Batman & Robin and The Matrix are not commonly associated with the LGBTIQA+ community, but Joel Male is inviting the community to rethink their biases.
As part of the OUTintheOPEN Festival 2023, a queer film jamboree will be hitting Shepparton, showing seven iconic queer films, but audiences won’t be seeing Rocky Horror Picture Show or Kinky Boots.
Joel Male is spearheading the jamboree and is passionate about exploring queer representation in movies, especially behind the scenes, highlighting directors, writers and producers who are part of the LGBTIQA+ community.
This will be the first of its kind in Shepparton, and Joel said that the inspiration came from personal interest in films.
“To be honest, it came about from me selfishly wanting to watch these films on a big screen with a crowd of people,” they said.
“I wanted to give back to FoodShare through the screenings so entry is a donation of any size to the organisation.”
The first person highlighted in the jamboree is American director, producer and screenwriter Joel Schumacher, an iconic queer man.
He will be represented through his 1997 work in Batman & Robin, which faced criticism at the time for being too homoerotic.
Film and television directors, writers and producers, the Wachowski sisters, who have both come out as transwomen, will have two films shown, The Matrix and Speed Racer.
The 1994 Tim Burton film Ed Wood will also be featured as it follows the life of 1950s director Ed Wood, who famously cross-dressed and received a lot of backlash in return.
The final night of films will be a three-movie marathon highlighting the work of John Waters and Divine.
John Waters is an openly gay man who directed various films such as Polyester, Female Trouble and Desperate Living, all three of which will be played on the final night.
Divine is the leading cast member in Polyester and Female Trouble, but outside of acting she’s an iconic drag queen.
The Shepparton Queer Film Jamboree will kick off at 6pm Thursday, November 9, at Village Cinema, 9-13 Stewart St, Shepparton.
The double feature will show Batman & Robin and The Matrix.
Entry is a donation to FoodShare, which can be paid at the door.
For the complete list of events and the remaining five movies in the jamboree, look out for the program online or grab a copy of Friday’s News.