queer: Last News

APPOINTMENTSManagement company YMU has hired Yvette Medina as Head Of Latin Music. She joins from her own management business the Creative Management Firm. “YMU’s global resources and commitment to continue driving Latin music forward on a global scale aligned with my vision and passion, making them a perfect partner”, she says.Music publisher Wise Music has promoted Marcus Wise to CEO for Europe.

Eurovision Champion 2014 and legendary drag queen Conchita Wurst performed at the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Fair Day on Sunday, February 19.The free all-day outdoor event served as a kick-off for the Sydney WorldPride 2023 festivities.  A post shared by Conchita Wurst (@conchitawurst)According to organisers, an estimated 70,000 people attended, making this one of the largest Fair Days ever, even with the intense heat and humidity.The day featured live performances, the mini-Vogue Ball, the Doggywood Pageant, bars, family-friendly picnic areas, and over 300 retail, food, and community stalls from business, sports, political, government, religious and health groups.The all-day Queer extravaganza also had multiple entertainment stages, dance floors, and drag performances. The First Nations Circle, back for the second year, celebrated Queer Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.Image: Jess Gleeson“We are thrilled with the success of Fair Day yesterday, which was the perfect way to kick off the next two weeks of Mardi Gras and Sydney WorldPride,” Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras CEO Albert Kruger said.“With 70,000 attendees throughout the day, the event was a true celebration of diversity, community, and inclusion. This was local resident, Bryan Tabada’s first Mardi Gras Fair Day. He enjoyed celebrating among the community and spent the day galavanting with friends. “My favourite part was seeing the most number of queer people I’ve ever seen in my life,” Tabada shared.“It feels so good being surrounded by people that I identify with and have shared experiences with.

BreAnna Bell ITV America (“Queer Eye”) and production studio Good Company (Beyonce’s “Lemonade”) have announced new unscripted series “Category Is” (working title), an eight-episode documentary series focusing on New York City’s Ballroom scene through the lens of one of its most prominent houses: The House of Miyake-Mugler. Executive produced by Yusef Williams (“Overall Father” of the House of Miyake-Mugler), the series chronicles the personal and professional lives of nine members of this all-Black and queer “chosen family.” Power struggles, romance and interpersonal rivalries abound as they battle to make names for themselves in the House, the Ballroom scene and around the world, smashing stereotypes and overcoming tremendous adversity.

Guy Lodge Film Critic On stage, drag artist Aphrodite Banks is a femme fatale: Caked in war paint, with a waterfall of braids whipping around her waist, she’s possessed of the white-hot glare and forthright confidence to match her Amazonian height and bearing. Off stage, as Jules, he’s simply femme: that term for gay men who present or express themselves in a more feminine way, too often used as a slur or a dismissal even by their community brethren. (Open up a cruising app like Grindr and see how frequently “no fems” comes up as a requirement.) The former identity connotes swaggering strength; the latter, to many, delicate weakness. How those associations and stigmas battle each other in one man’s body is the driving conflict in “Femme,” a tense, sometimes startling revenge drama from British freshmen Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping.

Nick Holdsworth Breaking into the world of filmmaking is never an easy prospect.   And when you are a queer filmmaker who wants to focus on LGBTQ subjects, and lives in a traditional, Catholic, former Soviet Eastern European country, the bar to success is set pretty high.  Romas Zabarauskas’ career proves that with grit, determination — and, as he says, “no bitterness” — it is possible to create your own path on the international stage.  The 32-year-old producer and director — currently in production of his first English-language feature, “The Writer,” the second in a trilogy of films examining gay relationships — says being in the public spotlight as a queer filmmaker is a “complex issue.” 

Femme, a queer thriller written and directed by Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choo Ping, had its premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival and stars George Mackay and Nathan Stewart-Jarrett. The film explores the price of vengeance, the toll it can take on the psyche, and how that pressure can lead to some questionable decisions that may leave the viewer looking for explanations for these character’s actions.

Peter Debruge Chief Film Critic The first rule of “Manodrome” is you don’t talk about “Fight Club.” “Fight Club” looms large over writer-director John Trengrove’s unsettling second feature, even if no one overtly mentions David Fincher’s provocative late-’90s movie in this dark psychological-thriller-cum-social-critique, which finds the state of masculinity even more fraught than Fincher did a quarter-century ago. Trengrove, who is gay and hails from South Africa (his 2017 debut “The Wound” was shortlisted for the Oscar international prize), brings a queer sensibility to his otherwise unsatisfying analysis of contemporary manhood, enlisting Jesse Eisenberg to play yet another scrawny white guy seeking outlet for deep wells of festering aggression.

READ MORE: 'I'm more broken than before' admits mum after losing nine stone"Brianna was an outgoing, confident girl. She brought a lot of laughter to those who knew her. She was looking forward to taking her exams this year and beginning her journey into the adult world.

BreAnna Bell Lake Bell is expanding her production chops, joining the production shingle London Alley as a director. An actor known for series like “Childrens Hospital” and “Harley Quinn,” Bell has also branched out into production — most recently as the co-creator, executive producer, director and star of the comedy “Bless This Mess.” At London Alley, Bell will join with collaborator Luke Anderson, who has signed on as a partner and executive producer. “I’m excited to be continuing my relationship with London Alley and officially joining the team as a director,” said Bell in a statement. “It’s an exciting opportunity to have a lane to create a new genre of work in ads and creative, and I can’t think of a better collective to join.”

to the world back in 2021.In a candid interview with , the 27-year-old The Crown actor has admitted they felt “naive” to how much backlash they were to face after disclosing their non-binary status via their Instagram account (which currently has 851k followers) in 2021, in the wake of winning a Golden Globe award.“Naively, maybe, it took me aback how much hate I got for that. It was quite a reality check," they told , in this year's edition of the publication's annual Hollywood issue. However, they also revealed that they remain “motivated” in the face of this backlash to keep their account public: "For a lot of people, it did help.

EXCLUSIVE: South African director John Trengove’s crisis of masculinity drama Mandrome, which world premieres in Competition at the Berlinale this weekend, is one of the most topical Golden Bear contenders this year.

Fair Day returns to Sydney’s Victoria Park on Sunday, February 19, to kick off Sydney WorldPride 2023. The all-day Queer extravaganza will also have multiple entertainment stages, dance floors, and drag performances. On the Main Stage, experience the inaugural Drag King Games, hosted by Sexy Galexy and Donny Piccolo. There will also be a Sissy Ball vogue showcase, the Molly Poppinz Drag Show, as well as performances by Nana Miss Koori, Penelope, Jamaica Moana, Seann Miley Moore, The Buoys, Beks, Carla Wehbe, and Toni Pearan.Closing out the day on the Main Stage will be Eurovision Champion Conchita Wurst.   A post shared by Sydney Mardi Gras (@sydneymardigras)At the Wonderful, Proud & Free Stage, there will be Drag Storytime with drag performers Charisma Belle and Annie Mation, as well as a Junior Drag competition, and a Kiddo Disco with performances by Nic Pes and Ray Isaac.At the Optus Arena, bring your dog friends and people friends to watch the Doggywood Parade and Pageant.

While LGBTQIA+ activism in Australia did not start in 1978, the events of the first Mardi Gras Parade in 1978 were the most significant and far-reaching in Sydney’s queer history.The first activist organisations were the Australasian Lesbian Movement (originally the Daughters of Bilitis, named after the US organisation); the ACT Homosexual Law Reform Society formed in 1969; and CAMP Inc., established in 1970, which became the primary activist organisation.78ers march in the 2022 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade.But how did the first Mardi Gras parade come about? Forty-five years ago, a letter from San Francisco asked Sydney activists to organise international solidarity activities in late June 1978 – the ninth anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall riots in New York.US activists were campaigning against the anti-gay Briggs Initiative on the California ballot that would have made it an offence for anyone employed in a school to speak positively about homosexuality.Sydney activists formed a coalition of lesbian and gay groups which became the Gay Solidarity Group. On 24 June 1978, they staged a Saturday morning protest march around the Sydney CBD, a forum on the international gay movement and a night-time, street party for our community.

Angelique Jackson CAA has signed director Saim Sadiq, who helmed “Joyland,” Pakistan’s official entry for the 95th Academy Awards, for representation. Sadiq was named one of Variety’s “10 Directors to Watch” for 2023 in recognition of the film, which marks his debut feature. “Joyland” made its world premiere at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival — becoming the first Pakistani film to debut at the fest — where it was awarded the Un Certain Regard jury prize and the Queer Palm. The film has also been nominated for best international film at the 2023 Independent Spirit Awards and made history as Pakistan’s first film to be shortlisted for best international feature film at the Academy Awards.

EXCLUSIVE: Billy Porter has come on to exec produce Black As U R, the first in the independent documentary segment dedicating a feature length film to the misunderstandings of Black queerness and the Trans experience. Porter will produce through his Incognegro Productions with his producing partner D.J. Gugenheim.

“Bend, blend, blur or break” your perception of gender and identity at the Science Gallery’s first event of 2023, Break The Binaries. The 12 installations, ranging from interactive videos and animation, digital paintings and even live invertebrates, are “intended to create connections and conversation,” says curator Tilly Boleyn.

Amber Dowling Principal photography has kicked off on “Backspot,” the upcoming queer cheerleading film starring Devery Jacobs (“Reservation Dogs”) and newcomer Kudakwashe Rutendo as the leads. It will mark helmer D.W. Waterson (“That’s My DJ”) directorial feature debut. The film is expected to shoot until mid-March in the Toronto area. The film hails from Elliot Page’s Page Boy Productions, Night is Y and Prospero Pictures, and was written by Joanne Sarazen, based on a story by Waterson. Page, Matthew Jordan Smith, John Davidson, and Katisha Shaw executive produce; Alona Metzer, Waterson, Jacobs and Martin Katz board as producers. “Backspot” revolves around two young cheerleaders, Riley (Jacobs) and Amanda (Rutendo). Both are impressive members of their mid-level cheerleading squad until a professional coach gives them a chance to level up with The Thunderhawks. There, they must learn to “negotiate their space, find their voices, and come to an understanding with the generation of women who came before them,” according to the film’s logline.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor “Femme,” written and directed by Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping, has debuted a teaser and poster (below) ahead of its premiere Sunday in the Panorama section of the Berlin Film Festival. The film stars Nathan Stewart-Jarrett and George MacKay. Anton is handling international sales. The film centers on Jules, whose life and career as a drag queen is destroyed by a homophobic attack. But when he re-encounters his attacker, the deeply-closeted Preston, in a gay sauna, he is presented with a chance to exact revenge. Unrecognizable out of his wig and make-up, Jules infiltrates Preston’s life, and in doing so, discovers power in a different kind of drag.

Selome Hailu Cara Delevingne had already hoped to find a project exploring human sexuality before “Planet Sex” was pitched to her — though she didn’t imagine that would mean bringing a camera with her to have her blood drawn post-orgasm, nor that she’d attend a seminar about masturbation technique. Which is exactly where Hulu documentary series “Planet Sex” took her. “This was always something I was interested in doing, broaching this subject. I just didn’t really understand how, or what that was going to take,” the model and actor says. When she was pitched about the show, “It wasn’t even a yes. It was just straight away: ‘When are we doing this?'”

Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s spectacular new production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat arrived in Sydney last week.Image: SuppliedTold through song, with the help of The Narrator, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is the story of Jacob’s favourite son, Joseph and his 11 brothers. Joseph is sold into slavery by his brothers.

Zack Sharf Bella Ramsey has a message for homophobic viewers upset about gay storylines making their way into HBO’s blockbuster new series “The Last of Us”: “Get used to it.” Ramsey stars in the video game adaptation as Ellie. The HBO series earned critical acclaim for its third episode, which expanded on the source material to tell a gay love story between characters Bill and Frank. Toxic fans review bombed the episode on websites such as IMDb, but Bill and Frank’s romance is just the beginning of gay representation on “The Last of Us.” Ramsey told GQ UK magazine that she visited “The Last of Us” Season 2 writers room and thinks the HBO series will continue to closely “follow the storyline of the games.” This means that Ramsey’s Ellie will most likely have a Season 2 relationship with a woman named Dina. The actor is hoping HBO stays true to Ellie’s sexual orientation in the games.