It’s the perennial question about LGBT filmfests. Why go to a festival when movies on LGBT subjects are so widely available, especially in a year when many are likely Oscar contenders — Carol with Cate Blanchett, Freeheld with Julianne Moore, The Danish Girl with Eddie Redmayne, to name a few — and distributors are keeping them out of LGBT fests unless they align with the movies’ wide release dates?
“It’s frustrating,” acknowledges KJ Mohr, who’s in her fifth year as director of programming for the Tampa International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival (a post she also holds at QFest in Baltimore, her home base). “But it’s kind of an awesome problem to have, that we have so many mainstream movies right now.”
She doesn’t see the trend having any negative impact on TIGLFF. “It’s all about the people who come to it, who have been coming to it for 26 years — not even so much about the film.”
But when a programmer is as discerning as Mohr, the films remain the main attraction. She’s especially good at identifying excellent foreign-language films — rare to see in these parts in any context. She recommends, for instance, the “gorgeous” Lithuanian film Summer of Sangaille (Oct. 6, 7 p.m., freeFall Theatre) about an adolescent love affair, and Sworn Virgin (Oct. 4, 4 p.m., MCC Tampa), which explores consequences of an Albanian tradition that allows “rough and tumble” women presenting as masculine to live as men — as long as they swear off sex. They’re part of what Mohr describes as “a really strong lineup of women’s films.”
Virgin also represents another trend — an increased sophistication in films dealing with transgender issues. Five years ago, Mohr remembers, the films addressing the subject tended to be basic and explanatory; now, explorations of trans identities are “much more complex.” For instance, Two 4 One (Oct. 10, 6:15 p.m., Catherine Hickman Theater) is “a fun rom com about a trans guy who accidentally gets pregnant,” and The New Girlfriend (Oct. 6, 7:30 p.m., Studio Movie Grill) takes surprising twists as a young widower explores his feminine side with the help of his late wife’s best friend.
Girlfriend is by the French writer/director best-known for the 2003 thriller Swimming Pool. Another name sure to make cinephiles’ ears perk up is Peter Greenaway (The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover), whose Eisenstein in Guanajuato (Oct. 8, 7 p.m., Villagio) imagines the sexual adventures of Russian filmmaker Sergei Eisenstein during a trip to Mexico. Mohr says, “If you haven’t seen a Greenaway film, it will blow your mind. And if you have, it will probably still blow your mind.”
Here are more of Mohr’s TIGLFF must-sees:
Margarita with a Straw. “So relatable, so delightful.” It’s about the loves of an Indian songwriter/activist who happens to have cerebral palsy. (Oct. 4, 6:15 p.m., Palladium).
Beautiful Something. Four men on intersecting romantic paths in Philadelphia. “It has a real indie feel,” says Mohr. “It is a beautiful something.” (Oct. 3, 8:15 p.m., Palladium)
Henry Gamble’s Birthday Party. One of Mohr’s favorites, about the 17-year-old title character’s big day. (Oct. 9, 9 p.m., MCC)
54: The Director’s Cut. The new cut of the 1998 original about Studio 54 (with Ryan Phillippe) is reportedly so different that it could be renamed 55. (Oct. 9, 8 p.m., Muvico Sundial)
Rooftop Shorts Party at Hotel Zamora. “This is going to be a lot of fun,” says Mohr. Oct. 9, 9 p.m./screening at 10:30 p.m., Hotel Zamora, St. Pete Beach.
The New Man. "A fascinating doc" about a Uraguyan activist seeking acceptance as a trans woman. (Oct. 9, 7 p.m., MCC)
Reel in the Closet. How home movies and photos can preserve LGBT history. (Oct. 10, 12 p.m., Hickman)
From This Day Forward. “A complex, beautiful love story” — a doc about a family that decides to stay together through the husband’s transition as a woman. (Oct. 7, 7 p.m., freeFall)
Nasty Baby. This one, with Kristen Wiig in a dramatic role, is going to be “controversial,” says Mohr. (Oct. 4, 8:15 p.m., Palladium)
Out to Win. “A really strong doc about sports icons and their coming-out stories.” (Oct. 4, 6 p.m., MCC)
Kiss Me, Kill Me. The festival’s opening-night film is a surprisingly suspenseful noir that should keep you guessing to the end about whodunnit and why. (Oct. 2, 8 p.m., Palladium, free admission).
This article appears in Sep 24-30, 2015.