BY FRANCESCA LEWIS

We all have that fantasy of finding a trunk of priceless family heirlooms in the attic, but in Jane Anderson’s case, such a discovery led to something a lot more fulfilling than money. Anderson, an award-winning writer/director whose most recent work Olive Kitteridge won an Emmy in 2014, has been surrounded by her Great Aunt Edith’s artwork all her life. Discovered by her mother in a bunch of old steamer trunks in the attic, they decorated the walls of her house when she was growing up. Not much was known about the mysterious Aunt Edith, except that she was born in the 1860s and spent the latter 30 years of her life in an asylum. As Anderson herself grew into a bohemian artist, living in New York, in part inspired by what she knew of her artsy Aunt Edith’s life, she became fascinated with this familial kindred spirit. Her mother would send her sketches, done by Edith when she was in New York herself, that were almost identical to the ones Anderson herself was making. Upon researching Edith’s life she learned two things – that Edith, like her, was a lesbian, spending her life with a “companion” named Fanny, and that it appeared that Edith’s incarceration was less about mental illness and more about a greedy attorney who wanted to get his mitts on her inheritance. Thus began a lifelong obsession with her aunt. Over the years Anderson tried to learn more about Edith Lake Wilkinson – her art, her life, her tragedy – and to get her recognised by the art world. Finally, reaching the same age Edith was when she was put away, happily married to her spouse Tess, she embarked upon this documentary project and her aunt’s story finally opened up in fascinating and surprising ways. The resulting film, Packed in a Trunk: The Lost Art of Edith Lake Wilkinson, is a lively, colorful film full of heart, beauty and sadness – part detective story, part history lesson, part love letter to a kindred spirit.

Probably the most wonderful thing about this film, other than the intriguing story, is Anderson herself. A bubbly character with a vibrant red bob and a selection of funky glasses, she makes this so much more entertaining than a film about a woman who was wrongly thrown into an asylum would typically be. Her relationship with Tess, who seems like the yin to her yang, a serene and centred presence, lends a sweet dimension to the film, also providing an interesting mirror to the relationship of Edith and Fanny. As is pointed out in the film, Jane and Tess have what Edith and Fanny were tragically denied: the freedom to be in love.

Packed In The Trunk would be a worthwhile film even if it focused on an untalented relative with the same backstory, but what is surprising is that Edith Lake Wilkinson’s work actually has a significant place in American art history. Edith was part of a group of modernists in Provincetown in the 1910/20s whose names are well known for their work with white line printmaking. Anderson learns in the film that there is compelling evidence, in the dating of a piece she possesses, that her Aunt originated the style. This leads to her being prominently featured in a show at the Provincetown Art Association Museum, a place Anderson had longed to see Edith’s work displayed for some time. It is the smaller show before this, however, held in a building Edith painted many years ago, where Jane and Tess lovingly decorate the walls Edith’s favourite shade of forest green, that feels like the real victory. There are a number of genuinely moving moments in this film but Anderson’s exuberance and playful humour ensures that it never becomes sentimental or maudlin.

The details of Edith’s life are never fully uncovered, but we do learn a few things. Edith Lake Wilkinson studied art, moved to New York, and later spent a lot of time in Provincetown where she was friends with prominent members of the art scene there. Provincetown was a place where bohemians and queer people could live safely – a tolerant and progressive haven. Unfortunately, it seems that all it took to doom Edith to a life of tragedy was an unscrupulous attorney, and at the age of 57, just as she planned to move to Paris to join the thriving art scene there, he had her committed to an asylum in order to steal her money. Her diagnosis: paranoia. Likely she told the staff her lawyer was robbing her blind, but this was the 1920s and nobody listened. Edith remained incarcerated until her death in the 1950s. A tragic tale indeed – an independent and talented woman, cut off in her prime – which makes her grand-niece’s crusade to have her properly recognised all the more poignant.

Packed In The Trunk: The Lost Art of Edith Lake Wilkinson is delightful on a number of levels. Firstly, it charts Edith’s return to her proper place in American art history. Secondly, it provides a window into the life of a queer woman who lived a century ago – and into the strides society has made in the time since then. Thirdly, and for me most importantly, it is a very human, very touching story about love, passion and the ways that those who have gone before us, even if they passed before we ever lived, can still have a profound effect on our lives.

You can watch Packed In The Trunk: The Lost Art of Edith Lake Wilkinson on Wolfe video.

Francesca Lewis is a queer feminist writer from Yorkshire, UK. She has written for Curve Magazine, DIVA Magazine, xoJane and The Human Experience. You can find her opinion pieces on Medium. 

The post “Packed In The Trunk” – Part Detective Story, Part History Lesson, Part Love Letter To A Kindred Spirit first appeared on Lesbian.com.

BY FRANCESCA LEWIS

This film was receiving praise before it even went into production. Winner of the Chicago Great Gay Screenplay competition and one of Outfests Scriptwriting Lab participants, writer/director Louise Wadley worked hard to develop this original and entertaining script. Funded by crowdfunding and private investment, this indie endeavor, featuring a story we’d be very unlikely to find in mainstream movies, All About E is a fascinating look at the diversity of Australian life. Spanning urban, suburban and rural settings, with characters from a range of backgrounds, the film is hard to pin down. Even its plot, with shades of crime caper, romance, farcical comedy, road movie and family drama, is not easy to categorize.

“I wanted to mix things up with this film” says Wadley, “and show that as long as the audience is taken care of and they are engaged and care about the characters, they will follow you. As a writer/director I wanted to go from comedy to pathos and make a really entertaining film that is actually about something quite complex.”

Complex indeed! In the opening scenes we are introduced to sexy DJ and womanizer, E. An Arabic Australian woman, her Spanish themed nights are the toast of the hottest gay club in town, as she rules the stage in a Matador outfit. But she longs to change the theme to something more in-keeping with her own Lebanese culture – perhaps an Arabian Nights theme – and is frustrated when her unsavory boss, Johnny refuses this in no uncertain, and racist, terms.

The next morning E and her gay Irish bestie/husband-of-convenience Matt realize she inadvertently brought home a huge bag of cash from the taxi last night. With the idea of opening up their own club in mind, they flee with the money, only finding out once it’s too late that the money belongs to her boss. Having scorned every woman in town, E finds no one is willing to help, and a visit to her parents shows us another, softer side to the woman who seemed to be so confident and in control. E, whose full name is Elmira, was a clarinet prodigy and chose her career in DJ-ing over a promising one in classical music. After Johnny calls to let her know exactly where her money came from, she fears her parents will be in danger if she remains. The only place she can go is deep into the outback, where the girlfriend she betrayed has made a new life. Haunted by memories of how she wronged Trish, E heads to her farm to hide out and make amends.

“The inspiration was born out of a deep frustration of not seeing my Australia represented on screen.” says Wadley, “Where is the multicultural world that is the reality of most Australian Cities ? You just don’t see it. We need to catch up with our story telling and our casting. Why not have a woman of color be the lead? So her cultural background doesn’t have to be the whole story just as why not have lesbians in other roles in drama as just a fact and a part of their character not the reason for the whole story. So it isn’t a coming out story. It isn’t a story that is just about being Arabic Australian – it’s a beautiful story about finding yourself that’s also a road movie, a thriller and a love story.”

Along with the surprising cultural context, the film’s other greatest strength is its beautifully done love scene. We all know it when a lesbian sex scene rings false and this one is refreshingly true to life. Grounded in the dynamic between these two characters, the scene – which is intimate without being graphic – really gets lesbian sex right

“I wanted to write a scene that was different to much of what I have seen in screen in the past.” says Waldey, “I wanted to show a beautiful love scene between two women that was both passionate and real but also one that was complex and told a story like all of our other scenes. A sex scene that was not coy but was also not just gynecological or porn-like in its approach.”

This scene has received a lot of praise. Mandahla Rose who played E told me,

“It’s wonderful when people approach me telling me specifically how beautiful the scene was. I even had a 13 year old gender fluid individual approach me and they said how much they loved the story and how much they adored the love scene because it wasn’t just two lesbians sharing this beautiful moment, it was two lovers and that is what made the difference.”

All About E is a film with so much going on. It will make you laugh and maybe even cry, is full of well-observed cultural detail and is certainly not your average lesbian movie.

You can see the movie on Wolfe Video here.

Francesca Lewis is a queer feminist writer from Yorkshire, UK. She writes for Curve Magazine and The Human Experience as well as writing short fiction and working on a novel. Her ardent love of American pop culture is matched only by her passion for analyzing it completely to death.

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Based on Jane Chambers’ classic 1980 Broadway play Last Summer at Bluefish Cove and adapted as a contemporary story set in Venezuela, Liz In September is more than a simple adaptation. Writer and director Fina Torres tried to make the film fourteen years ago, in English, but the project never got off the ground. When she got the chance again, she decided to do it differently — a Spanish language re-imagining with an updated story, focusing on issues that are more relevant today. With a wonderful cast, including gay ex-supermodel and The L-Word star Patricia Velasquez, and a new compelling focus on the right of the terminally ill to choose to die with dignity, the resulting film is as artfully executed as it is surprising.

The film tells the story of Eva, a married straight woman whose young son died of cancer. On her way to meet her cheating husband for a Caribbean getaway she encounters car trouble and, stranded, finds herself staying at an isolated beach retreat. Little does she know, this place is for lesbians and a group are staying there now, old friends spending the summer together away from the judgemental eyes of society. Eva meets Liz, a beautiful and competitive motorcycle-riding  ex model who bets her friends she can woo Eva, without falling in love. But Liz has a secret – she is dying of cancer – and as she and Eva get closer and she gets sicker, the film explores love and death in a way that is neither sentimental nor melodramatic.

“I don’t like melodrama,” says Torres, “so I tried to distance myself. I don’t know if it’s because of my French formation or my Venezuelan culture, but I think that we understand better and stay in the moment with you if we avoid melodrama.”

This is certainly true and, watching the film, the viewer is drawn into Liz’s reality through the realness and subtlety of both Torres’ direction and Velasquez’s performance.

“I tried to portray a character that was a winner.” says Velasquez, “And when you try to win no matter what, there is no space to be a victim, and what creates that melodrama most of the time is because one plays a victim.”

Velasquez poured herself into the role, spending time in hospitals with terminal patients in all stages to see the process, an experience she describes as “heartbreaking”, and reading books like Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’s On Death And Dying. In fact, Torres’ adaptation of Liz was heavily influenced by Velasquez.

“You know they say that we directors are sort of vampires,” she says, “and we suck blood from everywhere. Yes, I was very inspired for the character by Patricia. She came out with a book after the movie — we planned together that the movie and the book would come out together – because I think that having the courage to make this movie gave her the courage to assume her identity. I thought it was fascinating to put elements of her life into the fictional character so there are many elements of her life and backstory that are in the movie — even when Eva is watching her on the computer, she’s watching real shots of Patricia as a model.”

The book Torres refers to is Velasquez’s memoir Straight Walk: A Supermodel’s Journey To Finding Her Truth in which she writes candidly about her rise from poverty to the first Latin supermodel to her experiences as a model in the closet.

One of the film’s greatest strengths is its wonderful cast, which all work together perfectly and make it very easy to believe that they have been close friends for many years.

“Patricia was the first person to be cast, of course,” says Torres, “and little by little actresses came – some of them were already friends before. The people who didn’t know each other became really close friends in the process of shooting the movie. Which denies what people say about women, ‘when we’re together, that’s a mess’ – well, here it was not a mess – we were really good friends!”

It definitely shows on camera and the bond between characters in this film is a beautiful testament to the sisterhood of the lesbian community.

Francesca Lewis is a queer feminist writer from Yorkshire, UK. She writes for Curve Magazine and The Human Experience as well as writing short fiction and working on a novel. Her ardent love of American pop culture is matched only by her passion for analyzing it completely to death.

The post Liz In September: An Artful and Surprising Film first appeared on Lesbian.com.

The post Dutch Film “Summer” Is A Breath Of Fresh Air first appeared on Lesbian.com.

BY FRANCESCA LEWIS

Lesbian.com

Created by Trent Rampage in 2012, joined by Sophie Marfell the following year, No Gloss is a low-key, weekend-long event in the North of England showcasing quality films from all over the world, in a range of languages and genres. From shorts to features, from documentary to comedy to horror, No Gloss has everything. I spoke to the festival directors about their commitment to diversity and the need for more complex queer stories in cinema.

Can you tell me a bit about the inception of the festival – what is No Gloss all about?  

Trent: The festival started out as an idea that I had back in 2012, to showcase low/no budget films in an accessible setting. Essentially, we wanted to create a platform for independent films, and introduce the idea to the audience that you do not need celebrity endorsements, massive budgets or the backing of major studios to create beautiful, powerful films. That it’s not all just about film-theory and “trying to achieve a certain style” or that one must follow a particular rulebook: the final output, because of the absence of restriction, allows filmmakers to create in their own unique way, so films become fun again: vivid, strange, wonderful, boundary-pushing – subjects, topics, characters rarely seen in the mainstream are brought to the fore. With this, we hope to inspire people who are interested in film-making and who want to learn about film-making to experience the festival in a positive way that motivates and encourages them to do so.

And that’s why our film festival is called No Gloss: no fancy shit, no frills, no celebrities – none of that. Just awesome films, a friendly vibe and you, the audience.

How does No Gloss serve diversity, inclusivity and themes like feminism?

Sophie: We serve diversity and inclusivity simply by selecting a diverse and inclusive range of films. Although mainstream cinema doesn’t currently reflect this, there are of course people from a wide range of identities and backgrounds making films, and it’s important that the work has a platform because they are fantastic films and the audience is there. We feel we have consistently managed to show a diverse programme, and are pleased that each year we seem to see more submissions from women and minority groups. We’re interested in the narrative of the film and the message that comes across, as all too often we see films where women, LGBTQ individuals and/or people from black and minority ethnic communities are used as props to a story or filling a negative stereotype. So yes, you may have a diverse cast, but is it an accurate and positive representation? That’s an important consideration in our selection process.

What about queer diversity specifically?

Trent: One of our personal favorites this year is Marzipan Flowers, a light-hearted, colourful and outrageous comedy feature about the almost “mother/daughter” relationship between a grieving widow and her new found friend, a troubled, fast-talking hard-partying transwoman. In Israel. That’s one brave, powerful film!

Sophie: Early on we had discussions about whether to have an LGBTQ section of the programme, or LGBTQ afternoon for example, but decided against it mainly because so often when you do that the majority of people who go along to that part of the event will be part of the LGBTQ community; which can be great for many reasons and is catered for by other festivals, but we prefer to keep the LGBTQ films in the main programme to ensure we are showing that positive representation to as wide an audience as possible.

I remember when I was younger how exciting it was to see the likes of Tipping the Velvet and Queer As Folk on mainstream TV, but also how annoying it was (and still is!) when pretty much every lesbian storyline on TV ends with one of them being killed off! We can counter that by providing a platform for positive examples of work.

Trent: Our programme is inclusive and our focus is broad. For us, we do not see the need to segregate “queer films” from “non-queer films” in our programme – they’re films, very good ones at that!

Francesca Lewis is a queer feminist writer from Yorkshire, UK. She writes for Curve Magazine and The Human Experience as well as writing short fiction and working on a novel. Her ardent love of American pop culture is matched only by her passion for analyzing it completely to death.

The post No Gloss: DIY Diversity In A Film Festival first appeared on Lesbian.com.

If, like me, you’ve been filled with giddy anticipation since last March’s Indiegogo campaign to see dream couple Katherine Heigl and Alexis Bledel don their white dresses, the wait is about to be over! Jenny’s Wedding premieres this week at LA’s Outfest.

Written , directed and co-produced by professional tearjerker Mary Agnes Donoghue (Beaches, White Oleander), who based this passion project (loosely) on the experience of her real life niece Jenny, the film is a family drama about a secretly gay woman, who has been living with her partner under the guise of “roommates” for some time. When the two decide to get married, Jenny has to break the news to her ordinary conservative family, who don’t exactly know how to react. With rom com sweetheart Katherine Heigl and TV icon Alexis Bledel (Rory Gilmore!) cast as the central couple, and the incomparable Tom Wilkinson as Jenny’s father, the film is set to be an instant classic.

The world premiere of Jenny’s Wedding screens at LA’s Outfest this Friday July 11th. Check out the trailer below:

Francesca Lewis is a queer feminist writer from Yorkshire, UK. She writes for Curve Magazine and The Human Experience as well as writing short fiction and working on a novel. Her ardent love of American pop culture is matched only by her passion for analyzing it completely to death.

The post Jenny’s Wedding to Premiere at Outfest first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Katherine Heigl in “Jenny’s Wedding.”
(Photo courtesy of Tiffany Laufer)

BY EMELINA MINERO
Lesbian.com

LOOK FOR “JENNY’S WEDDING” IN THEATERS NOW.

It’s rare that we see a film with lesbian characters in the theaters. The few times we do see a movie with a strong queer character on the big screen, we are moved because the opportunities to see that aspect of ourselves reflected on the big screen, an aspect that society had made taboo, are scarce. We feel empowered, or perhaps scared – maybe a sense of fulfillment and validation, or anger that a movie with a lesbian character making it into the theaters is still a big deal. And it is a big deal.

“Jenny’s Wedding” is a big deal, and not only does the film have a lesbian character, but lesbian leads. Katherine Heigl (“Gray’s Anatomy,” “Knocked Up”) is cast in the title role, and Alexis Bledel (“Gilmore Girls,” “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants”) portrays her lesbian fiancé.

Katherine Heigl and Alexis Bledel (Photo courtesy of Tiffany Laufer)

“Jenny’s Wedding” is our exposure. It’s not a campy film. Being gay is a theme in the film, but it’s not the entire story. It’s humanizing – of everyone. It humanizes Jenny, a conventional woman from a conventional small town who is also a lesbian. She doesn’t want to stand out. She just wants to marry the woman she loves, start a family in her hometown and just be another town member among her neighbors.

There are no villains in this film. “Jenny’s Wedding” humanizes Jenny’s family. When Jenny comes out to them, they’re thrown into this new world that they hadn’t any exposure to previously. They’re more conventional than conservative. They’re not change makers. They prefer not to stand out, and Jenny coming out in their small town makes them stand out.

They’re hurt that Jenny had kept a part of herself a secret from them for so long. They struggle, not only with trying to accept this change, but also with how Jenny coming out is making them look at themselves, evaluate themselves and change themselves.

“Jenny’s Wedding” is a story about family, love, personal courage and stretching past one’s personal limits when confronted with something new. This film is a roadmap for families who are struggling with their kids coming out, and it’s a roadmap for families who are struggling to accept anything out of their comfort zone, not just their LGBTQ children.

When we go see “Jenny’s Wedding” in the theaters, it will move us. We’ll laugh. We’ll cry and we’ll be moved by seeing an aspect of ourselves portrayed on the big screen that at one point in our lives we had kept hidden, or perhaps that we still hide.

“Jenny’s Wedding” has a lot of Hollywood support, but it is an independent film. Mary Agnes Donoghue, the writer of “Beaches” and “White Oleander,” wrote, directed and produced “Jenny’s Wedding.” The film is loosely inspired by her niece coming out to her family. Michelle Manning, also the producer of the film, produced “Sixteen Candles” and “The Breakfast Club,” and worked with Paramount Pictures as senior vice president of production, and later as president of production. Gail Levin, again a producer, was the executive vice president of features casting at Paramount Pictures, and personally casted “Almost Famous,” “Jerry Maguire” and ‘What’s Eating Gilbert Grape.”

The film boasts an incredible ensemble cast as well. Golden Globe and Emmy winner and two-time Oscar nominated Tom Wilkinson plays Jenny’s father, Eddie. Linda Emond (“Across the Universe,” “Julie & Julia”) plays Jenny’s mother, Rose, and Grace Gummer (“Zero Hour,” “The Newsroom”) plays Jenny’s sister, Anne.

The film has been a passion project for everyone involved. Filming has wrapped and the project is now in post-production. It’s a low-budget film and the producers have launched an Indiegogo campaign to help fund the soundtrack, an integral element of any film.

The filmmakers are offering some very enticing campaign incentives: tickets to the Los Angeles and Cleveland screenings of the film; autographs from Katherine Heigl; the wedding dress from the film. Donations are tax-deductible thanks to their partnership with From the Heart Productions and a portion of each donation will be contributed to non-profit PFLAG Cleveland.

“Jenny’s Wedding” is a film that can change lives and through the Indiegogo campaign the community is being offered the opportunity to contribute to that change.

Help the Filmmakers of Jenny’s Wedding from Jenny’s Wedding on Vimeo.

The post ‘Jenny’s Wedding’: A lesbian marriage goes mainstream first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Filmmakers Kate Johnston and Shauna MacDonald dish on their film “Tru Love” in this Q&A.

The post Q&A with ‘Tru Love’ filmmakers first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Anchored by critically-acclaimed lead performances from Miranda Otto (“War of the Worlds”, “Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers”, “Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King”) and Glória Pires (“Smoke Gets in Your Eyes”, “If I Were You”), Director Bruno Barreto’s romantic period drama “Reaching for the Moon” debuted on DVD February 11, 2014 from Wolfe Video.

An intimate snapshot of the search for inspiration, the film is based on the true story of Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Elizabeth Bishop (Otto), who travels to Brazil where she encounters the beguiling architect Lota de Macedo Soares (Pires). Initial hostilities make way for a complicated yet long-lasting love affair that dramatically alters Bishop’s relationship to the world around her.

“Reaching for the Moon” has already garnered numerous awards on the film festival circuit, including Audience Awards for Best Feature at the 2013 Outfest Los Angeles LGBT Film Festival, Frameline37 – San Francisco International LGBT Film Festival, the 2013 Toronto Inside Out Lesbian and Gay Film and Video Festival, and the 2013 Tampa International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival. The film was also an official selection at 2013 Tribeca Film Festival and 2013 Berlin International Film Festival.

Watch it here on Lesbian.com: Reaching for the Moon

The post ‘Reaching for the Moon’: Two iconic women. One passion. first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Desiree Akhavan (Photo: Jeff Vespa)

BY MARCIE BIANCO
AfterEllen

In my experience, life is always slipping back and forth between comedic farce and tragic melodrama, so I appreciate it when films get the balance right and make it feel truthful.” This is Desiree Akhavan’s formula for making insightful, and wonderfully witty, drama, from the award winning web series “The Slope” to her most recent venture, her first full-length feature entitled “Appropriate Behavior.” Hailed by “Vanity Fair” as one of the top 10 anticipated films of Sundance 2014, “Appropriate Behavior” is the future of queer cinema. It engages with themes associated with queer narratives of “coming out” and social and political marginalization without hyperbolic exaggeration, or melodramatic tragedy afflicting one or more of the film’s characters.

Read more at AfterEllen.com

AfterEllen is the pop culture site that plays for your team

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