#INSIDEOUT21: FULL PROGRAMMING LINE-UP ANNOUNCED FOR 2021 INSIDE OUT FESTIVAL

The full programming line-up for the 2021 INSIDE OUT 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival has been unveiled and it includes some hits that came out of SXSW even like Potato Dreams of America, Alone Together (Charli XCX Documentary), Ma Belle, My Beauty and Opening Night Selection. Language Lessons starring Natalie Morales (who directs also) and Mark Duplass. Hot Docs hit FANNY: RIGHT TO ROCK also surfaces here giving us a chance to see it again! The Festival runs Ontario-wide online May 27-June 6, 2021.

Check-out the line-up below:

OPENING NIGHT

LANGUAGE LESSONS, directed by Natalie Morales. (USA / Narrative)
Natalie Morales explores platonic love masterfully in Language Lessons, demonstrating that no matter how hopeless, isolated or distant we are, finding love and friendship is always possible. 

CLOSING NIGHT

ALONE TOGETHER, directed by Bradley Bell, Pablo Jones-Soler. (USA / Documentary)
Alone Together goes in depth with Charli XCX as she faces mental health issues, rekindles her relationship, and connects with vulnerable LGBTQ+ fans in need.

PREMIERES

A DISTANT PLACE, directed by Park Kun-Young. (South Korea  / Narrative). 
A Distant Place is a wistful drama about love and family, set in the dazzling countryside of Hwacheon County in South Korea.

KNOCKING, directed by Frida Kempff. (Sweden / Narrative). 
When Molly moves into a new apartment after a tragic accident, a strange noise from upstairs begins to unnerve her.

MA BELLE, MY BEAUTY, directed by Marion Hill. (USA, France / Narrative). 
The buzz about this Sundance Audience Award winner suggests that Ma Belle, My Beauty primarily explores a polyamorous relationship. In fact, what the film more poignantly explores are the yearnings and complexities of characters who happen to be, among other things, polyamorous.

POTATO DREAMS OF AMERICA, directed by Wes Hurley. (USA / Narrative). 
Potato Dreams of America is an unlikely autobiographical fantasia that uses magical realism and plenty of humor to honour mothers, immigrants and dreamers everywhere.

SEE YOU THEN, directed by Mari Walker. (USA / Narrative). 
A decade after abruptly breaking up with Naomi, Kris invites her to dinner to catch up on their complicated lives, relationships, and Kris’s transition.

ICONS

CAN YOU BRING IT, directed by Tom Hurwitz, Rosalynde LeBlanc. (USA / Documentary). 
Can You Bring It resurrects one of the most essential works of art to come out of the AIDS era and celebrates the people who brought the masterpiece to life.

FANNY: THE RIGHT TO ROCK, directed by Bobbi Jo Hart. (Canada / Documentary). 
Fanny: The Right to Rock tells the story of one of the best bands—Filipina-American and LBGTQ+ bandmates included—that you have likely never heard.

MAMA GLORIA, directed by Luchina Fisher. (USA / Documentary). 
Mama Gloria invites you into the world of role model, charm school founder and powerful trans activist, Gloria Allen.

YES I AM – THE RIC WEILAND STORY, directed by Aaron Bear. (USA / Documentary). 
Ric Weiland is a name you’re probably not familiar with, especially in association with a tech giant like Microsoft. This captivating documentary explores Weiland’s life and work as an out and proud computer genius.

INTERNATIONAL SHOWCASE

A SEXPLANATION, directed by Alexander Liu. (USA / Documentary).
From neuroscience labs to church pews, A Sexplanation features provocative conversations in the pursuit of sexual truth and knowledge.   

BEING THUNDER, directed by Stephanie Lamorre. (France / Documentary). 
Sherente Harris, a two-spirit genderqueer teenager from the Narragansett tribe in Rhode Island, boldly challenges the status quo of what it means to be a queer Indigenous person in a world bound by binary gender roles.

BEYTO, directed by Gitta Gsell. (Switzerland / Narrative). 
Adapted from a novel by Swiss-Kurdish writer Yusuf Yesilöz, Beyto, which won the Prix du Public audience award at Switzerland’s Solothurn Film Festival, wrestles with the tension between cultures, and between a family’s sense of honour and a person’s need to be true to themselves.

BOY MEETS BOY, directed by Daniel Sánchez López. (Germany / Narrative). 
Taking inspiration from the mumblecore genre, Boy Meets Boy is a brief but romantic encounter between two young men who fall for each other over the course of a single day.

DRAG INVASION, directed by Alberto Castro. (Peru / Documentary). 
Drag Invasion tells the story of a surprising phenomenon that mobilized, energized and empowered LGBTQ Peruvians.

EVERYTHING AT ONCE, directed by Alberto Fuguet. (Chile , Spain / Documentary). 
Blurring the lines between traditional documentary and film essay, Everything at Once observes the work of two Catalan photographers and their vision of emphasizing the sex appeal of the working class.

GENDERATION, directed by Monika Treut. (Germany / Documentary). 
In 1999, Monika Treut made one of the first documentaries—Gendernauts—about trans people living in San Francisco. Twenty years later, Monika reunites with some of the film’s subjects to see how their lives have evolved in the intervening years. Screens with a newly restored version of Gendernauts. 

I CARRY YOU WITH ME, directed by Heidi Ewing. (USA, Mexico / Narrative). 
Acclaimed filmmaker Heidi Ewing makes her narrative feature debut with I Carry You with Me, a bittersweet true story of an aspiring chef’s dreams and romantic encounters.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR SURVIVAL, directed by Yana Ugrekhelidze. (Germany / Documentary). 
Instructions for Survival, one of the most striking documentaries to come out of this year’s Berlinale, elegantly navigates the story of a couple fighting for freedom against terrifying threats in their homeland.

KAPANA, directed by Philippe Talavera. (Namibia / Narrative). 
Kapana takes a familiar narrative and gives it new life in the first Namibian film featuring a gay love story, supported by breakout performances and a promising message for queer African rights.

LEADING LADIES, directed by Ruth Caudeli. (Colombia / Narrative). 
Ruth Caudeli (Second Star on the Right) returns to Inside Out with Leading Ladies, a reflection on how different perspectives and memories affect one group of queer women.

LOVE, SPELLS AND ALL THAT, directed by Ümit Ünal. (Turkey / Narrative). 
United by a twenty-year-old spell, two women journey through the neglected corners of their memories as they explore the island of Büyükada, Istanbul, in Love, Spells and All That.

MOFFIE, directed by Oliver Hermanus. (South Africa, UK / Narrative).
South African auteur Oliver Hermanus delivers a brutal but radiant story of young gay desire on the Angolan war front.

MY FIRST SUMMER, directed by Katie Found. (Australia / Narrative). 
Nestled in the delicate interactions of two teenage girls, My First Summer offers viewers the distant, pastel colours of a first childhood romance.

POPPY FIELD, directed by Eugen Jebeleanu. (Romania / Narrative). 
In Poppy Field, it is not only misguided zealots shouting “Abomination!” that create the problem; it’s the machismo that holds the thin blue line together, and the anger that simmers underneath.

SUMMERTIME, directed by Carlos López Estrada. (USA / Narrative).
Inspired by a showcase featuring diverse high school performers, Carlos López Estrada collaborates with young poets, many of whom are LGBTQ, to develop their work into an inspiring narrative and love letter to the youth of Los Angeles.

SWEETHEART, directed by Marley Morrison. (UK / Narrative). 
As sun-soaked as one can get at a caravan park in Dorset, Sweetheart follows A.J. as she attempts to balance an embarrassing family vacation with the terrifying adventure of first love.

TWO, directed by Astar Elkayam. (Israel / Narrative). 
Two follows a couple as they set out on the long road to conception and realize their dream of having a baby.

WALK WITH ME, directed by Isabel Del Rosal. (USA / Narrative). 
Walk With Me follows a young mother who must take some personal risks to find the happiness she has been seeking.

SPOTLIGHT ON CANADA

BLOODTHIRSTY, directed by Amelia Moses. (Canada / Narrative). 
Bloodthirsty, the latest astonishing film from Canadian director Amelia Moses, is guaranteed to make your skin crawl with its vivid imagery and eerie sound design.

DAWN, HER DAD & THE TRACTOR, directed by Shelley Thompson. (Canada / Narrative). 
When a young woman with a startling resemblance to her mother arrives home for her mother’s funeral, one family begins an odyssey toward understanding.

HOW TO FIX RADIOS, directed by Casper Leonard, Emily Russell. (Canada / Narrative). 
In Casper Leonard and Emily Russell’s stunning first feature, young queers carve out their own destiny in a rural community in Southern Ontario.

EPISODIC

#TMI, directed by Ashlei Shyne. (USA / Series). 
#TMI is a comedy series that follows Aaliyah Jones, a bisexual woman who recently became single when her ex-girlfriend Simone moved to Berlin.

DINETTE SEASON 2, directed by Shaina Feinberg. (USA / Series). 
The staff and regulars at a Brooklyn-based diner scramble to keep their favourite hangout afloat after the sudden death of its owner.

ENBY, directed by Morgan Strug. (Canada / Series). 
Enby, a 20-something human living in East Van has finally found the words that match their identity.

QUERENCIA, directed by Mary Galloway. (Canada / Series). 
Querencia is a love story that follows two Indigenous queer women from divergent backgrounds as they navigate and explore their complex Indigiqueer identities and their differing cultural upbringings.

TRANS IN TRUMPLAND, directed by Tony Zosherafatain. (USA / Series). 
Trans in Trumpland takes an intricate, inspiring road trip from State to State into the lives of four remarkable, resilient trans people.

SHORTS

The shorts lineup can be found here.

More here on the Festival.

#SUNDANCE: “MA BELLE, MY BEAUTY”

By Amanda Gilmore for Mr. Will Wong

Newlywed musicians Bertie (Idella Johnson) and Fred (Lucien Guignard) are adjusting to their new life in the countryside of France. This new lifestyle is easy for Fred but Bertie is grappling with depression that’s affecting her singing. However, a change begins happening with Bertie when their former shared lover Lane (Hannah Pepper), surprisingly shows up for a visit.

Director-Screenwriter Marion Hill takes audiences through the desires of three individuals once involved in a polyamorous relationship. Thankfully, Hill doesn’t take a judging eye to the characters’ relationship. She focuses on their wants as individuals, rather than viewing them as interconnected. This gives us a look at the complexities of love along with sexual fluidity and triangulation. In doing so, Hill has created identifiable characters which have been cast expertly.

Johnson is a captivating force as Bertie. She shows Bertie’s tough exterior while exposing the vulnerability she has around Lane. During a breakfast scene, we witness Johnson change between being annoyed, angry, and sad. She then composes herself to hide Bertie’s pain. Pepper gives a great performance as the caring Lane. She keeps mystery within her character until the end. Making audiences question why Lane came back after disappearing on Bertie and Fred years ago, and what exactly she wants. Johnson and Pepper have a powerful chemistry that creates an anticipation in every scene. Their strongest moment together is when they finally have a dinner alone. Bertie feels she can’t open up to Lane, or Fred, and Lane tries to explain how Bertie has two people who love her.

When it comes to intimacy, we often consider it a physical act. However, Hill creates intimacy with words. The intimacy is through small, quiet moments where her characters are being honest with each other. Hill also takes the audience on a journey through a sun soaked summer in the south of France; with beautiful shots of vineyards, candlelit dinners, and farmer’s markets. These picturesque shots are highlighted with an intoxicating Soundtrack of acoustic guitar and jazz music by Mahmoud Chouki.  It all comes together to work as a love letter to the region and complements the inner lives of the characters.

Ma Belle, My Beauty screens at Sundance:

Live Premiere: January 30 at 6 PM (EST)

On-Demand (available for 24hrs): February 1 at 10 AM (EST)