FRIDAY, November 20th – 7:30
TRAVEL QUEERIES by Elliat Graney-Saucke and Margaritte Knezek (2009. 68 minutes, video)
“Travel Queeries offers a filmic space of visibility… the film will act as a tool of connection for those (included and excluded from the European Queer Scene)… dispersed as we are throughout the world, we need to imagine, visualize, community when we are alone….”
deboRahMmm- Cardiff, UK (Interviewee), f.a.g club collective
Travel Queeries is a feature-length documentary film that examines the culture, art and activism of radical queers in contemporary Europe. Through personal interviews and documentation of performances, festivals, multi-media visual arts and community spaces, the film exploring queer as a political identity in 21st century urban Europe, looking at how language and identities translate over cultural and physical borders.
The film gives insight into radical and innovative actions and projects that push against and create an alternative to the commercialization of gay culture, and thus brings to light a subculture that operates for the most part under the radar of the LGBT mainstream. Travel Queeries takes the viewer to queers explaining the first Pride in Serbia, stories of the rich and historic drag scene in Berlin, a queer anarchist black-lingerie block at London Pride, and the queer squat scene and organizing of the 8th international Queeruption in Barcelona. Through these varied and unique examples, the film demonstrates an ability to invite audiences into the lives of those living outside societal confines.
With this exciting international lens on queer fringe culture, Travel Queeries is a tool for bridge building through story telling between diverse communities within the LGBT/queer community, increasing people’s knowledge and perspective of queer European culture. Already, audiences in both the US and Europe have voiced amazement at the lack of knowledge or access to information about these situations and communities of queer activists and projects based in Europe. Individuals within the European queer community have shared that they the film leaves them feeling inspired and validated by this documentation of the work they are doing and by being positively portrayed within the media.
Travel Queeries is a new feature documentary not to be missed! Come explore the complexities, innovative values and spirit of ‘queer’ within progressive social change movements internationally.
