With the future of Outfest, the Los Angeles based LBGTQ+ film festival, still up in the air, at least the East coast will have a festival of cinema this summer for the queer community. Newfest, NYC's long-running queer centered film & media fest, will be offering Newfest Pride, a special five day cinematic event beginning May 30th through June 3rd. To help kick off Pride month, this fest serves as a celebration of the community's legacy by offering contemporary stories which explores the various aspects of queer lives.
The Opening Night film will be Brian J. Smith's "A House is Not a Disco" which details the history of Fire Island, the iconic beach town fifty miles outside of New York City, that has long been known for being a queer getaway paradise and explores how the area will try to redefine itself for the next generation.
Other films that will be screened include "Close to You", a drama that stars, Elliot Page (who also produced and co-wrote the screenplay with director, Dominic Savage) as a trans man who returns home to Toronto for the first time since transitioning, reluctantly making the trip back for his father's birthday; "Queen of my Dreams", a romantic-comedy from writer/director Fawzia Mirza tells the story of Azra (Amrit Kaur) who lives with her girlfriend which creates a strained relationship with her conservative Muslim mother, Mariam (Nimra Bucha). A death in the family takes Azra to Pakistan for the burial where she uncovers unexpected connections with her mother; Dakota Johnson stars in "Am I Ok?", a comedy from co-directors Tig Notaro & Stephanie Allynne about self-discovery, life changes and friendship between Lucy (Johnson) and Jane (Sonoya Mizuno) when Lucy reveals a long-held secret and "Sebastian", from writer/director Mikko Mäkelä, is about an aspiring writer (Ruaridh Mollica) in London who secretly at night is a sex worker going by the name, "Sebastian" with these experiences helping to fuel his writing.
Also there will be a free advanced screening of the first two episodes of "Fantasmas", the latest absurdist comedy series from Julio Torres ("Los Espookys", "Problemista"). The show follows Torres (playing a version of himself) on the search for a golden oyster earring and the interesting people he encounters along the way. And there will be free outdoor screening at the Rink at Rockefeller Center with the ground-breaking, drag queen comedy classic, "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar" that starred Wesley Snipes, Patrick Swayze, and John Leguizamo.
There will be in-person screenings held at various locations in the city as well as virtual access for many of the films presented during the fest. For information on the complete film schedule, parties, filmmaker Q&A's and how to purchase tickets or passes, please click below:
2024 Newfest Pride
Other films that will be screened include "Close to You", a drama that stars, Elliot Page (who also produced and co-wrote the screenplay with director, Dominic Savage) as a trans man who returns home to Toronto for the first time since transitioning, reluctantly making the trip back for his father's birthday; "Queen of my Dreams", a romantic-comedy from writer/director Fawzia Mirza tells the story of Azra (Amrit Kaur) who lives with her girlfriend which creates a strained relationship with her conservative Muslim mother, Mariam (Nimra Bucha). A death in the family takes Azra to Pakistan for the burial where she uncovers unexpected connections with her mother; Dakota Johnson stars in "Am I Ok?", a comedy from co-directors Tig Notaro & Stephanie Allynne about self-discovery, life changes and friendship between Lucy (Johnson) and Jane (Sonoya Mizuno) when Lucy reveals a long-held secret and "Sebastian", from writer/director Mikko Mäkelä, is about an aspiring writer (Ruaridh Mollica) in London who secretly at night is a sex worker going by the name, "Sebastian" with these experiences helping to fuel his writing.
Also there will be a free advanced screening of the first two episodes of "Fantasmas", the latest absurdist comedy series from Julio Torres ("Los Espookys", "Problemista"). The show follows Torres (playing a version of himself) on the search for a golden oyster earring and the interesting people he encounters along the way. And there will be free outdoor screening at the Rink at Rockefeller Center with the ground-breaking, drag queen comedy classic, "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar" that starred Wesley Snipes, Patrick Swayze, and John Leguizamo.
There will be in-person screenings held at various locations in the city as well as virtual access for many of the films presented during the fest. For information on the complete film schedule, parties, filmmaker Q&A's and how to purchase tickets or passes, please click below:
2024 Newfest Pride
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