Sarasota has a well-deserved reputation for being a town that devotes much of its time and talent to the arts. Theater, music and film thrive along Florida’s West Coast and film festivals in particular have seen a boon in recent years.
But up until last year, there seemed to be a missing part in the overall wheel of the celebration of films. Sure, the Sarasota Film Festival squeezed in some LGBT-focused films and the small LGBT Film Festival showcased some fabulous movies.
But it wasn’t until last summer that residents witnessed the arrival of the Fabulous Independent Film Festival, which returns for its second year Aug. 17-19.
According to Magida Diouri, managing director and programmer of the festival, the festival is organized by Broken Rules Production in association with the Harvey Milk Festival, which celebrated its third anniversary earlier this year.
“The Fabulous Independent Film Festival celebrates diversity and acceptance and is sponsored by the Sarasota Film Society,â┚¬Â Diouri says. She is also the founder of the FIFF and worked with the Sarasota Film Society in the past to make sure each year included more than token LGBT films.
She was on the board of directors at ALSO Youth for several years in the mid-2000's, and last year she founded the Fabulous Independent Film Festival.
This year, the Fabulous Independent Film Festival begins on Friday, Aug. 17, with a 10 p.m. pre-party celebration at Throb Nightclub. Admission is $5 at the doorâ┚¬â€Â$3 if patrons mention the film festival.
On Saturday, Aug. 18, the opening night party begins at 9:15 p.m. at Eat Here, 1888 Main St., Sarasota, and those presenting a ticket for the opening night film Sassy Pants presented by Watermark, will receive a free cocktail. Food and drink specials are available throughout the night.
The FIFF closes on Sunday, Aug. 19, with a 9:30 p.m. party at Caragiulos, 69 South Palm Ave., Sarasota.
Film lovers can see the festival’s selections at Burns Court Cinema at 506 Burns Lane. Here’s a quick look at this year’s selections:
United in Anger: A History of ACT UPâ┚¬â€ÂA documentary about the lives and struggles of people with HIV/AIDS in the early days of the disease, and who came together to form ACT UP, the country's most famous HIV/AIDS advocacy group in history. FIFF says: â┚¬Å”What makes this extraordinary documentary so special is the rare, contextual interviews of those afflicted with the disease that are unfortunately no longer living. The producers and the prolific writer/activist Sarah Schulman, superbly captured a magnetic and significant time that is the precursor to movements like Occupy Wall Street where people simply set out to change the world.â┚¬ÂÂ
WATCH THE TRAILER FOR UNITED IN ANGER
North Sea Texasâ┚¬â€ÂThis â┚¬Ëœcoming of age' story is about a teenage boy's search for love, and how that search leaves him fixated on the boy next door. Raised by an alcoholic and ex-beauty queen mother, the main character ‘Pim’ faces obstacles that might be unique to his situation, but that most people can relate toâ┚¬â€Âincluding unrequited love and a sexual relationship that means much more to one partner than the other. This film is in Dutch and features English subtitles.
Sassy Pantsâ┚¬â€ÂIf you have a â┚¬ËœSixth Sense' for comedy, you'll enjoy this movie. In fact, if you enjoyed the movie â┚¬ËœSixth Sense', you'll probably like this movie too, since the young star of that movie, Haley Joel Osment, is now an adult and stars as Chip, the young â┚¬Ëœboy toy lover' who lives with Dale (Diedrich Bader of the Drew Carey Show) and becomes fast friends with Bethany, Dale's daughter who's come to live with the couple in suburbia. The plot revolves around the quirks of each character, and the journey Bethany makes from a home-schooled valedictorian to a self-assured woman living with her Gay father and his younger partner.
The Coverâ┚¬â€ÂThis short film was created by syndicated columnist, author, filmmaker and Watermark contributor Anthony Paull and will be debuted at the opening night of the film festival at the showing of Sassy Pants.
The Wise Kidsâ┚¬â€ÂComing out is never easy, but for Tim in The Wise Kids it's especially intimidating. Tim and his best friends Brea and Laura live in Charleston, S.C., and are part of Southern Baptist families. Tim seeks to understand his sexuality and plans on leaving his home for film school at NYU. Brea, a preacher's daughter, struggles with her faith. Laura plans to attend a Christian college. As three friends reach their own realizations on what adulthood means and how their new found freedom affects their relationships, they struggle to understand the changes.
WATCH THE TRAILER FOR THE WISE KIDS
Cloudburstâ┚¬â€ÂOscarԚ®-winning actresses Olympia Dukakis and Brenda Fricker are well known and excellent actors, and this film is another great example of their talents. The film is a comedy adapted from a stage play and Dukakis and Fricker play Stella and Dot, a lesbian couple with 30-plus years together. The pair are suddenly faced with the prospect of being shipped off to a nursing home by Dot's granddaughter. To avoid their fate, Dot and Stella take a road trip to Nova Scotia to get married and along the way pick up a â┚¬Ëœpseudo hustler' hitchhiker who enlivens their trip.
Love or Whateverâ┚¬â€ÂCorey and Jon have a great relationship, but when Jon begins â┚¬Ëœsewing his wild oats' with a woman, Corey is devastated. He quickly recovers though, after his lesbian sister introduces him to Grindr and he begins to see a hunk named Pete. Everything is going great for Corey, and then Jon comes back begging for forgiveness. Will Corey fight for love, or settle for whatever?
