July 2010

IN THIS ISSUE:

Festival Update

Frameline 2010

Members Giveaway - The Runaways

Subscribers Special Offer

Sponsors Thanks

Festival Update

A lot of wonderful ideas have come out of the festival planning day held early July to propel us into our 21st year.

Opening Night will be moving back to Thursday night to make sure we make this 21st Birthday Bash something to remember and then something to recover from on Friday.

2011 Festival dates are: 17 - 27 March. Don't worry, we won't be losing any sessions by moving back Opening Night to Thursday as we will continue to use Greater Union as an additional venue.

More exciting initatives for our 21st will be revealed in future editions of buff!

Thanks to everyone who filled in our audience survey and gave us constructive feedback throughout the festival. Your opinions really matter and if you want your voice to be heard during no-festival time, please join our facebook fan page.

A big thanks to the MQFF Board of Management, who work tirelessly throughout the year. Each one generously volunteers their expertise and skills to help put on such a fabulous event!!

Lisa has now returned from Frameline, sans snow-domes for the office but excited by the quality of films around at the moment. Read on for the update.

On a sad note, all the Board and Staff of MQFF would like to pass on their condolenses to the family and friends of long-time MQFF member - Addam Stobbs who died suddenly last month. Addam was a great supporter of the festival, even participating in panels and will be sorely missed.

Please keep reading as we also have some fabulous prizes for members, (thanks to Hoyts) as well as a great year-round offer to all buff subscribers (thanks to Art Series Hotels).

Cheers,

Rowena and the team
 

Frameline 2010

Our esteemed Festival Director, Lisa Daniel shares her thoughts on her recent visit to Frameline - the largest Gay and Lesbian Film Festival in the world.

Well, I’ve almost recovered from my recent film shopping expedition to the Frameline Film Festival, affectionately known as the ‘Cannes of Queer Film’. Still waking up at 3am craving American hotdogs and hydrogenated palm oil, and am almost over the effects of Skurvy after 12 days straight on a diet of cinema candy bar food (always upsized) and Bailey’s and cream (that’s a whole other story!) – but really, someone had to do it, and I’m happy to take one for the team. I’m also happy to report I spied some excellent films during my 12 hour days entrenched in the cinema seats of the iconic Castro Theatre, many of which I hope to bring to you for our 21st Festival in 2011. There are some brilliant foreign language titles around, from exciting places like Argentina, Peru, Spain and Brazil. Can’t say much at this early stage, as this is when the difficult part begins – negotiating to bring the films down here for next March, and trying to get the best deals. Luckily the MQFF has an excellent international reputation, so hopefully we’ll have some good news for you later in the year, and a bumper crop of the world’s best queer cinema to present to our loyal audience next March.

Cheers, Lisa (aka Square eyes) Daniel.

PIC: Lex Lindsay (Queerscreen), Katherine Setzer (Image Nation), Mel Pritchard (Hamburg)

Member's Giveaway - The Runaways

Thanks to our friends at Hoyts, we have 5 double passes to give away to The Runaways.

“Girls got balls... They’re just a little higher up, that’s all....”
Joan Jett

Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning star as Joan Jett and Cherie Currie in The Runaways, the music-fuelled, coming of age story of the groundbreaking, all girl 1970s rock band.

Los Angeles 1975, Joan Jett (KRISTEN STEWART) and Cherie Currie (DAKOTA FANNING), two teenage valley girls with punk in their blood, meet and become the heart and soul of the seminal all girl band, The Runaways. Floria Sigismondi brings The Runaways to the big screen in this story of a group of extraordinary young women as they rise from rebellious Southern California kids to rock stars of the now legendary band that paved the way for future generations of girl musicians. Under the Svengali-like influence of rock impresario Kim Fowley (MICHAEL SHANNON), the group evolves into an outrageous success and a family of misfits. With its tough-chick image and raw talent, the band quickly earns a name for itself—and so do its two leads: Joan is the band’s pure rock’ n’ roll heart, while Cherie, with her Bowie-Bardot looks, is the sex kitten.

To win one of 5 double passes to The Runaways, simply email your name, membership number and 'The Runaways' in the subject line to info@mqff.com.au. Entries close 5pm on Friday 23 July. All entries will go into a draw with the winners chosen at random and notified.

Sponsors Thanks

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