Miami’s South Beach is famous for many things, from gorgeous beaches, swanky shops and palm-lined boulevards to, more recently, queer films. Now in its 10th year, the Miami Gay and Lesbian Film Festival – the little festival that literally began in someone’s living room – has become a huge community event, with 10 days of nonstop parties and screenings. Given the opportunity to check out the various events geared toward women, I headed south from New England to sunny Miami, pale and primed for the festivities.
Scene 1: The Secrets Screening and Centerpiece Gala Party
Colony Theater, Miami Beach
April 30, 2008
I arrived in Miami a few days into the festival, just in time for the centerpiece screening, so things had been in full swing for a little while. I had been told that the planners had been making an effort to bring in the women, and it looked like it was working beautifully at the screening of The Secrets (Sodot, Ha) on Wednesday night.
The gorgeous Colony Theater – a little art deco gem on the corner of swanky Lincoln Road – was buzzing well before starting time, and eventually was packed to the brim with a diverse crowd of women (and a few men). I sat next to a pleasant, chatty guy who was more than happy to discuss queer Jewish film and the presence of men in the room, alternately.
Soon enough, festival director Carol Coombes came onstage (in a shimmering pink dress, no less) and introduced the “incredible, poetic film.” Because the film was the actual centerpiece of the festival, she also went into more detail about the event itself. Miami is now a major festival in every sense of the word, with world premiere screenings, directors and stars in attendance, and big sponsors – the HBO and Absolut logos were all over festival paraphernalia. But none of this diminishes the independent, friendly spirit that it began with 10 years ago as a tiny community event.
Coombes runs the festival as a true labor of love. She even asked her girlfriend to take a bow for keeping her fed and alive during the festival’s crazier times. When I met with Coombes later on, I was quite impressed by her ability to stay sane and keep a sense of humor amid all the chaos. Plus, she rocks outfits a lesser woman wouldn’t dare to attempt.
The movie itself was incredible. Set in the sacred Israeli city of Safed, The Secrets centers on the bond and eventual romance between two women studying at seminary school, and their quest to aid a repentant dying woman. While this may not exactly sound like a wild time, the movie had tons of heart, a great story, and a few genuinely funny moments, keeping it from being the downer it sounds like on paper.
The audience was quite lively, gasping and murmuring at appropriate points. At one quiet moment, I even heard a heated discussion in Hebrew erupt from two older women in the back of the theater. At another, my seating companion was humming along to one of the traditional songs on-screen.
Unfortunately, an appreciation for poetic, moving films doesn’t necessarily translate into a love for a good party, and the gala was a bit of a – shall we say, sausage fest. Still, groups of younger women sauntered around the Maxine‘s chic living room-meets-bar-meets-royal palace atmosphere, Absolut beverages in hand.
I called it an early night, knowing full well that the real celebrations were just around the corner, with the networking-happy Fuse party the next night and the Tru Loved screening’s open bar on Friday.
Scene 2: Fuse After-Party
Vino, Miami Beach
May 1, 2008
It was time to bust out the business cards for the Fuse After-Party, held at the casually upscale wine bar Vino. The atmosphere was wonderfully chill, with live music provided by Sol Ruiz as the festival-goers mixed and mingled about the space.
The room was spacious and plush, with vintage bottles lining the walls and intimate lighting – the perfect atmosphere for a little networking. True to its name, Vino kept the wine flowing and the clientele happy with its wide selection and comfy atmosphere, as women lounged on couches and armchairs while sipping on the usual reds and whites.
I met several women who were in town expressly for the festival, and quite a few locals and festival employees who were just enjoying the scene. Though I saw women of all ages and styles, they tended toward the older, the artsy and the well-coiffed. Miami is infamous for being a very image-conscious place, and this was evident among the queer women on hand at the party.
But thanks to the music, the atmosphere was anything but pretentious. Sol set the scene with her bluesy vocals and friendly onstage banter. “Who likes Ray Charles?” she called out just before going into a heartfelt rendition of “I Got a Woman” that set the room on fire.
She’s an up-and-coming artist in every sense of the word, about to release her first studio album, and one of her songs was featured on a fourth-season L Word episode – surely a good sign. After her set, I spoke with her briefly. Sol was incredibly gracious, greeting me with a hug and a smile.
Sol Ruiz
I also met with a few festival workers who were more than happy to discuss that night’s screening of The Edge of Heaven and the overall quality of the women’s films. Surely, we’ve come a long way from the days where the mere presence of lesbians in a film was a reason to cherish it (I’m looking at you, Go Fish!), and the centerpiece women’s films (including The Secrets, The Edge of Heaven and audience choice winner The World Unseen) really proved this point.
It may have been the wine talking, but I couldn’t help but think that this was a sign. I imagined the headline “Lesbian films no longer terrible!” – at least those made outside of North America.
Scene 3: Movies in the Park — Tru Loved and HBO shorts
The Flamingo South Beach
May 2, 2008
One of the most popular events of the festival is the outdoor screening held at the luxurious Flamingo condo overlooking the bay. This year, the coordinators put together a fantastic evening of queer film under the stars, with a premiere screening of three HBO-sponsored shorts and the feature Tru Loved.
The evening began with a little casual schmoozing in the twilight, fueled again by the sponsorship of Absolut. In fact, all of the festival’s sponsors were in attendance, as the Tylenol PM people (“sleepy kids,” complete with cute PJ’s and annoyed marketer expressions) were handing out free samples – best not to mix with the vodka.
I talked briefly with Karla DiBenedetto, director of the sole lesbian-themed short, Trophy, a wonderfully subversive piece about a teen who finds her dad’s new fiancée incredibly appealing. The film was quite funny, with a rather unexpected twist that speaks to the lothario teenager in all of us.
DiBenedetto explained that her script (and two others) were selected by HBO, and the filmmakers were given grants to produce their work for the channel. Like most directors of short films, she’s looking to make the jump into features, and if Trophy is any indication, she’s well on her way.
As for that night’s feature, the festival programmers couldn’t have picked a better film for the easygoing atmosphere than the bouncy, hilarious and surprisingly touching Tru Loved. The film follows Tru, a straight high schooler with the coolest lesbian moms on the planet, who becomes a beard for the school’s star quarterback. It’s a wonderfully inclusive and diverse film, with an interracial lesbian relationship front and center.
The film’s director, Stewart Wade, and several of its stars were in attendance, chomping on popcorn and mingling about in the breezy tropical evening. I saw Najarra Townsend (Tru) and the ever-radiant Nichelle Nichols (Grams in the film, though we all know her as Uhura from the original Star Trek). Nichols looked positively regal and appeared to be having a blast, laughing right along with the audience and giggling good-naturedly at her own appearances. Townsend was subdued and gracious when various audience members came up to congratulate her on her performance.
After the film, Wade, Nichols and Townsend fielded a little Q&A session, in which a few enthusiastic audience members (including one Trekkie) poured on their love for the project.
Nichols (left) and Townsend
Scene 4: What Girls Like (Shorts)
Affinity Screening and Women’s Spotlight Party
Colony Theater, Miami Beach
May 3, 2008
It wouldn’t be a major film festival without a selection of short films. The women’s shorts program was quite eclectic, with six films representing everything from cute comedy to outright spoof and personal documentary.
One of the highlights of the program was the wonderfully polished In Twilight’s Shadow, an action/sci-fi piece that boasts incredible special effects and an amazingly good-looking cast. The film centers on Carlisle, a vampire-like lesbian as she saves her lover from the clutches of other vampire-like creatures, kicking all kinds of ass in the process.
The easiest comparison would be to Buffy the Vampire Slayer or even Underworld, but there’s a sense of mythology and history that’s begging for longer than 12 minutes of running time. Fortunately, director Tina Scorzafava revealed in a Q&A session after the program that she’s currently in the process of turning the project into a feature-length film.
I met Scorzafava just after the screening, and she seemed pleased with the audience reception. In fact, one woman in the Q&A called out that Carlisle was way hotter than Buffy, a sure sign of acceptance. One of her main goals with the piece is to show that it really is possible to do mainstream, effects-heavy action with gay characters – something I think we can all get behind.
After the shorts, the crowds came streaming in for the night’s feature event, the world festival premiere of Affinity. The film is a 19th-century costume drama, adapted from the Sarah Waters novel of the same name, about a wealthy young woman who becomes a “visitor” at a women’s jail and falls for a prisoner claiming to be a spiritual medium. Look for my review of the film in the next few weeks on AfterEllen.com.
Zoe Tapper in Affinity
Finally, most of the audience made it to the Maxine for the final women’s after-party. The place was jumping – much more exciting than my last trip there. Lesbians lounged around the hotel’s funky bamboo pool while the cocktails flowed.
And there was a relaxed vibe about the evening – this was the last night after all. There was a little less networking than at Fuse, and a bit more conversation about the films of the day and the women’s events overall. Aside from a few minor quibbles about some of the shorts, everyone I talked to seemed impressed by the features as a whole, particularly The World Unseen and The Edge of Heaven. It would appear that the coordinators’ efforts to appeal to lesbian/bi women worked quite nicely.
In the end, the festival experience was incredible – and exhausting. It’s a 10-day bacchanal mixed with a serious celebration of queer films from around the world. It turns out that there was no need for all that free Tylenol PM – I slept the whole way back.
