22 Jan MGFF19 Highlights
#MGFF19 DAY 16 | THU 28 FEB
Thursday 28 Feb brought us to the Closing Night of another Mardi Gras Film Festival. Crowds flocked in for a sold out screening of RAFIKI, presented by Accenture – the story of a colourful, hip and bold lesbian romance that was banned in its home country of Kenya. The audience celebrated the past 16 days of proud LGBTIQ storytelling with drinks in the Gold Class lounge! Thank you to everyone who supported and enjoyed this year’s Mardi Gras Film Festival – with 120 films including 22 films featuring transgender, intersex and non-binary characters, MGFF19 was truly a celebration of embracing our stories.
Pics by The Aperture Club, download the full album here
#MGFF19 DAY 15 | WED 27 FEB
Our second-to-last night of the festival was a big one! We were lucky enough to be joined by special guest Joey Joleen Mataele from Tonga, who gave a glittering performance prior to the screening of LEITIS IN WAITING. Joey also provided fascinating insight into her experiences as a performer and advocate in the Leiti community during a Q&A. LIGHT IN THE WATER was a slick documentary about the first gay swimming club in the USA, we were joined by an enthusiastic community from the Wett Ones who presented the film. We cackled with laughter at Olivia Colman’s Oscar winning performance in THE FAVOURITE, and enjoyed the second and final screening of the film that shocked Cannes, SAUVAGE.
Pics by The Aperture Club, download the full album here
#MGFF19 DAY 14 | TUE 26 FEB
On Tuesday 26 Feb, a lucky audience watched the WORLD PREMIERE of The Blonde One [Argentina], with director Marco Berger and actor Alfonso Baron in attendance! They joined Lisa Rose after for a Q&A in the cinema. Also screening was the empowering story of Swedish feminist rapper SILVANA, and from Thailand, the moving MALILA: THE FAREWELL FLOWER. The Blonde One after party was held in Gold Class!
Pics by The Aperture Club, download the full album here
#MGFF19 DAY 13 | MON 25 FEB
Monday started with a free screening of the first ever intersex narrative short film created by an intersex filmmaker, PONYBOI! We had a great turnout, with director/writer/actor River Gallo, Ponyboi producer Kristen Laffey in attendance. A passionate Q&A followed, with three representatives from Intersex Human Rights Australia. Hard hitting Slovenian drama CONSEQUENCES played at 6:30, then DYKES, CAMERA, ACTION!, showcasing the history of lesbian film, was followed by another powerful panel of Sydney academics and filmmakers. To end the evening, we were treated to the tale of transgender performance artist Rose Wood, in MISS ROSEWOOD.
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 12 | SUN 24 FEB
Sunday was another big day at #MGFF19 – the afternoon began with a retrospective screening of the freshly restored MAURICE from 1987, then a look into the life of playwright Maria Irene Fornes in THE REST I MAKE UP. BECOMING COLLEEN (presented by Nursewatch) told a moving story of a Sydney woman who transitioned at 82, with many in Colleen’s community in attendance at the panel. At 4pm, BELIEVER hit the big screen, and Marco Berger hosted a Masterclass in the Set Bar, ahead of the world premiere of THE BLONDE ONE on Tuesday at 6:30pm. SNAPSHOTS featured a panel with Executive Producer Jane Gilmore, and audiences enjoyed screenings of JOSÉ, NIGHT COMES ON and THE HAPPY PRINCE to finish off the day.
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 11 | SAT 23 FEB
We had a huge Saturday with 10 screenings! THE COMING BACK OUT BALL MOVIE and CHEDENG AND APPLE kicked off the day, followed by SIDNEY AND FRIENDS at the Golden Age Cinema. LOOKING FOR? was followed by a panel with the filmmakers all the way from Taiwan. FEMINIST SHORTS included a special screening of the short SEEING MARGARET JONES. APQFFA Shorts featured diversity in filmmaking from the Asian region. SCOTTY & THE SECRET HISTORY OF HOLLYWOOD gave us a view behind the scenes of Hollywood while CARMEN AND LOLA told the story of love between two Romani women in Madrid. To end the evening we had HOT BOYS SHORTS and LEZ BOMB! What a Saturday! We’re now in the final week, book your tix!
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 8 | WED 20 FEB
On Day 8, we opened the evening with a special screening of Can You Ever Forgive Me?, presented by American Express – guests enjoyed their complimentary custom popcorn! Next on the lineup was the sobering and important documentary, TransMilitary, presented by Herbert Smith Freehills. Festival guests attended a special Transmilitary party in the Gold Glass lounge. The final screening of the night was Tucked – an endearing story of friendship between drag queens of different generations. Book your tickets for this weekend, there’s so much more to come!
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 7 | TUE 19 FEB
We’re one week in! We hit day 7 with a special matinee screening of the salacious celebrity romp SCOTTY AND THE SECRET HISTORY OF HOLLYWOOD, then the evening started off with a poignant session,1985. We had a packed cinema for the sizzling LESBIAN SHORTS package, featuring lesbian short films from all over the world, then YOUR WILL BE DONE kicked off, addressing the difficult intersection of faith and sexuality. A diverse and talented group of queer filmmakers enjoyed the SPEED NETWORKING FOR QUEER FILMMAKERS event in the Set Bar, hosted by the fabulous Leah Pellinkhof. We wrapped the night with a special screening of Transgender Shorts at Golden Age cinema, introduced by Festival Director Lisa Rose.
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 6 | MON 18 FEB
We opened our 6th night of film with the Syd premiere of the sublime Hong Kong drama, I MISS YOU WHEN I SEE YOU, with producer Sophia Shek joining us for Q&A. MY QUEER CAREER showcased the best new queer shorts, with 8 emerging filmmakers battling it out for Australia’s most prestigious LGBTIQ short film award. Best Film went to THOMAS BANKS’ QUEST FOR LOVE; Best Screenplay went to BUTCH; Emerging Filmmaker went to DANCES; and the Audience Award went to STAYING THE NIGHT. We wrapped the night with a stunning exploration of gender identity in the Aus premiere of ZEN AND THE ICE RIFT, presented with AGL.
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 4 | SAT 16 FEB
Our massive #MGFF19 Saturday was choc full of Australian premieres and three Q&As with special guests. We kicked off with two powerful documentary sessions QUEER DOC SHORTS, followed by BIRDS OF THE BORDERLANDS with Q&A from director Jordan Bryon and one of the protagonists from the film.
Next up was screwball lesbian comedy FREELANCERS ANONYMOUS, with writer, producer and star Lisa Cordileone joining us to share her insights. BUDDIES was an incredibly moving drama about the early years of HIV/AIDS, followed by a panel hosted by Bobby Goldsmith Foundation and ACON.
Our evening features included trans body building documentary MAN MADE, comedy YOU, ME and HIM, and a stellar performance from Matt Smith in MAPPLETHORPE. We capped off the night with lesbian genre film GOOD MANNERS and a sexy three-way road trip, KILL THE MONSTERS.
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here
#MGFF19 DAY ONE | WED 14 FEB.
We opened two-and-a-half weeks of fabulous queer films with a sold-out screening of a moving and uplifting Canadian feature about following your own truth.
The Australian premiere of GIANT LITTLE ONES, presented by AGL, was followed by our packed out opening night Gala party in the Gold Class lounge. Tag yourself if you were there!
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here
MGFF19 Launch Party at The Star, Sydney
Thanks to everyone who came out to support our fabulous #MGFF19 program launch at The Star! Check out these pics of our beautiful queer community working the media wall!
Thanks to all partners including our new presenting partner Jaguar, our major partners American Express and AGL Energy, and The Star Sydney for this fantastic launch venue!
Pics byThe Aperture Club. Download pin 2521 from Full album available here.
#MGFF19 DAY 13 | MON 25 FEB
Monday started with a free screening of the first ever intersex narrative short film created by an intersex filmmaker, PONYBOI! We had a great turnout, with director/writer/actor River Gallo, Ponyboi producer Kristen Laffey in attendance. A passionate Q&A followed, with three representatives from Intersex Human Rights Australia. Hard hitting Slovenian drama CONSEQUENCES played at 6:30, then DYKES, CAMERA, ACTION!, showcasing the history of lesbian film, was followed by another powerful panel of Sydney academics and filmmakers. To end the evening, we were treated to the tale of transgender performance artist Rose Wood, in MISS ROSEWOOD.
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 12 | SUN 24 FEB
Sunday was another big day at #MGFF19 – the afternoon began with a retrospective screening of the freshly restored MAURICE from 1987, then a look into the life of playwright Maria Irene Fornes in THE REST I MAKE UP. BECOMING COLLEEN (presented by Nursewatch) told a moving story of a Sydney woman who transitioned at 82, with many in Colleen’s community in attendance at the panel. At 4pm, BELIEVER hit the big screen, and Marco Berger hosted a Masterclass in the Set Bar, ahead of the world premiere of THE BLONDE ONE on Tuesday at 6:30pm. SNAPSHOTS featured a panel with Executive Producer Jane Gilmore, and audiences enjoyed screenings of JOSÉ, NIGHT COMES ON and THE HAPPY PRINCE to finish off the day.
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 11 | SAT 23 FEB
We had a huge Saturday with 10 screenings! THE COMING BACK OUT BALL MOVIE and CHEDENG AND APPLE kicked off the day, followed by SIDNEY AND FRIENDS at the Golden Age Cinema. LOOKING FOR? was followed by a panel with the filmmakers all the way from Taiwan. FEMINIST SHORTS included a special screening of the short SEEING MARGARET JONES. APQFFA Shorts featured diversity in filmmaking from the Asian region. SCOTTY & THE SECRET HISTORY OF HOLLYWOOD gave us a view behind the scenes of Hollywood while CARMEN AND LOLA told the story of love between two Romani women in Madrid. To end the evening we had HOT BOYS SHORTS and LEZ BOMB! What a Saturday! We’re now in the final week, book your tix!
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 8 | WED 20 FEB
On Day 8, we opened the evening with a special screening of Can You Ever Forgive Me?, presented by American Express – guests enjoyed their complimentary custom popcorn! Next on the lineup was the sobering and important documentary, TransMilitary, presented by Herbert Smith Freehills. Festival guests attended a special Transmilitary party in the Gold Glass lounge. The final screening of the night was Tucked – an endearing story of friendship between drag queens of different generations. Book your tickets for this weekend, there’s so much more to come!
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 7 | TUE 19 FEB
We’re one week in! We hit day 7 with a special matinee screening of the salacious celebrity romp SCOTTY AND THE SECRET HISTORY OF HOLLYWOOD, then the evening started off with a poignant session,1985. We had a packed cinema for the sizzling LESBIAN SHORTS package, featuring lesbian short films from all over the world, then YOUR WILL BE DONE kicked off, addressing the difficult intersection of faith and sexuality. A diverse and talented group of queer filmmakers enjoyed the SPEED NETWORKING FOR QUEER FILMMAKERS event in the Set Bar, hosted by the fabulous Leah Pellinkhof. We wrapped the night with a special screening of Transgender Shorts at Golden Age cinema, introduced by Festival Director Lisa Rose.
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 6 | MON 18 FEB
We opened our 6th night of film with the Syd premiere of the sublime Hong Kong drama, I MISS YOU WHEN I SEE YOU, with producer Sophia Shek joining us for Q&A. MY QUEER CAREER showcased the best new queer shorts, with 8 emerging filmmakers battling it out for Australia’s most prestigious LGBTIQ short film award. Best Film went to THOMAS BANKS’ QUEST FOR LOVE; Best Screenplay went to BUTCH; Emerging Filmmaker went to DANCES; and the Audience Award went to STAYING THE NIGHT. We wrapped the night with a stunning exploration of gender identity in the Aus premiere of ZEN AND THE ICE RIFT, presented with AGL.
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 4 | SAT 16 FEB
Our massive #MGFF19 Saturday was choc full of Australian premieres and three Q&As with special guests. We kicked off with two powerful documentary sessions QUEER DOC SHORTS, followed by BIRDS OF THE BORDERLANDS with Q&A from director Jordan Bryon and one of the protagonists from the film.
Next up was screwball lesbian comedy FREELANCERS ANONYMOUS, with writer, producer and star Lisa Cordileone joining us to share her insights. BUDDIES was an incredibly moving drama about the early years of HIV/AIDS, followed by a panel hosted by Bobby Goldsmith Foundation and ACON.
Our evening features included trans body building documentary MAN MADE, comedy YOU, ME and HIM, and a stellar performance from Matt Smith in MAPPLETHORPE. We capped off the night with lesbian genre film GOOD MANNERS and a sexy three-way road trip, KILL THE MONSTERS.
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here
#MGFF19 DAY ONE | WED 14 FEB.
We opened two-and-a-half weeks of fabulous queer films with a sold-out screening of a moving and uplifting Canadian feature about following your own truth.
The Australian premiere of GIANT LITTLE ONES, presented by AGL, was followed by our packed out opening night Gala party in the Gold Class lounge. Tag yourself if you were there!
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here
MGFF19 Launch Party at The Star, Sydney
Thanks to everyone who came out to support our fabulous #MGFF19 program launch at The Star! Check out these pics of our beautiful queer community working the media wall!
Thanks to all partners including our new presenting partner Jaguar, our major partners American Express and AGL Energy, and The Star Sydney for this fantastic launch venue!
Pics byThe Aperture Club. Download pin 2521 from Full album available here.
#MGFF19 DAY 13 | MON 25 FEB
Monday started with a free screening of the first ever intersex narrative short film created by an intersex filmmaker, PONYBOI! We had a great turnout, with director/writer/actor River Gallo, Ponyboi producer Kristen Laffey in attendance. A passionate Q&A followed, with three representatives from Intersex Human Rights Australia. Hard hitting Slovenian drama CONSEQUENCES played at 6:30, then DYKES, CAMERA, ACTION!, showcasing the history of lesbian film, was followed by another powerful panel of Sydney academics and filmmakers. To end the evening, we were treated to the tale of transgender performance artist Rose Wood, in MISS ROSEWOOD.
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 12 | SUN 24 FEB
Sunday was another big day at #MGFF19 – the afternoon began with a retrospective screening of the freshly restored MAURICE from 1987, then a look into the life of playwright Maria Irene Fornes in THE REST I MAKE UP. BECOMING COLLEEN (presented by Nursewatch) told a moving story of a Sydney woman who transitioned at 82, with many in Colleen’s community in attendance at the panel. At 4pm, BELIEVER hit the big screen, and Marco Berger hosted a Masterclass in the Set Bar, ahead of the world premiere of THE BLONDE ONE on Tuesday at 6:30pm. SNAPSHOTS featured a panel with Executive Producer Jane Gilmore, and audiences enjoyed screenings of JOSÉ, NIGHT COMES ON and THE HAPPY PRINCE to finish off the day.
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 11 | SAT 23 FEB
We had a huge Saturday with 10 screenings! THE COMING BACK OUT BALL MOVIE and CHEDENG AND APPLE kicked off the day, followed by SIDNEY AND FRIENDS at the Golden Age Cinema. LOOKING FOR? was followed by a panel with the filmmakers all the way from Taiwan. FEMINIST SHORTS included a special screening of the short SEEING MARGARET JONES. APQFFA Shorts featured diversity in filmmaking from the Asian region. SCOTTY & THE SECRET HISTORY OF HOLLYWOOD gave us a view behind the scenes of Hollywood while CARMEN AND LOLA told the story of love between two Romani women in Madrid. To end the evening we had HOT BOYS SHORTS and LEZ BOMB! What a Saturday! We’re now in the final week, book your tix!
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 8 | WED 20 FEB
On Day 8, we opened the evening with a special screening of Can You Ever Forgive Me?, presented by American Express – guests enjoyed their complimentary custom popcorn! Next on the lineup was the sobering and important documentary, TransMilitary, presented by Herbert Smith Freehills. Festival guests attended a special Transmilitary party in the Gold Glass lounge. The final screening of the night was Tucked – an endearing story of friendship between drag queens of different generations. Book your tickets for this weekend, there’s so much more to come!
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 7 | TUE 19 FEB
We’re one week in! We hit day 7 with a special matinee screening of the salacious celebrity romp SCOTTY AND THE SECRET HISTORY OF HOLLYWOOD, then the evening started off with a poignant session,1985. We had a packed cinema for the sizzling LESBIAN SHORTS package, featuring lesbian short films from all over the world, then YOUR WILL BE DONE kicked off, addressing the difficult intersection of faith and sexuality. A diverse and talented group of queer filmmakers enjoyed the SPEED NETWORKING FOR QUEER FILMMAKERS event in the Set Bar, hosted by the fabulous Leah Pellinkhof. We wrapped the night with a special screening of Transgender Shorts at Golden Age cinema, introduced by Festival Director Lisa Rose.
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 6 | MON 18 FEB
We opened our 6th night of film with the Syd premiere of the sublime Hong Kong drama, I MISS YOU WHEN I SEE YOU, with producer Sophia Shek joining us for Q&A. MY QUEER CAREER showcased the best new queer shorts, with 8 emerging filmmakers battling it out for Australia’s most prestigious LGBTIQ short film award. Best Film went to THOMAS BANKS’ QUEST FOR LOVE; Best Screenplay went to BUTCH; Emerging Filmmaker went to DANCES; and the Audience Award went to STAYING THE NIGHT. We wrapped the night with a stunning exploration of gender identity in the Aus premiere of ZEN AND THE ICE RIFT, presented with AGL.
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here.
#MGFF19 DAY 4 | SAT 16 FEB
Our massive #MGFF19 Saturday was choc full of Australian premieres and three Q&As with special guests. We kicked off with two powerful documentary sessions QUEER DOC SHORTS, followed by BIRDS OF THE BORDERLANDS with Q&A from director Jordan Bryon and one of the protagonists from the film.
Next up was screwball lesbian comedy FREELANCERS ANONYMOUS, with writer, producer and star Lisa Cordileone joining us to share her insights. BUDDIES was an incredibly moving drama about the early years of HIV/AIDS, followed by a panel hosted by Bobby Goldsmith Foundation and ACON.
Our evening features included trans body building documentary MAN MADE, comedy YOU, ME and HIM, and a stellar performance from Matt Smith in MAPPLETHORPE. We capped off the night with lesbian genre film GOOD MANNERS and a sexy three-way road trip, KILL THE MONSTERS.
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here
#MGFF19 DAY ONE | WED 14 FEB.
We opened two-and-a-half weeks of fabulous queer films with a sold-out screening of a moving and uplifting Canadian feature about following your own truth.
The Australian premiere of GIANT LITTLE ONES, presented by AGL, was followed by our packed out opening night Gala party in the Gold Class lounge. Tag yourself if you were there!
Pics by the Aperture Club. Download the full album here
MGFF19 Launch Party at The Star, Sydney
Thanks to everyone who came out to support our fabulous #MGFF19 program launch at The Star! Check out these pics of our beautiful queer community working the media wall!
Thanks to all partners including our new presenting partner Jaguar, our major partners American Express and AGL Energy, and The Star Sydney for this fantastic launch venue!
Pics byThe Aperture Club. Download pin 2521 from Full album available here.