FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, December 14, 2006
Press Contact:
Hannah Howard
213.480.7088
outfest@outfest.org
Outfest Celebrates 25th Anniversary in 2007
Nation’s Leading Gay and Lesbian Film Institution Announces Expansion of Current Services to Coincide with Silver Anniversary
Outfest, the Los Angeles-based nonprofit organization dedicated to nurturing, showcasing and preserving lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) media, turns 25 in 2007. Outfest will celebrate is first quarter century throughout 2007, across of all of its programs – producing the biggest film festival in its history, premiering its first completed feature film restoration and convening the first LGBTQ people of color media conference, among many new and expanded initiatives.
Founded by volunteers on the UCLA campus in 1982, Outfest has grown to a multi-million dollar nonprofit media institution serving tens of thousands of audiences in Southern California as well as countless filmmakers and film lovers around the world. “Over that past quarter century, Outfest has contributed to the enormous transformation of lesbian and gay identity and visibility across this country and around the world,” said Executive Director Stephen Gutwillig. “Our anniversary initiatives will demonstrate how LGBTQ media and Outfest will continue to thrive for decades to come.”
Outfest’s 25th Anniversary Initiatives:
· “25 Films That Changed Our Lives” –Outfest will identify the 25 LGBTQ titles that most touched audiences around the world. From December 15th to February 15th, visitors to www.outfest.org will be invited to name the LGBTQ films that changed their lives and why. Outfest will announce the top 25 films and showcase selections at Outfest 2007 and year-round at the Outfest Wednesdays Screening Series.
· PARTING GLANCES Restoration: The Outfest Legacy Project will unveil its first film restoration (supported by a grant from the Andrew J. Kuehn, Jr. Foundation). The beloved romantic comedy PARTING GLANCES (1986) features the first starring roles of Steve Buscemi and Kathy Kinney (“The Drew Carey Show”) and is the only film director Bill Sherwood made before AIDS claimed his life in 1990.
· Screenplay Reading Series – A major expansion of the acclaimed Screenwriting Lab will feature public readings of the winning screenplays at Outfest 2007.
· Queer Indie-Rock and Hip-Hop – An inaugural live music series of performances by queer indie-rock and hip-hop artists will debut at Outfest 2007. Music programming will reach new audiences and demonstrate the synergy between filmmakers and musicians, film lovers and music lovers.
· First LGBTQ People of Color Media Conference: The first conference of LGBTQ people of color programmers, filmmakers and activists will address at Fusion 2007 ongoing struggles for LGBTQ communities of color for visibility and media resources.
· Legacy Collection Screening Series: Outfest and the UCLA Film & Television Archive will screen films from the Outfest Legacy Collection at the Archive’s new Billy Wilder Theater at the Hammer Museum in Westwood starting in the spring of 2007.
· Outfest Wednesdays at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood will feature special screenings of award-winners from Outfest’s past July festivals, high-profile titles from the 1980s and 1990s and selections of “25 Films That Changed Our Lives.”
· KISS THE BRIDE Completed: KISS THE BRIDE will become the first Outfest Screenwriting Lab project produced and distributed. 2005 Lab Fellow Ty Lieberman’s romantic comedy stars Tori Spelling and Joanna Cassidy and is directed by Lab Mentor C. Jay Cox, produced by Shadow Factory and Executive Produced and distributed by here! Films.
