebrities outside the U.S. for their domination of the popular sport of European handball, and their openness about their own relationship — Gro and Katja came out publicly as a couple a few years ago, and their personal and professional lives are routinely covered by lifestyle newspapers and magazines. But their performance at this year's Summer Olympics (the Norwegian handball team took home the gold medal, with Gro as team captain proudly bearing the flag) brought them even greater attention world-wide.
Hammerseng and Nyberg have won many American hearts for their obvious devotion to one another and their sport, even as they tend to lead a private life off the field. Gro's increasing status as a sex-symbol (she was #82 on The 2008 AfterEllen.com Hot 100 list, and was recently photographed as Joan of Arc for a popular Norwegian magazine) and the couple's growing international fan base will likely make them even more popular in the years to come.
LESBIAN COUPLE OF THE YEAR (AMERICAN)
Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi
America's most high-profile lesbian couple (they also won last year's Lesbian Couple of the Year) became even more high-profile this year with their much-publicized wedding, which made the cover of People magazine and was breathlessly covered in detail by media and news outlets around the world.
Ellen and Portia's wedding — along with Ellen's discussion of gay marriage on her extremely popular talk show — arguably did more to make the public comfortable with gay marriage than just about anything else, which was especially important in a year in which gays and lesbians were fighting for the right to marry across America.
LESBIAN/BI WOMAN OF THE YEAR (INTERNATIONAL)
The multi-talented writer and director, who lives in London with her partner Hanan Kattan and their two children, debuted their first film, I Can't Think Straight, at festivals this year, and released their second film The World Unseen theatrically, to critical and popular acclaim. Her novels have been equally well-received.
As one of the few out lesbians of Indian descent making movies that feature lesbian characters of Indian descent, Sharif's work provides entertainment of broad appeal that also sheds light on an invisible minority.
Runner-up: Gro Hammerseng
LESBIAN/BI WOMAN OF THE YEAR (AMERICAN)
Although she's been doing political commentary for years on Air America radio, mainstream America discovered political commentator Rachel Maddow en masse this year when she was tapped to host her own political talk show on MSNBC in the fall, and co-hosted the cable network's election coverage. Ratings doubled for her time slot, and suddenly Rachel was the toast of the town, earning photoshoots and length interviews in everything from Newsweek to The Advocate to Vogue.
Uber-smart, sarcastic, and quite comfortable being openly gay and "dressing like a 12-year-old boy," Rachel is a welcome change from the many vapid celebrities who get so much media attention these days.
That's it for this year's Visibility Awards. Let us know what shows, movies and people made your best-and-worst lists for 2008!
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rachel maddow
im glad she won. rachel maddow definitely deserved lesbian/bi woman of the year. how can anyone not love her?
I could care LESS...
About the developing relationship between Tasha and Alice. Are you serious? They are the worst couple beating out Jenny and Carmen! IC can't write for Rose and Rose can't act. Its cringeworthy watching them on screen and Tasha and Alice together ruins Alice more than IC ever imagined. Tasha is awful, treats Alice like crap, and I just dont see the connection.
Granted season 5 was a slight return to the good days of the L-Word, but the Tasha Alice relationship isnt a credit.
Sorta funny, for me it's the
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Oh Trixie - wouldn't it be wonderful flying above the clouds, shooting stars out of our matching vaginas.
I love Rose
Rose is a great actress, just because the relationship between those characters didn't seem right doesn't mean the actress did a poor job. I thought they way they wrote that story line was just wrong. I am very out. My girlfriend isn't because she's in the army. I had a deep connection to what went on in that storyline in the beginning. I was very moved that they included that sort of struggle because there are many women who go through the very same thing. Tasha reminded me of my girl in a lot of ways, just a little bit too mean. The part that didn't work is coupling that charachter with Alice. Both women are great actresses, good for the L-Word for trying. They could have done a better job of it, but at least some of us also got to see another lesbian of color included in television.
An aside this list had some surprises for me with a little better representation of women of color. The lesbian community is made up of so many wonderful women of all races and it's great to see that as time goes on we are able to appreciate the talents of all.
aww but they have such a
Joke?
I hope this is a joke, even so, not funny. Tasha and Alice one of tv's greatest couples. It did start to go downhill in the last season when they made Alice a villain and start to treat Tasha bad, but everything in the last season started to go downhill. IC does not write well for most of the characters on the show unfortnaly. Rose is an amazing actress you cannot deny that. Tasha, awful, treats Alice like crap?? Now I know your post was meant to be a joke, lame but w/e, don't know why I even responded. I guess just in case all you said is what you somehow believe...
- Peace, love, vegan! -
rachel maddow
yay rachel maddow!!
I love it! All in all it was
this was...
Totally agree with the picks
I am STILL flabbergasted by the dichotomous nature of ABC...How can they produce the best AND worst scripted lesbian themed storylines?...I just hope the writers on AMC continue their great work. I've favorited like 20 clips of Bianca and her girlfriends various dialogues some dating back to 2002 on youtube...They really do write some great stuff!
I feel bad for Rosie...she's had a tough couple of years in public.
Im definitely proud of Ellen&Portia, Rachel Maddow and especially Wanda....we need more black lesbian representation in the media...Come on queen..you can do it!!
LINDSAY LOHAN
im gladd she is on the list.....but i agree ...everyone knew it!!!she is so BISEXUAL:P
All in all a good list
But I wish Top Chef would've won the reality show category.
For the life of me I have never been able to watch ANTM for more than 5 minutes, even with all the lesbians that have been on it.
On the other hand, I'm absolutley ADDICTED to Top Chef! LOVE that show. The fact that it always has at least one lesbian and one gay guy per season is just the cherry on top:).
Great list
That's all there is to say. The ones that I nominated were (most of the time) the ones that won their category, so I'm happy with it ;) And it's a breath of fresh air as well, showing that even though it's not been the best of years with prop. 8 and stuff, there were also a lot of great things that happened.
You didn't even take your clothes of, yet you've never looked more naked.
Thank you from 3Way
You like us, you really like us! Thank you to AE and all the fans... we've had a great run and it's all because of you. Not kidding.
Sorry it's taken so freakin' long to get a 2nd season together. But we'll get right on it, right after we get off each other... nl xo
Do what you love, with those you love.
3WayTV.tv
2nd season!
Thank God! This waiting patiently thing is getting difficult. I need more 3way in my life.
And, of course we LOVE you!
*sits in corner waiting patiently and distracting myself with shiny objects...*
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~It means pride.~
3way
"...right after we get off each other..."
^ um. no need for such drastic measures, just have someone press record.
*joins her buddy in the corner to wait*
In what was already a very
In what was already a very good year, 3Way was the Best. Lesbian. Thing. Ever!
Please come to dvd!
Bittersweet:-/
Um so I dig the choices, what's funny is most of the winners in the catagories were my runner-ups....so I'm still happy with the winners:-)...bummed about NO T&S anywhere but stoked about Uh Huh Her....it is fair after-all I suppose cuz their record did actually come out this year but....T&S are pretty politcal and definitely used the stage to promote Obama and the "jointheimpact" things and whatnot but....still this going to Uh Huh Her was still awesome, they were just my second choice...
YAY!!!!!!!!! I'm SO happy Passing For Black won!!! That book is AMAZING, I thought before reading it that I would relate to the lesbian story in the book and I didn't AT ALL, as far as that part of the story goes....Angela went through nothing I did, neither me her so...what I related to was the actual "passing for black" part of the story...always feeling like I'm not "black enough" and things like that so....
Yay!!! GOOD JOB LADIES!!!:-D
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"I know how I was born and I know that I have no choice. I know it may not show on the color of my skin, but I know it’s in my heart and in my soul."-Sara Quin
That seems like a very solid list
Nothing I care about enough to disagree about and plenty to like and agree with :)
I think the open categories are a big success.
Katy Perry
I saw that one coming! There was a time when I couldn't go to a club without that song being played (although, I have to admit, I get less irritated with the song depending on alcohol levels...it's a correlational relationship) which has slowly hacked me off over the past months. I have to keep explaining to everyone why it isn't a good thing...
Yay for 3way :) roll on season 2! That was one of the only series (including broadcast Tv) that I actually kept up with this year, and I notoriously never keep to the end of programmes usually. Big yay for Rachel Maddow as well (I see a hot 100 2009 candidate...)!
And of course just one more yay for the visibility awards in general :D it makes procrastination worthwhile!
The closer you get to the light, the greater your shadow becomes, but don't be afraid...
Couldn't agree more
"I have to keep explaining to everyone why it isn't a good thing..."
I know, right? I'm so glad they don't make me endure that song anymore - although my favorite radio station did put it somewhere around the 400th place of best songs ever, a few weeks ago, which made me want to throw my radio out of the window. Anyway, my radio's still in one piece and at least I don't have to explain to my straight friends anymore why I hate this song so much. When it was still very popular here, they were always asking me why on earth I didn't like it ("I mean, you're a lesbian, right? It's about kissing girls... So what's so bad about it?"), and although I explained it more times than I'd wished for, I still don't think they get it...
Ah well, at least most people here understand it.
I'm very happy about the winners by the way, most of my choices made it, or at least became runner-ups, and I'm not that upset about the ones I didn't pick myself. They're all good choices. Big yay for 3Way and I definitely agree with you on Rachel Maddow belonging in the top 100!
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I Need A Man Like A Fish Needs A Bicycle.
Also...
Ironically a lot of the time it is explaining to my gay/bi friends why I don't like it. My local gay bar also still plays t.A.T.u's "All the things she said" (we just tend to shout the parody version over it) but that might be more for comedy value! I guess pretend lesbian music is more popular than real...a little disheartening!
The closer you get to the light, the greater your shadow becomes, but don't be afraid...
Yay! Water Lilies wins!
I am absolutely THRILLED that Water Lilies won for best film (US festival release)!!! It is so deserving of the win, as it is such a beautiful, bittersweet, layered, memorable movie... and I have to say that the person who wrote the description of it in this article did a wonderful, perceptive job of describing exactly what is so special and moving about the film and the relationship between Floriane and Marie.
The film seemed to get a pretty mixed reaction in the mainstream heterosexual press, but the lesbians who see it almost always have a much deeper understanding of the subtleties of the film and its characters.
I really hope that AE does an interview with Céline Sciamma or with Adéle Haenel and Pauline Acquart... that would be fabulous!
Yay again!!!
Hip To The Beat, Mommie-O!
I totally have to agree
I totally have to agree with what you said. I saw Water Lilies at an indie theater in my city and loved it. I liked it so much I had to watch it again because I wanted to see how I would feel about it the second time. I think some of the viewers were disapointed in how the film ended, as I was but I still liked it.
It's funny that Itty Bitty Titty Commitee had more of a turn out then Water Lilies did; I guess everyone stayed home to watch the end of Dr. Hahn.
No Karmen and Bridget :(
I had to read all the way
I had to read all the way until the end to find out that Rachel Maddow did indeed win. Score one for the brainiacs! Phew!
I don't know how I feel about Grey's getting worst storyline. I think many of us, myself included, were so disappointed at Brooke's firing that we might be overlooking how good the story was before that. I wonder if we'll ever know the real story.
A Decent & Fair List
www.myspace.com/lunakiss7.com
I'm so happy to see Wanda Sykes to get some recognition for coming out. It really was hard to pick her and Rachel Maddow for American Lesbian Of The Year. I agree it was a beautiful moment for her. You will rarely see A-A entertainment womyn come out/ Kudos for her! I'm happy to see Portia & Ellen D as the best couple. Surprise to see KIN as best music video. I don't remember voting on any category for music videos. Happy that AE.com recognize true talent. Oh another surprise best coming out story scripted on television ,Lincoln Heights. I agree with your proposition on the show's win in that category. Thanks for recognizing Linda Villarosa's Passing For Black and Alisa's Dirty Girls On Top. Overall, a decent and fair list.
"Speak your mind, be the truth."
thefemininedivine.blogspot.com
yeah pepa and silvia!!!
yeah pepa and silvia!!!
que bonito! me encanta! not only is their story very romantic and well written and performed. it also made me learn a whole lot of spanish in just 3 months! todo el mundo debe obsesionar de una pareja del otro país y apprender su idioma! es tan fácil! saludos desde alemania!:-)
Pepsi !!
Yessssssssssssss Pepa and Silvia have fans everywhere, Usa South-America, Europe, and even China and Japan...
Not only because they are beautiful and good actresses, but the story between them is masterfully written, moving and funny, sexy but not exploitative
Time for AfterEllen to discover them !! :o)
The bests moments with Pepa and Silvia with french subtitles :
http://www.univers-l.com/los_hombres_de_paco_videos.htm
word!
in my opinion it´s the best written relationship between 2 women so far. I did like the tension build-up in imagine me and you but that was a movie. tasha and alice were great too, but no one has captured the romantic encounter better yet and kept going at the same level. I realize it´s also a matter of whether you like their personalities, looks and all, and so maybe others might prefer someone else, but for me it´s the whole package of good looks, intelligence, humor, tension, drama and romance. go watch it if you haven´t! pepa, te quiero!!:-)
Ayyayayayaya!
OMG that made me SO excited to hear you gals talking about Pepsi!! That is my new favorite show y yo estoy aprendiendo un monton de nuevo espanol tambien. Okay that may have been bad. But my new favorite phrase is: "me muero por besarte" hehehehehe
And, I agree, the storyline is probably the best written lesbain storyline on television right now and one of the best ever. This is how Callica should have been handled!!! Omg everyone on this site should check LHDP out. I think I'll post a thread right now about it...
I guess we really
I guess we really should open up a thread and confide in each other about our obsession. here´s my favorite line: te doy tres besos más y me enamoro de ti como una perra!
that sounds stupid in german but amazingly sexy in spanish!:-)
PepSi Tell me it isn't so
PepSi - Tell me it isn't so
Poor Rosie.
Roise had a great idea...she just did not execute it all that well. I hope someone else gives a variety show tries again and succeeds as I miss shows like The Carol Burnett Show.
A very well-rounded list. Even if my #1 picks didn't make it, my 2nd and 3rd choices did...and with some of the categories several of my favorites were in competition...like with the straight allies...while in other categories, I felt there was no competition...like with 3Way getting web series. Great to read that there will be a season 2!
It's a play ! A PLAY !
Call it the annoying francophone in me, but Sartre's Huis Clos (No Exit) is a play.
...
And I don't really see the common points between the two stories, since the lesbian in Huis Clos was the stereotypical Damned Woman. There was a LOT of heterosexism in there.
But that's just me nitpicking ! xD
Glad Rachel Maddow won, though..
Thanks
I read Huis Clos in high school French class in book form, and it left a strong impression on me — but I forgot that it was actually written as a play! Thanks for the correction.
What was similar to me about Huis Close and Water Lilies wasn't the lesbian character/subplot specifically, but the way in which all three characters in both the film and the play desired more attention (platonically or romantically) from one of the others than they wanted to give, and in that way, they were all doomed in a way to want what they couldn't have.
whew!
AE: Typo
On page 3: "Over a dozen out female athletes competed in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China, and several took home medals, including women from the U.S., Norway, and German" - should be Germany?
Thanks!
Visible Awards
REPRESENT Lincoln Heights!!
My two choices out of four were chosen: "Lincoln Heights" show and Wanda Sykes.
I like how you all, AE Staff, have listed extra awards! Thank you for that which I believe shows much more visiblity. :))
*NOTE: I had seen "Water Lilies" a few days ago on IFC channel (in U.S).
I'm pretty sure that the
Loved it
Who cares about a typo and/or play vs. book... I loved this piece. Thanks, AE! You're the best!!
www.SeekingSaraSummers.com
Great Article
I'm sorry, I should also have said that I loved this piece, because I did!!!! AE deserves all the praise they get, and then some. Keep up the great work!!!
The typo was just some constructive criticism :)
Missy Higgins...
I love her first album and am sad to say I haven't got her second yet, but she's extremely talented and to hear that she came out as bisexual was brilliant. The LGBT community may be a minority, by man do we get some amazing talent in there.
Amanda Palmer's Leeds United video would have been great for best music video. Not only is there same-sex kissing (which is, refreshingly, not made a big deal of) but she tackles the whole idea of women's body image in the media, it's refreshing to hear a woman say "I'm not trying to be thin, I'm trying to HOT."
Honorable mention
I realize that it would be a bit weird if a website gave awards to it's own staff. But I think that Sarah and the rest of the AE staff deserves an honorable mention for all you do for visibility every day. If it weren't for this site I probably wouldn't even know about half of the stuff on this list and in addition to that you bring us lots of original content. So thank you for that!
All in all I think it's a great list although I would have liked to see Lucy Lawless as best Straight Ally.
Glad Grey's won worst show
Glad Grey's won worst show but Brooke's amazing performance in the 'leaves' scene got recognition. It was the acting far more than the writing that made that scene, I thought.
Rachel Maddow is awesome. That is all.
Yay Ellen & Portia!
No, No, N0!!!
oKAY, I get that Jennifer Beals is a fabulous actress and has been campaigning for something and someone she really believes in for a long time. I get that her work on the L Word is groundbreaking and we should all think she's very special. I understand that she's devestatingly attractive, but when I look at Brooke Smith - I get that times ten.
Brooke Smith should have won the nomination for best straight ally for many more reasons than the fact that she has the sexiest voice in the history of the world (and Oh my god what I wouldn't have done to me by that woman...) However, we - as a community - and as individuals are still smarting from a very clear attack against us, first in the form of Prop 8 and second in Brooke's firing from Grey's A. The message of strength we would have showed in supporting this fabulous, kind, generous talented human being in nominating her would have been sooo important. Is still sooo important.
Yeah, Jen's great, but look where we are now in terms of gay rights - what is Obama actually doing for us as a community where Brooke is simply doing what has to be done without making a great big fuss about how she's ticking the right boxes or whatever.
I know this will come across as an attack on those of you who chose Jennifer as your personal favourite straight ally. I absolutely support your right to make that vote and I respect your judgements.
I, however, need more than that, I'm still hurting from the Callica debacle and the way that I'm perceived by the world.
Congrats everybody, we survived another year (almost!)
And it was an awesome move to vote for the 'leaves' speech like you (collectively) did
xxx
Catherine