Only in LA
Screenings & Events
Festivals, Special Guests, Retrospectives and more "one night only" queer cinema screenings.
Dec
4
December
4
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December
4
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7:30 pm
Bram Stoker's Dracula
Academy Museum
Francis Ford Coppola set out to make a movie that was faithful to (possibly closeted) Bram Stoker's novel, though he removed some queer undertones and maybe added a few of his own to this indulgent production featuring a high camp Gary Oldman as Dracula.
In 19th century England, Count Dracula travels to London and meets Mina Harker, a young woman who appears as the reincarnation of his lost love.
Dec
4
December
4
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December
4
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7:00 pm
The Color of Pomegranates
Los Feliz 3
Bisexual Soviet film director Sergei Parajanov was jailed for his art, his sexuality, and his support of nationalist movements within the USSR. None of his films are explicitly Queer by modern standards, but they play with gender, kitsch, and folklore in beautiful ways.
The life of the revered 18th-century Armenian poet and musician Sayat-Nova. Portraying events in the life of the artist from childhood up to his death, the movie addresses in particular his relationships with women, including his muse. The production tells Sayat-Nova’s dramatic story by using both his poems and largely still camerawork, creating a work hailed as revolutionary by Mikhail Vartanov.
Dec
3
December
3
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December
3
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7:30 pm
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8 Women
Whammy Analog Media
This musical murder mystery farce from gay auteur Francois Ozon sees eight women trapped in a house, and all of them are suspects! As the night goes on, their conflicts descend into madness, comedy, and of course lesbianism in turn.
Eight women gather to celebrate Christmas in a snowbound cottage, only to find the family patriarch dead with a knife in his back. Trapped in the house, every woman becomes a suspect, each having her own motive and secret.
Dec
2
December
2
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December
2
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7:30 pm
Female Trouble
Vidiots Eagle Theater
The life and times of Dawn Davenport, showing her progression from bratty schoolgirl to crazed mass murderer - all of which stems from her parents' refusal to buy her cha-cha heels for Christmas.
Dec
2
December
2
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December
2
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7:30 pm
Bona
Academy Museum
Openly gay director Lino Brocka was one of the Philippines' greatest directors, and suffered censorship and jail for his art and activism. (His nephew, Q. Allan Brocka, is also a queer filmmaker in LA). See this new restoration of Bona, a tale of showbiz obsession.
Middle class school girl Bona (Nora Aunor) skips class to hang around the sets of bit actor Gardo (Philip Salvador). When her father attempts to beat some sense into her, Bona moves into Gardo’s shack in the slums, delighted to play house–only to find herself not the wife, but the maid.
Nov
30
November
30
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November
30
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11:55 pm
Naked Lunch
New Beverly Cinema
Luca Guadagnino's upcoming Queer is adapted from a semi-autobiographical novel by outlaw beat writer William S Burroughs, as is Naked Lunch, which Cronenberg describes as the story of a closeted man trying to cure himself of his homosexuality.
Blank-faced bug killer Bill Lee and his dead-eyed wife, Joan, like to get high on Bill’s pest poisons while lounging with Beat poet pals. After meeting the devilish Dr. Benway, Bill gets a drug made from a centipede. Upon indulging, he accidentally kills Joan, takes orders from his typewriter-turned-cockroach, ends up in a constantly mutating Mediterranean city and learns that his hip friends have published his work – which he doesn’t remember writing.
Nov
30
November
30
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November
30
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11:45 pm
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Live Shadow Cast
A Bit of Mustard
Art Theater Long Beach
The Rocky Horror Picture Show is back at the Art with A Bit of Mustard! Doors open at 11:30, arrive early for the virgin games and the infamous preshow!
Sweethearts Brad and Janet, stuck with a flat tire during a storm, discover the eerie mansion of Dr. Frank-N-Furter, a transvestite scientist. As their innocence is lost, Brad and Janet meet a houseful of wild characters, including a rocking biker and a creepy butler. Through elaborate dances and rock songs, Frank-N-Furter unveils his latest creation: a muscular man named ‘Rocky’.
Nov
30
November
30
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November
30
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9:00 pm
Splendor
Brain Dead Studios
Gregg Araki went from the fury of The Living End, to the cool nihilism of the Teen Apocalypse Trilogy, to this surprisingly sweet and upbeat romantic comedy about the unconventional romance between a young actress and her two boyfriends. Not streaming anywhere!
Veronica is a white-bread beauty searching for a good man in Los Angeles. While slam dancing at a Halloween rave, she meets Abel, a sensitive poet. Then she meets Zed, a supersexy tattooed drummer with incredible biceps. Who will she choose? Does she go for true love or cheap sex? She can’t decide so she chooses both. But after managing to nurture a picture-perfect threesome, along comes Ernest, a rich movie director with deep baby blues that sweep Veronica off her feet. What’s a girl to do now?
Nov
30
November
30
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November
30
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7:00 pm
The Birdcage
Vidiots Eagle Theater
A gay cabaret owner and his drag queen companion agree to put up a false straight front so that their son can introduce them to his fiancé’s conservative moralistic parents.
Nov
30
November
30
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November
30
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6:15 pm
Velvet Goldmine
Brain Dead Studios
Young Ewan MacGregor, Christian Bale and Jonathan Rhys Meyers star in New Queer Cinema auteur Todd Haynes' loosely-fictionalized bisexual 1970s glam-rock faux biopic based on the lives and loves of David Bowie, Iggy Pop, and Lou Reed. Say that three times fast.
Almost a decade has elapsed since Bowiesque glam-rock superstar Brian Slade escaped the spotlight of the London scene. Now, investigative journalist Arthur Stuart is on assignment to uncover the truth behind the enigmatic Slade. Stuart, himself forged by the music of the 1970s, explores the larger-than-life stars who were once his idols and what has become of them since the turn of the new decade.
Nov
30
November
30
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November
30
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4:15 pm
The Maltese Falcon
Vidiots Eagle Theater
Peter Lorre's villain is explicitly gay in the novel, but to pass the censors in the iconic 1941 adaptation, the character's queerness manifests in subtler ways--like gardenia cologne and suggestively stroking a cane, though audiences at the time would likely catch the hint.
A private detective takes on a case that involves him with three eccentric criminals, a beautiful liar, and their quest for a priceless statuette.
Nov
29
November
29
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November
29
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9:45 pm
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Vidiots Eagle Theater
Sweethearts Brad and Janet, stuck with a flat tire during a storm, discover the eerie mansion of Dr. Frank-N-Furter, a transvestite scientist. As their innocence is lost, Brad and Janet meet a houseful of wild characters, including a rocking biker and a creepy butler. Through elaborate dances and rock songs, Frank-N-Furter unveils his latest creation: a muscular man named ‘Rocky’.
Nov
29
November
29
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November
29
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12:15 pm
The Wizard of Oz
Vidiots Eagle Theater
What movie better deserves the "Not Queer But Queer" label? Historians may debate exactly why Judy Garland was such an icon to the gay community, but for years being a "friend of Dorothy" was code for how closeted queers could find each other. See her in this iconic role.
Young Dorothy finds herself in a magical world where she makes friends with a lion, a scarecrow and a tin man as they make their way along the yellow brick road to talk with the Wizard and ask for the things they miss most in their lives. The Wicked Witch of the West is the only thing that could stop them.
Nov
27
November
27
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November
27
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8:00 pm
The Living End
Brain Dead Studios
An iconic New Queer Cinema milestone and a angry punk statement from the heart of the AIDS crisis, The Living End should need no introduction.
Two HIV-positive young men—a semi-employed film critic and a hot hustler—tear off on a cross-country crime spree.
Nov
27
November
27
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November
27
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7:30 pm
Far From Heaven
Vidiots Eagle Theater
Queer auteur Todd Haynes makes his own version of a 1950s Douglas Sirk melodrama. Julianne Moore plays a Connecticut housewife whose life begins to unravel as she discovers her closeted gay husband's affairs, and whose friendship with her Black gardener stirs dangerous gossip.
In 1950s Connecticut, a housewife’s life is upended by a marital crisis and mounting racial tensions in society.
Nov
25
November
25
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November
25
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9:30 pm
Taboo: Amos Gutman
Laemmle Town Center Encino
This documentary is about the life and last days of Amos Guttman, an rebellious Israeli filmmaker who was an active social critic and made the country's first gay-themed films who challenged the country's conservative film industry, before he died of AIDS complications at 38.
While he was alive, Amos Guttman remained a red flag for the notoriously conservative Israeli film establishment. A Romanian migrant, he, never truly found his place in his new home. He was gay and made the nation’s first movies on the subject. He was an artist who wanted to make films not for the masses but for the few. Conversely, he wanted to make movies that connected with the rest of the world and not only Israel – works that maybe Derek Jarman or Pedro Almodóvar could watch by chance and feel understood.
Nov
25
November
25
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November
25
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7:30 pm
My Own Private Idaho
Egyptian Theatre
In this loose adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Henry IV,” Mike Waters is a hustler afflicted with narcolepsy. Scott Favor is the rebellious son of a mayor. Together, the two travel from Portland, Oregon to Idaho and finally to the coast of Italy in a quest to find Mike’s estranged mother. Along the way they turn tricks for money and drugs, eventually attracting the attention of a wealthy benefactor and sexual deviant.
Nov
25
November
25
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November
25
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7:30 pm
The Handmaiden
Vidiots Eagle Theater
Oldboy director Park Chan-Wook adapted the Victorian lesbian con artist psychological thriller Fingersmith into 2016's critically acclaimed The Handmaiden, moving the setting to Japanese-occupied Korea as our main characters set out to seduce and rob a Japanese heiress.
In 1930s Korea, a swindler and a young woman pose as a Japanese count and a handmaiden to seduce a Japanese heiress and steal her fortune.
Nov
24
November
24
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November
24
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8:00 pm
Nowhere
Brain Dead Studios
Gregg Araki followed 1992's angry The Living End with the Teen Apocalypse "trilogy"--three Gen X slacker films that feature angsty and sexually fluid teens, winking French New Wave references, hallucinations of the end times, killer soundtracks, and dreamy lead man James Duval.
Described as “90210 on acid”, the film tells the story of a day in the lives of a group of high school kids in Los Angeles and the strange lives they lead.
Nov
23
November
23
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November
23
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7:00 pm
The Doom Generation
Brain Dead Studios
Gregg Araki followed 1992's angry The Living End with the Teen Apocalypse "trilogy"--three Gen X slacker films that feature angsty and sexually fluid teens, winking French New Wave references, hallucinations of the end times, killer soundtracks, and dreamy lead man James Duval.
Jordan White and Amy Blue, two troubled teens, pick up an adolescent drifter, Xavier Red. Together, the threesome embarks on a sex- and violence-filled journey through a United States of psychos and quickie marts.
Nov
23
November
23
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November
23
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7:00 pm
Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors
Egyptian Theatre
Bisexual Soviet film director Sergei Parajanov was jailed for his art, his sexuality, and his support of nationalist movements within the USSR. None of his films are explicitly Queer by modern standards, but they play with gender, kitsch, and folklore in beautiful ways.
In the Carpathian Mountains of 19th-century Ukraine, love, hate, life and death among the Hutsul people are as they’ve been since time began. Ivan is drawn to Marichka, the beautiful young daughter of the man who killed his father. But fate tragically decrees that the two lovers will remain apart.
Nov
23
November
23
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November
23
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6:45 pm
But I'm a Cheerleader
Broadwater Black Box
Megan is an all-American girl. A cheerleader. She has a boyfriend. But Megan doesn’t like kissing her boyfriend very much. And she’s pretty touchy with her cheerleader friends. Her conservative parents worry that she must be a lesbian and send her off to “sexual redirection” school, where she must, with other lesbians and gays learn how to be straight.
Nov
22
November
22
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November
22
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9:30 pm
Totally F***ed Up
Brain Dead Studios
Gregg Araki followed 1992's angry The Living End with the Teen Apocalypse "trilogy"--three Gen X slacker films that feature angsty and sexually fluid teens, winking French New Wave references, hallucinations of the end times, killer soundtracks, and dreamy lead man James Duval.
Gay, alienated Los Angeles teens have a hard time as their parents kick them out of their homes, they don’t have money, their lovers cheat, and they are harassed by gay-bashers.
Nov
22
November
22
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November
22
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7:30 pm
Emilia Pérez
Composers and songwriters Camille and Clement Ducol
Vidiots Eagle Theater
Karla Sofía Gascón became the first Trans actor to win a major prize at Cannes, thanks to this extravagant musical about a Mexican drug lord who hires a lawyer to help stage her death and flee the country, in order to transition and live her true life abroad.
Rita, an underrated lawyer working for a large law firm more interested in getting criminals out of jail than bringing them to justice, is hired by the leader of a criminal organization.
Nov
22
November
22
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November
22
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7:30 pm
Chasing Chasing Amy
Director Sav Rodgers
Laemmle NoHo 7
CHASING CHASING AMY explores the transformational impact of a ‘90s rom-com on a 12 year old kid from Kansas, coming of age and contending with queer identity. For young Sav Rodgers, the Kevin Smith cult classic, CHASING AMY, became a life raft. As Rodgers examines the film and its making as a cornerstone of LGBTQ+ cinema, he finds himself at a complicated crossroads.
Nov
21
November
21
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November
21
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7:00 pm
Playland
Director Georden West
Vidiots Eagle Theater
Playland is a boundary-pushing, transdisciplinary, hybrid film centered around the raucous activity of a time-bending night in Boston’s oldest and most notorious gay bar, the Playland Café.
Nov
21
November
21
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November
21
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1:00 pm
Thelma & Louise
Open to the Open Road Series
Egyptian Theatre
Whilst on a short weekend getaway, Louise shoots a man who had tried to rape Thelma. Due to the incriminating circumstances, they make a run for it and thus a cross country chase ensues for the two fugitives. Along the way, both women rediscover the strength of their friendship and surprising aspects of their personalities and self-strengths in the trying times.
Nov
20
November
20
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November
20
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7:30 pm
Hedwig and the Angry Inch
Egyptian Theatre
Raised a boy in East Berlin, Hedwig undergoes a personal transformation in order to emigrate to the U.S., where she reinvents herself as an ‘internationally ignored’ but divinely talented rock diva, inhabiting a ‘beautiful gender of one’.
Nov
20
November
20
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November
20
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7:30 pm
Power
Yance Ford
Vidiots Eagle Theater
Driven to maintain social order, policing in the United States has exploded in scope and scale over hundreds of years. Now, American policing embodies one word: power.
Nov
20
November
20
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November
20
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7:00 pm
Bob Mackie: Naked Illusion
Subject Bob Mackie
Laemmle NoHo 7
“Bob Mackie: Naked Illusion” traces the life of the fashion icon on screen and off, highlighting Mackie’s global impact on TV, film, Broadway and concert stages and within fashion and popular culture. The film will feature contributions from Mackie’s most famous collaborators, including Carol Burnett, Cher, Mitzi Gaynor, RuPaul Charles, Bernadette Peters, Pink and Miley Cyrus.
Nov
18
November
18
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November
18
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7:30 pm
Emilia Pérez
Writer/director Jacques Audiard and star Karla Sofia Gascón
Egyptian Theatre
Karla Sofía Gascón became the first Trans actor to win a major prize at Cannes, thanks to this extravagant musical about a Mexican drug lord who hires a lawyer to help stage her death and flee the country, in order to transition and live her true life abroad.
Rita, an underrated lawyer working for a large law firm more interested in getting criminals out of jail than bringing them to justice, is hired by the leader of a criminal organization.
Nov
17
November
17
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November
17
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8:00 pm
Obsession: A Taste for Fear
Whammy Analog Media
This neon-soaked science fiction 80s Italian giallo exploitation film follows a bisexual fashion photographer whose subjects are being stalked by a vicious serial killer.
Diane is a photographer of the ultimate in trendy soft core. Her ex, George, who makes bondage films, hooks Diane up with the muscular Teagan in exchange for a favor with a well-heeled client. Diane asks Teagan to model in her next shoot. When Teagan turns up bound, gagged, and dead, a rough policeman, Lt. Arnold, focuses his suspicions on George. When a second model dies and video disks show up depicting the murders, Arnold is certain he has his man - except that the killer we see in the videos is a red-headed woman. Diane’s assistant, Valerie, can’t keep her eyes off Diane, and Diane’s mixer, Paul, also tries to be her protector. Do the cops have the wrong person?
Nov
17
November
17
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November
17
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5:45 pm
Jawbreaker
Brain Dead Studios
Jawbreaker is a 1999 cult classic from out director (and LA native) Darren Stein. Rose McGowan, Rebecca Gayheart, and Julie Benz star as a trio of popular high schoolers who accidentally murder their best friend on her birthday.
When an exclusive clique of teenage socialites accidentally murder their best friend on the morning of her birthday, the three girls responsible conspire to hide the truth.
Nov
17
November
17
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November
17
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5:00 pm
Looking Back at Looking
Creator and stars
NYA East
It’s been ten years since Looking debuted on HBO, and we’re looking (see what we did there?) to celebrate! Creator Michael Lannan will be joined by cast members Jonathan Groff, Lauren Weedman, Frankie J. Alvarez, and more for a night reminiscing over the much-beloved series.
Nov
16
November
16
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November
16
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10:30 pm
Mutt
Landmark Westwood
A trans man confronts his past after bumping into his ex-boyfriend, sister and dad for the first time since transitioning — all within the span of a day.
Nov
16
November
16
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November
16
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8:00 pm
An Unexpected Community
LA Premiere
Filmmakers in attendance
Los Angeles LGBT Center
AN UNEXPECTED COMMUNITY tells the story of a lesbian community that found each other online and virtually thrived during the pandemic. It features appearances by Lily Tomlin, Meredith Baxter, Paula Poundstone, Kate Clinton, The Indigo Girls, Vickie Shaw, Karen Williams, and more!
Nov
16
November
16
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November
16
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7:20 pm
The World According to Allee Willis
Filmmaker Alexis Spraic & producer Prudence Fenton
Laemmle Royal
Fresh from the audience award at Frameline, this documentary follows the career of queer songwriter Allee Willis, who isn't a household name but wrote September, Boogie Wonderland, and the Friends theme song---and threw some of the best parties of the 1980s.
Take one look at award-winning songwriter / artist Allee Willis and you see someone unafraid to be themselves. Dressed in a cacophony of prints and colors, her signature asymmetrical haircut and famed parties at her real-life Pee-Wee’s Playhouse, Allee didn’t waste any opportunity to tell you what she was about. But privately, Allee struggled with not fitting established gender and sexual norms. She buried herself in her work, until true love manifested her ultimate masterpiece - self-acceptance.
Nov
16
November
16
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November
16
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3:00 pm
Challengers
Director Luca Guadagnino and Screenwriter Justin Kuritzkes
Aero Theater
This high-wire love triangle from out director Luca Guadagnino never got quite as bi as it could have--but still features standout performances in a tense, sexually smoldering story of two tennis stars competing for the love (and coaching talents of) Zendaya's Tashi.
Tennis player turned coach Tashi has taken her husband, Art, and transformed him into a world-famous Grand Slam champion. To jolt him out of his recent losing streak, she signs him up for a “Challenger” event — close to the lowest level of pro tournament — where he finds himself standing across the net from his former best friend and Tashi’s former boyfriend.
Nov
15
November
15
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November
15
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7:30 pm
Some Like It Hot
Aero Theater
Two musicians witness a mob hit and struggle to find a way out of the city before they are found by the gangsters. Their only opportunity is to join an all-girl band as they leave on a tour. To make their getaway they must first disguise themselves as women, then keep their identities secret and deal with the problems this brings - such as an attractive bandmate and a very determined suitor.