Luv Doc Recommends: aGLIFF Closing Party

You don’t have to be gay to appreciate the Austin Gay and Lesbian International Film Festival any more than you have to be straight to appreciate a gun and knife show, but it sure doesn’t hurt. It’s safe to say that the average breeder isn’t going to be queuing up for screenings like Eating Out 2: Sloppy Seconds, or 20 Centimeters (video rentals, on the other hand, might be another story – oh, and by the way, for you size queens, that’s roughly 8 inches). Regardless of the titillating titles, if you’re under the opinion that AGLIFF is just a compendium of lesbo/homoerotic sex romps, you may want to check the schedule. It turns out there are aspects of homosexuality you can film without harsh lighting, a wide-angle lens, or a fluffer. In fact, many of aGLIFF’s films deal with more universal issues – the type of stuff you might find in standard film fare – albeit informed with a gay perspective. The latter is pretty much a death knell for distribution deals in America. The moviegoing public may have seen Brokeback Mountain, but it isn’t moving there just yet. Fortunately, Austin has aGLIFF to remind us there is more out cinema out there than Hollywood would have you believe. Each year the festival gets bigger and the films get better. This year’s festival is nearly over, but there are still a few days worth of screenings left. You could catch Cruel and Unusual, Another Gay Movie, and Do I Look Fat? among others, or, if you like your gay films really out, as in outside, aGLIFF is hosting a closing night Rolling Roadshow featuring music from Amy Cook, performances by Queertown, comedian Stephanie Howard, and a screening of Outlaugh, a concert film showcasing some of the “funniest queer stand-up comics and queer sketch groups working in America today.” If all this sounds a little too gay, you might want to hold out for the gun and knife show.