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This year's London Lesbian & Gay Film Festival once again provides an unrivalled
opportunity for you to experience the best of gay cinema from across Europe and the world.
Now in its 23rd year, there are outstanding contributions this year from France, Germany, Israel, Spain,
the Czech Republic, Mexico, Argentina, Canada and the USA, in addition to the wealth of UK talent on show, writes OutUK's Mike Gray.
Here's a selection of highlights.
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Already well into the Festival and it seems to be a great year for UK features with the world premiere of Greek Pete, a semi-improvised
drama based on the lives of a group of rent boys with whom director Andrew Haigh worked over a period of six months.
John Hurt reprises his portrayal of Quentin Crisp for Richard Laxton's An Englishman in New York, the long-awaited follow-up
to 1975's The Naked Civil Servant and you can watch video of his visit on the LLGFF website.
France leads the way with no less than six features in the Europe section. Festival favourites Jacques Martineau and Olivier Ducastel
(Drôle de Félix, Cockles and Muscles) return with Born In '68 an epic drama covering 40 years life and sexual politics in France.
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Greek Pete
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Transvestites Also Cry is Sebastiano d'Ayala's debut film, shot over three years, which follows the day-to-day lives of two unforgettable
transgendered emigrants from Ecuador.
There's also a particularly strong selection of documentaries from the USA. Guido Santi and Tina Mascara's
Chris & Don is a portrait of the life-long love affair of novelist Christopher Isherwood and artist Don Bachardy.
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Stonewall & Judy
It's 40 years since the Stonewall riots and to commemorate this historic event, the legendary Aids campaigner and Names Project founder
Cleve Jones, who was once Harvey Milk's student intern, will take to the stage to discuss his work with Brian Robinson to accompany a screening of Milk.
There'll also be screenings of Nigel Finch's classic Stonewall and also Before Stonewall later this week.
It's 40 years ago since Judy Garland visited the NFT and last weekend saw an exploration of the phenomenon of Judy Garland which included a packed showing of
a rarely seen ATV recording of Judy and daughter Liza Minelli on stage together at the London Palladium.
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Stonewall
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The Judy Garland and Stonewall screenings are part of a strand called Generations Of Love - a series of events for older members of the gay community,
which uses film and TV as the stimulus for exploring memories of the past and examining the present.
Baby Love
The Closing Night Gala on Wednesday 8th April is a French film Baby Love. A well-off established Parisian gay couple, a lawyer and a doctor living in trendy Belleville, split up
when the doctor (Lambert Wilson) decides he wants to raise a child. But making the decision is only the beginning of a comedy of errors which takes our hero (a paediatrician) on a surprising journey.
He meets a young Argentinean woman by crashing into her car it seems he has found his perfect match. Nothing is simple, but this delicious and affecting film gives a brilliantly entertaining insight into the emotional
highs and lows of gay parenting and its pitfalls. The Gala showing is at the Odeon West End.
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Booking Info
Booking for the festival is now open to the public. You can call the Box Office on 020 7928 3232 or online at llgff.org.uk.
We'll be keeping you updated with news and reviews here on OutUK throughout the Festival
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