The 30th annual Inside Out Toronto LGBT Film Festival, Canada’s largest LGBTQ film festival, opens today Thursday October 1st with the drive-in premiere of David Bowie biopic Stardust. Set in 1971, a 24 year-old David Bowie (Johnny Flynn) embarks on his first road trip to America with Mercury Records publicist Ron Oberman (Marc Maron), only to be met with a world not yet ready for him. The film offers a glimpse behind the curtain of the moments that inspired the creation of Bowie’s legendary alter ego Ziggy Stardust, capturing the career turning point that cemented his status as an icon.
The full 2020 lineup which will be available to audiences in Ontario until October 11th via the Inside Out streaming platform includes 150 films and 9 episodic series, representing 30 countries. The digital platform will be accessible via insideout.ca, and through Inside Out’s new AppleTV and Roku apps, launching today.
Narrative feature highlights include a special presentation of Ali LeRoi’s The Obituary of Tunde Johnson; the modern-day western Cowboys, starring young trans actor Sasha Knight; Emma Seligman’s exquisite comedy of discomfort Shiva Baby; and the Irish sleeper-hit rom-com Dating Amber starring Normal People’s Fionn O’Shea and newcomer Lola Petticrew. The lineup will also include two films developed through Inside Out’s LGBTQ Finance Forum, Jump, Darling, an offbeat family drama starring Oscar-winner Cloris Leachman and Thomas Duplessie, presented as a drive-in screening, as well as Breaking Fast, a sweet romantic comedy about a gay Muslim in West Hollywood, starring Haaz Sleiman and Micahel Cassidy.
Among the documentary highlights is Ahead of the Curve, chronicling the life of the best selling lesbian culture magazine Curve, which will also screen as a special drive-in event in the Ottawa region. The Icons program features two major trans works, Keyboard Fantasies: The Beverly Glenn-Copeland Story, which catalogs the career resurgence of trans musician Glenn Copeland, and No Ordinary Man, which reclaims the story of trans masculine jazz musician Billy Tipton. Ashley O’Shay’s powerful feature doc Unapologetic shines a light on organisations that fight racial injustices against Black women in the United States.
Among the virtual Q&As and discussions, there will be a conversation with guests and talent from the Ryan Murphy produced, Joe Mantello directed new screen adaptation of The Boys in the Band featuring an all star cast including three time Tony-nominee Robin de Jesús. Although the film itself, based on Mart Crowley’s groundbreaking 1968 play and the 1970 William Friedkin movie, isn’t part of the festival lineup it is now available to stream globally on Netflix.
“In 30 years of LGBTQ film exhibition, we’ve never seen an edition of Inside Out quite like this,” said Andria Wilson, Inside Out’s Executive Director. “These past six months have necessitated innovation, imagination, and collaboration as our teams and festival colleagues around the globe have adjusted our models to this moment. What we’re sharing with you today is the result of that internal and external journey, which has been guided by our mission to elevate the works of LGBTQ2 filmmakers and connect them with our diverse communities.”
“The queer community is no stranger to extraordinary situations. Who could have predicted a global pandemic would become the entry point to mobilise around new ideas, new connections and collaborations, to ensure we could still deliver the best and safest possible 30th anniversary,” said Andrew Murphy, Inside Out’s Director of Programming. “Film is really now the safest way to travel, and this year’s lineup provides a unique opportunity to escape into the many complicated queer worlds via the brilliant minds of our filmmakers, icons, and peers.”
Inside Out will take place online and with drive-in events from October 1st-11th 2020. The complete program for 2020 can be found at insideout.ca.
Individual tickets for digital screenings, as well as 5-ticket packages and the All Access Pass, plus drive-ins and other special event tickets are on sale at insideout.ca.
Follow Inside Out 2020 on social media and join in the conversation with the hashtag: #InsideOut30. Follow the fest on Twitter: @InsideOutTO, Instagram: @insideoutfestival, Facebook and YouTube.