With preparations for next year’s Fringe! Film Fest fully underway, we sat down with one of the programmers, the lovely Konstantinos (also director of The Queer Archive) to find out more about how they source amazing queer films for us to watch at The Rio and other venues across east London, year after year…
What three qualities do you look for in a Fringe! Film Fest submission?
Love over sex, realism, expanded ways of installing/exhibiting work.
What is your most favourite thing, personally, that you’ve ever screened at Fringe?
Our midnight screening of IN BED WITH MADONNA.
What’s the most important skill, from your experience, needed to be a Fringe! programmer?
An urge to push the envelope.
If you were putting on a dream all-night screening- what would be the theme and what films would you show?
The theme would be ‘horror’ and I would screen Andy Warhol’s Dracula, The Hunger, Vampyros Lesbos and The Attack Of The Giant Moussaka.
Why is it important for the local community, both LGBT and beyond, to support Fringe?
Fringe! is a non for profit project run by volunteers. Our program includes film, art exhibitions, lectures, workshops and all sorts of cultural activities available to the members of our community. A good part of our program is for free, which allows everyone to join. The growing interest and positive feedback we get from the local community is what keeps us going.
What was the last queer film you saw that really moved you or inspired you in some way?
Keep the Light On by Ira Sachs.
To what extent now do you feel that LGBT acceptance is connected to queer representation in film and TV?
LGBT acceptance is a problematic issue. What is accepted in big cities like London is not necessarily accepted everywhere else. But, it goes without saying that film, art, music have been instrumental in the queer community’s efforts to address problems, suggest solutions, celebrate a healthy lifestyle and engage with other communities.
What are your five essential queer films for someone exploring the genre for the first time?
These are 5 randomly picked titles from my top 100 list:
My Own Private Idaho – Gus Van Sant
Hedwig And The Angry Inch – John Cameron Mitchell
Female Trouble – John Waters
Querelle – Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Paris Is Burning – Jennie Livingston
Any hints you can tell us about Fringe! 2014?
We’ve extened the length of the festival from a long weekend to a whole week! Yeaaaiiii!!!
And finally, do you have a message for anyone thinking of submitting to next years festival?
SUBMIT TO US…
To submit to the Fringe! Film Fest visit the website: fringefilmfest.com