This year OUTFEST is proud to expand its outdoor summer evening screening series — OUTFEST Under the Stars. We are honored to continue this tradition at the John Anson Ford Ampitheater as part of the Summer Nights at the Ford, a program of the Los Angeles County Arts Commission. The Ford Ampitheater is a 1920's open-air venue of 1200 seats, none more than 96 feet from the stage. Set in the midst of a Los Angeles County Regional Park, the lush grounds provide an intimate setting for a very special cinematic experience. Conveniently located off the 101 freeway in the Cahuenga Pass, The Ford is across the freeway from the Hollywood Bowl. Like events at the Bowl, the Ford has outdoor picnicing and an extensive box dinner menu including poached salmon, barbecued chicken, Chinese duck salad and a vegetarian cous-cous entree. Before the screenings we invite ticket holders to picnic in the park by calling the Ford to order box dinners or bring their own picnic.

To order Box Dinners call
323 GO1-FORD (461-3673)

OUTFEST UNDER THE STARS is part of the "Summer Nights at the Ford," a program of the Los Angeles County Arts Commission.



BEDROOMS & HALLWAYS
DATE TIME LOCATION PROGRAM #
THURSDAY, JULY 15 8:30PM FORD 90


DIR: Rose Troche, 1998, UK, 35mm, 95 min.

We are delighted to kick off Outfest Under the Stars with this highly anticipated and immensely entertaining new feature by Rose Troche. From the director of GO FISH — the trailblazing 1994 hit about lesbian dating habits — Troche continues to pioneer new ground with this witty and wonderfully crafted romantic comedy about relationships and sexual identity at the turn of the millennium.

The story revolves around a handsome pair of British flatmates, Darren and Leo. Darren has no problems in the romance department since his hot affair with Jeremy, a real estate agent, keeps him on the frontiers of sexual adventure in other people's bedrooms and hallways. On the other hand, Leo is more uptight and has a hard time letting himself go, until a concerned workmate persuades him to join a "New Man" therapy group. While passing around the "honesty stone" in therapy, Leo admits he is attracted to another member of the group, the exceptionally handsome, and ostensibly straight, Brendan. Brendan is struggling to keep alive a failing seven-year relationship with his business partner, Sally, but one "wild man weekend" turns everything around!

Effervescent with humor and visual style, BEDROOMS & HALLWAYS is a smart, original and decidedly modern take on relationships among gay men, straight men and straight women. Troche restablishes her gift for romantic comedy in this surprising and fresh tour-de-force which proves that you don’t have to be a gay boy to make a hit about hunky boys and their drama.






BEEFCAKE
DATE TIME LOCATION PROGRAM #
SATURDAY, JULY 17 8:30PM FORD 124


DIR: Thom Fitzgerald, 1999, USA, 35mm, 60 min.

Harkening to a time of supposed innocence, but garnished throughout with generous dollops of naughty fun, this inventive blend of fiction and documentary from director Thom Fitzgerald (THE HANGING GARDEN) offers an enticing glimpse at the birth of male body-worship as big business. The film traces the career of photographer/filmmaker Bob Miser, one of a handful of '50s impresarios of muscle magazines and short films featuring buff models, skimpy costumes and thinly-veiled homoerotic themes. Interlaced with re-enactments of movie and photo shoots at Miser's home (with his Mom acting as CEO), are testimonials from personalities such as Jack La Lanne and Joe Dallesandro, who participated in similar projects. Backstage shenanigans lead to moral outrage and court battles, threatening to draw the curtains closed on Miser’s enterprise, but even in the face of tribulation, his story retains a sweetness, almost forgotten today, when gay and straight onlookers could all look appreciatively at images celebrating "physical culture" and agree upon the appeal of all that beef.

In collaboration with: IFFCON ( International Film Financing Conference).






BETTER THAN CHOCOLATE
DATE TIME LOCATION PROGRAM #
FRIDAY, JULY 16 8:30PM FORD 103


DIR: Anne Wheeler, 1998, Canada, 35mm, 98 min.

Delightfully ambitious and terrifically entertaining, this super sexy story of love and courage unites people from many walks of life, as it moves briskly to the beat of girl power.

Nineteen year-old Maggie (Karyn Dwyer), an attractive, sometime law student, has taken a break from her studies to enjoy life. She does so as a dancer at the local night club, "The Cat's Ass" and as a clerk at a hip, queer bookstore. Homophobic skinheads threaten the equilibrium, and repressive Canadian customs laws even threaten the existence of the "obscene" bookstore — but clouds disperse when Maggie meets sexy wanderer Kim (Christina Cox), who moves into her sights, her bed and then her apartment! Still, with adult joys come adult responsibilities, which Maggie learns during a surprise visit from her younger brother Paul (himself a bundle of volatile hormones) and her newly-divorced Mom, who doesn't know that Maggie is gay, and who needs a place to get herself together. Before long, family and friends are hurtling over secrets, taboos, dangers and new experiences like Olympic athletes.

Gay, straight, butch, femme, bisexual and transsexual characters populate this upbeat, timely story of friends supporting each other as they try to make a day’s pay, and to share a day’s love, each in their own way.

In collaboration with: LIFT ( Lesbians in Film and Televison, Women on a Roll)

NUDITY AND SEXUAL SITUATIONS






WHEN LOVE COME
DATE TIME LOCATION PROGRAM #
SUNDAY, JULY 18 7:30PM FORD 142


DIR: Garth Maxwell, 1998, New Zealand, 35mm, 94 min.

Sexual energy saturates the screen in this complex urban love story set against a vibrant world where creative energy runs rampant, illicit substances fuel artistic juices, sex is always available, but love is elusive. Garth Maxwell captures the outrageous decadence of the music business while creating characters who speak to the way that people really cope with ambition, regret, broken dreams and fear of intimacy.

Rena Owen brilliantly plays Katie Keen, an aging singer who has seen her star rise and sputter in Los Angeles and comes home to Auckland to reassess her life and reinvent herself if she can. Though she is being pursued by her hunky boyfriend Eddie, she moves in with her best mate Stephen — the only person she allows herself to lean on. Stephen plays all of Katie’s old hits, much to the bemusement of the wild and youthful object of his affection, Mark, a promising lyricist who writes through a haze of alcohol, dope and confusion. When Stephen asks Mark for more maturity than he can deliver, Mark cavorts with Fig and Sally, an extreme pair of lesbian punk rockers, hell-bent on stardom, who idolize Katie and urge Mark to bring her into the band. With warring loyalties and conflicted emotions at stake, it becomes increasingly unclear whether love, friendship and success can peacefully co-exist.

Bohemian in both form and spirit, WHEN LOVE COMES is driven by vivid characterization, gorgeously imaginative imagery, and an economical script abundantly empowered with emotion. Rena Owen delivers an electrifying performance as Katie, while Sophia Hawthorne and Nancy Brunning give Sally and Fig a kinetic sexiness. Inspirational and deeply moving, WHEN LOVE COMES is a testament to the redeeming powers of love and honesty.