1994 Vancouver Queer Film Festival

Everyone knows that this is the Year of the Queer. Our families are red hot items, but as usual, the media chooses which family members get to speak and what they get to speak about. And we all know that there's still plenty of "dirty" laundry to be aired! This has been a restructuring year for the Out on Screen board, as we are all new members and are no running collectively. The Board has invited programmers in to curate individually and collectively. We feel it is important to emphasize both film and video work, and to provide a screening venue for local and Canadian artists. This year's festival explores a variety of issues which reflect the diversity of our communities, and hopefully will create discussion around our complexity. We have chosen to highlight the works of Patibha Parmar and Marlon Riggs due to their considerable contributions to queer film/video. Gone are the days of simplistic banal "positive" images of lesbians and gays. Like all close-knit families, we have our differences - Out on Screen does not intend to ignore them. Our programming emphasizes short video and film work for two reasons: they are less expensive to produce and therefore are more accessible; and as they don't take up as much time as a feature, they allow for more voices to be heard. However, we acknowledge that access to equipment and resources is still a problem for members of our communities, and that not all voices are being heard. Out on Screen is committed to continually seeking out new and unheard voices. We hope this year's festival will delight, entertain and provoke, and if any of you are interested in getting involved, our AGM is in the fall. Enjoy!