I+N@PHI x FMC/CMF
Presented by
Celebrating our 35th anniversary, we are honored to inaugurate the I+N@PHI x FMC/CMF SERIES: conversations with Canadian queer cinema, TV and game creators that challenge, engage and entertain us while offering up diverse representations of queerness across the media landscape. This new initiative continues our mission, helping to create environments to discover Canadian queer art and artists; the myriad of perspectives, identities and voices they share with us through their work and the new queer stories they tell.
“When queer universes light up all our screens, it’s because members of our communities have had the heart and the courage to tell them: this new series at the PHI Center goes to meet those who inspire us” – Mathieu Chantelois, Senior Vice-President at the Canada Media Fund.
On the programme: conversations with Indigenous filmmakers, an Acadian director, a creator of queer video games and storytellers from across the country.
Join us for this series of compelling conversations with the Canadian creators who are telling today’s queer stories!
19 + 26 November 2022 | Free admission
I+N@PHI x FMC/CMF x Sugar Highs | NOVEMBER 26 – 4PM
with Thom Fitzgerald, Adam Fox and Joey Benni
In the 1953 classic How to Marry a Millionaire, three lovely ladies (Marilyn Monroe, Betty Grable and Lauren Bacall) set out to land three rich men.
Take that premise, flash forward 70 years and give it an oh-so gay spin and you’ve got Sugar Highs. This dramedy series follows a group of twentysomethings who would rather party than work menial jobs, so they set out to find themselves sugar daddies to pay the bills. But this brand of “wallet love” comes with all kinds of complications – good and bad – that makes for fascinating, fun, and sexy viewing.
Since the release of his queer classic, The Hanging Garden in 1997, Fitzgerald has directed numerous films including Beefcake (1998) 3 Needles (2012) and Cloudburst with Olympia Dukakis. He has received a CSA, the TIFF People’s Choice Award and the FIPRESCI European International Critics Award.
Join director Thom Fitzgerald (Hanging Gardens) and actors Adam Fox and Joey Beni to get the inside scoop on the making of this upcoming Canadian gem!
Watch Sugar Highs on OUTtv in 2023
I+N@PHI x FMC/CMF x Y’a une étoile | NOVEMBER 26 – 1PM
Charlie Boudreau in conversation with Julien Cadieux
“Queer Acadie has always been there, but too long silent. Y’a une étoile is a testament to its awakening, to the din of individuals who are saying loud and clear “We are here!” This is my Acadie and it’s yours too.” – Julien Cadieux
Samuel LeBlanc, a young trans musician, sets out on an artistic quest to find queer community in his native Acadie. In his wanderings, behind the rural heteronormative landscapes, Samel finds people determined to live their differences without leaving their hometowns or denying their cultural identity and realizes that rural Acadian queer reality – while sometimes difficult – includes beauty and acceptance and that a queer Acadie does fully exist.
After studying film production at Concordia University’s Mel Hoppenheim School, Acadian director Julien Cadieux worked on a number of television documentary series such as Les Îles de l’Atlantique, 1755 la Gang arrive and Voir la musique autrement. He has directed numerous documentaries, including Guilda : Elle est bien dans ma peau ( Jury Award, image+nation 2014) on the famous Montreal cabaret star and Une rivière métissé on the meeting of cultures in the Mi’kma’ki territory.
Join Charlie Boudreau in conversation with Julien Cadieux to discuss his creative journey and the importance of producing Acadian queer stories – of which there exist few – within the (Franco) Canadian cultural landscape.
Watch Y’a une étoile on TV5 Unis in 2023
I+N@PHI x FMC/CMF x ROSIE | NOVEMBER 19 – 4PM
with Gail Maurice and Mélanie Bray
“The film is about Hope, Resilience, Love and Strength. It’s about acceptance and family.
My characters shine in the face of darkness. They are the light in a world that tries to kick them down.” – Gail Maurice, Métis writer/director of ROSIE, image+nation35’s Opening Film.
Set in the fringes of 80s Montreal and touching on the Sixties Scoop and disconnection from Indigenous identity, ROSIE is an open-hearted love letter to misfits and an ode to chosen families.
Gail Maurice is an award winning filmmaker and a proud fluent Cree/Michif speaker originating from Northern Saskatchewan. She’s also a two-time Canadian Screen Award nominee for best supporting actress for her roles in Trickster and Night Raiders.
Join Maurice and actor/co-producer Mélanie Bray for a conversation about their creative journey; Gail’s inspiration behind the film, adapting a short to feature length film, reflecting Indigenous sensibilities through script and character building.
I+N@PHI x PANEL INTERNATIONAL Queer Storytelling | NOVEMBER 19 – 2.30PM
IMAGE+NATION + Kyiv International Short Film Festival, together with Ukrainian, Canadian, Québécois and French queer creators will discuss the power of queer storytelling and the importance of representational empathy in relationship to each unique queer cultural perspective.
This first time collaborative event will bring our worlds together for a lively exchange of perspectives and creative strategies to provide a snapshot of how contemporary queer storytelling is evolving, developing and informing each distinct audience.
IMAGE+NATION + Київський Міжнародний Фестиваль Короткометражних Фільмів разом із квір-творцями з України, Канади й Квебеку та представниками корінних народів обговорять силу квір-сторітелингу та значення репрезентації, з огляду на їхню унікальну культурну та квірну перспективу.
I+N@PHI x FMC/CMF x This Place | NOVEMBER 26 – 2.30PM
with V. T. Nayani
v. t. nayani (nine-knee) 👩🏾🚀
@_9knee @thisplacefilm
for the rez kids and the refugees.
for the displaced and for the dreamers.
for those living in the liminal spaces.
a story of love, grief, and migration.
a love letter to our elders and ancestors.
Canadian director V.T. Nayani’s feature debut, starring Kawennáhere Devery Jacobs (Reservation Dogs) and Priya Guns, is a queer love story about two young women – one Iranian and Kanienʼkehá꞉ka, the other Tamil – who are jointly challenged by their own family histories, which bear the legacies of loss, migration and displacement.
V. T. Nayani is an alumna of the CFC Directors’ Lab, CBC’s Workshop for Diverse Creators, Hot Docs’ Doc Accelerator Lab, and Reelworld Film Festival’s Emerging 20 Program. She participated in the 2021/22 Canadian Academy Directors Program for Women. This Place is her debut as a feature film director.
Join V. T. Nayani in conversation on her script inspiration and the responsibility of representing nuanced, complicated family histories and migration.
I+N@PHI x FMC/CMF x QueerTech | NOVEMBER 19 – 1PM
QueerTech (QT) Connect with Lowbirth Games: Queering the game industry
Gain insight on the latest gaming trends with this engaging conversation between QueerTech and the core team members from the indie game studio, Lowbirth Games. Lowbirth is pushing boundaries in the narrative game space by creating daring and innovative stories that include atypical characters. Join us for this conversation as we explore each of their own queer and professional journeys, their motivations behind their current game, This Bed we Made, and why inclusivity especially for and by LGBT2SQ+ creators is important to the future of gaming and future media.
About QueerTech
QueerTech is a Canadian non-profit organization that empowers and connects startups, corporations, and 2SLGBTQ+ technologists to increase diversity, inclusion, and representation in the tech industry.