Paul Struthers On Celebrating Queer Cinema At The Mardi Gras Film Festival

There will always be a place for the Mardi Gras Film Festival no matter how far the LGBTQI+ community in Australia progresses towards equal rights, according to festival director Paul Struthers. "One of the main reasons is that there's so much great content out there now; if we didn't have a festival they just wouldn't get played and these filmmakers wouldn't continue making brilliant films," he says. "They need to have that launch pad so they can get funding for the next one."

Even with queer films like Barry Jenkins' startlingly raw and tender Moonlight accruing a brace of awards season nominations, including already winning the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture - Drama, many more would never been seen on these shores otherwise.

And it's not just about securing diverse films from all corners of the global queer community; there's also something to be said about sharing them in a space aimed specifically at queer audiences. Despite opening almost three weeks before MGFF kicks off, Moonlight — which follows the trials of Chiron, a black man facing up to his sexuality across three distinct chapters in his young life, as played by Alex Hibbert, Ashton Sanders and then Trevante Rhodes — Struthers had to showcase it in the festival. "People want to see it with the community."

 "When I took on this role four years ago, we had maybe 20 submissions. This year we had almost 50."

The MGFF program boasts 44 features and 17 feature-length documentaries, as well as seven shorts programs, including one focused on trans stories and another on the Asia Pacific region. Ten Australian shorts will compete for the $12,000 My Queer Career prize. "When I took on this role four years ago, we had maybe 20 submissions," Struthers says. "This year we had almost 50."

In a strong showing of American movies featuring people of colour, Dana Flor and Toby Oppenheimer's crowdsourced documentary Check It, about a Washington DC gang of young LGBTQI kids who formed to fight back against homophobic violence, is a highlight, Struthers says. As is Johanna Sokolowski and Kate Trumbull-LaValle's fabulously titled Ovarian Psycos, an empowering doco following a collective of feminist cyclists confronting abuse on the streets of Los Angeles' Eastside. "It's great to see the camaraderie and the safe spaces they create for each other."

Young people standing up to bullying is a strong theme, something Struthers says is welcome given the "debacle" of attacks on the Safe Schools program. "Our closing night gala Handsome Devil highlights that while pupils can be at fault, sometimes it's also the teaching staff, and then you have a film like Yan England's 1:54, starring Olivier Pilon of Xavier Dolan's Mommy, who gives a great performance as a closeted runner. The whole school system lets him down. It's very dramatic, with him trying to beat the bully's best time and get revenge."

Australian highlights include Craig Boreham's Teenage Kicks, which Struthers describes as a, "promising feature debut from a talent to watch that does a great job of capturing Sydney," and Fin Edquist's gripping Bad Girl, starring Sara West and Samara Weaving.

The Pearl, from directors Jessica Dimmock and Christopher LaMarca, follows four older American women, Nina, Amy, Krystal and Jodi, in the early stages of transitioning. "I saw it at Outfest in LA and it's an exceptional documentary about older transgender women; it's just so beautifully shot and their stories are so touching, I think fans of documentary are going to lap it up," Struthers tips.

His favourite crowd pleasers are opening night's A Date For Mad Mary by Irish director Darren Thornton, and Justin Kelly's gay porn biopic King Cobra. A Date For Mad Mary stars Seana Kerslake as a young woman recently released from jail who has to score a date to her best mate's wedding and finds herself surprisingly drawn to the female photographer. "It's just a beautifully simple film, very funny," Struthers says.

King Cobra, with a Boogie Nights vibe, is the true story of adult entertainment star Brent Corrigan aka Sean Paul Lockhart who became caught in a battle between warring porn producers, played here by James Franco and Christian Slater. The stellar cast also features '80s legend Molly Ringwald and '90s star Alicia Silverstone for good measure, and everyone; on fine form, Struthers says. "It's great fun with some very strong performances."