Independent Streak Magazine- Aug./Sept. 2023

I n d e p e n d e n t Streak

Popcorn Frights

FLIFF2023

"BigEasy Queens"

"Mob King"

"KokomoCity"

"Deliver Us"

"Kindling"

"OUTShineFilm Fest"

FLIFF2023ComingSoon

By Rachel Galvin

Film lovers,mark your calendars? The Ft. Lauderdale International Film Festival iscoming soon. In fact,it isjust around the corner, November 4-13,and it will be headquartered at Savor Cinemain Ft. Lauderdale and bringing in filmsfrom all over the world and celebrities. Thisiswhere cinephilescome to mix and mingle and discover the newest cinematic starsand films.

Thisyear?scelebritiesinclude along list,such asactorsMichael Chicklis,Charlie Martin Smith,David Arquette,Diane Ladd,Robert Schwartzman,Brittany Snow,MeloraHardin,Esther Povitsky, AlexandraShipp,director NichlausGoosen,producer Frank Marshall and many others. Dan Rather even will make an appearance viaZoom. There are many more in the works,and that isthe thing about FLIFF? you never know who will show up! There are 41 countriesrepresented with 196 films,plus33 student filmson the list. (All subject to change). Some of the many filmsthat will be shown are seen in postershere. Speaking of posters,their poster will be revealed on Sept.28 at 6 p.m. at Savor Cinema. It isawhite party.

Formoreinformationabout this,thefest andmore,visit www.fliff.com.

How isit going?What are you doing to promote what you are up to?Just because you are working on aproject,that doesnot mean everyone know about it... or about you.It isn't who you know,it iswho knowsyou.So,what are you doing to make sure people know who you are?It can be hard to keep promoting yourself. You feel like a braggart,right?I know...it isafine line...but in our business,it hasto be done.So,get creative.You can have frequency with your message if you keep doing it in new and different ways,so people are not sick of seeing it... Plus,you never know what will catch their eye and make them notice.Just showing someone something once or twice doesnot do it. You have to repeat. Rinse,repeat... back to one!

Break aleg!

Rachel Galvin Publisher

"Mob King"

Screens at The Hard Rock

By Rachel Galvin

Back in 2016,Ciro Dapagio did a webseriescalled "Mob King" and now he isback with a feature film by the same name,with adifferent plot.The film hasgarnered praise asit hasgone on to be picked up by GravitasVenturesand be streamed.

The film had aspecial private screening on May 24 at DAERat the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino,which brought out an excited crowd of cast,crew and supporters.

Before the movie began,singer Blake Gcrooned like ayoung Frank Sinatrawhile people mixed and mingled. Dapagio and Anthony Caliendo,producer of the film who plays"Main Man" Enzo, said afew words.

Dapagio starsin the film asMike White,reprising hisrole from the webseries.White isa gangster who,despite considering himself aman of honor,afamily man and astand up guy,findshimself being the target of Miami'smost notoriouscriminal organization... following a lengthy prison sentence Ashe triesto hide from them,hisfamily also findsthemselvesin the crosshairs.

The film isfilled with action and dramaand the charactersare played

by an outstanding team of actors,and the acting istop notch,including coming from Dapagio himself,who hasgone on to get attention and nominationsfor other rolesin films(Look forward to more about Dapagio in later issues).Joining him islocal favorite and star on the rise Celine Alva,who playshisdaughter,and the beautiful and talented ElisabettaFantone ("Big Eyes") ashiswife. JamesRusso ("Donnie Brasco") playsthe role of Dominick ?Dom?Sasso,the head of the Sasso Crime Family.

Also look for Robert LaSardo ("Burn Notice"),Oksana Lada("The Sopranos"),Bruce Soscia ("Gravesend"),Michael Villar ("Skin"),Stelio Savante ("What Remains"),Artie Pasquale ("The Sopranos"),Paul Borghese ("The Irishman"),Antoni Corone ("Bad BoysII","Gravesend").

After the party ended,people continuesto mingle outside of Daer as they just could not get enough.Some received a swag bag on the way out with a few itemsincluding Mob King Olive Oil,produced by Caliendo

Kudosto the entire cast and crew for thiswell crafted action film, including Emmy Award-winning director Jorge "Jokes" Yanes("Gabriel: Amor Immortal," "Eenie Meenie Miney Moe," "The Roof").

Make sure to check out the film online and look for more Dapagio coming soon.

a break to pose in front of the large poster for the movie that greeted guests

(From the left): Ciro Dapagio & Anthony Caliendo. (Photo by Eduardo Valdes); Singer Blake Gand ISfounder Rachel Galvin; Everyone watching "Mob King" at DAER; Actress Elisabetta Fantone & Rachel Galvin. (Below): Kimberly & Michael Newman with Deni Sher ready to watch the movie; Lou Silver & Sharon Pfeiffer are excited to be at the event; The photographers take

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Popcorn Frights

By Rachel Galvin

Popcorn Frightscelebrated its9th year of bringing the frightsto Ft. Lauderdale & Miami.Thisfestival every year endsup with packed housesasit playsold horror filmsand new The phenomenon isthe brainchild of Igor Shteyrenberg and Marc Ferman.

"Nine yearsago,thiswasMark's vision," said Shteyrenberg to an eager crowd at thisyear'sfest. "He came up to me and said,'I really feel there are so many amazing movies,and we have to fly to New York or to Austin,or LAor Toronto to see them on the big screen

For South Florida,we have to wait monthsto [see them on the large screen].' He got exasperated with frustration and said,'I really want to launch this genre festival' and I said,'We have day jobs,dude,thisisalot of work.' And he said,'Let'sjust give it ago Let'sjust see what can happen if we put something together.' And our first year,nine yearsago,we literally had a budget of between us$500."

He added,"And you guysremember,when once upon atime there wasa Wynwood,we had afestival kick-off there. Little did we know what kind of a draw... what kind of ahunger... you guyshave asahorror family cuz that is really what we feel that Popcorn Frightshasbecome asafe space for all you guys. Everyone is welcome. We really embrace,not just you guys,but filmmakers from all over the world."

He said that the fest hasgrown to the "biggest footprint they have ever had" with 116 filmsfrom 20 countries. And,they showed the filmsin three venues: Savor Cinema and Gateway Cinemain Ft. Lauderdale and O Cinema in Miami. In addition,people could watch filmsvirtually

2023 Popcorn Frights Festival?s Award

Winners:

Jury Prize for Best Feature Film:THEPUPPETMAN

Dir. Brandon Christensen

Jury Prize for Best Short Film: GETAWAY

Dir. Michael Gabriele

Scariest Feature Film Prize: GHOSTSOFTHEVOID

Dir. Jason Miller

Scariest Short Film Prize:UNKNOWN

Dir. Jay Henric

New Nightmare Prize for Best Debut Film: THEBLACKMASS,Dir. Devanny Pinn

Best Florida Short Film: POV,Dir. Brian K. Rosenthal

Audience Award for Feature Film:BIGEASYQUEENS

Dir. Erynn Dalton

Audience Award for Short Film: RED GLOVES

Dir. Santiago SabaSalem

Opening night after party

(This & top photo by Judith Vigil)

Igor Shyteyrenberg & Marc Ferman

Homegrown: 100% Pure Fresh Squeezed Florida Horror-- filmmakers pose after screening of their films at O Cinema on final day of the fest.

from their living rooms worldwide.The festival wasnot just about movies,it also included workshopsand plenty of partiestoo.

The fest kicked off with a world premier of MagnoliaFilms' "Deliver Us" and some of the cast and crew were in attendance and did a Q&Aafterward.The movie screening wasfollowed by an after party at Laser Wolf. For more on that film,see page 11. The fest ended up with highlightsof local films.and of course,the awards.

Inbetweentherewereparties, films,industrysessions,a surprise appearancebynunsandsomuch more! Shteyrenberg waseven honored by the mayor of the City of Miami Beach with a proclamation announcing it was"Igor Shteyrenberg Day"

For moreinformation,visit www.pompanofrights.com.

Pictured: At closing day event. (Above): Rachel Galvin with "POV" team -- Eric Vilaire, Brian Rosenthal and "Griff;" Charlie Chaplin, posing at O Cinema in Miami; (Below): "They're Real" director Jack Kierski and his actress Diana Garle; some of the team pose; Marc Ferman & Igor Shyteyrenberg talk to audience. See more picsfrom festival coming soon on the Independent Streak Magazine Facebook Page. Also, make sure to visit the YouTube page and the TikTok.

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only found out they had common interestsbut realized they had tiesto Michigan,and when he mentioned he had a script,it seemed kismet that they would work together.

Film Spotlight:"BigEasy Queens"

By Rachel Galvin

Pure delightful camp,"Big Easy Queens" isover-the-top fun with horror,drag queens,zombies,voodoo and more.Set in the underworld of New Orleans,thishorror musical followssongstressMinnie Bouvèé, who isalso the Mob Queen of the French Quarter,and her rivalry with her arch-nemesis,PoodlesMakenzie.There also isabit of mystery asa masked figure seemsto be stalking Bouvèé and also leaving gardenias, aflower of special signifcance.Who could the stalker be?Isit Makenzie or could it be her estranged sister who went off with her man and isnow back in her life?

"Big Easy Queens" isthe creation of Robert Leleux,who wrote the script,but isbrought to life by the actorswho give it their all and the costumesby Dan Gagnon,not to mention the makeup by Jakal Blackwell,Mike Maloney and Libby Zyndal.It starsEric Swanson,who playsMs. Bouvèé on screen and also in real life asit ishisstage name when he performslocally in drag. Local director Erynn Dalton was brought on to direct.Her creative spirit wasessential to make this baby sing.

Dalton ownsatheater company Infinite AbyssProductions,which hasbeen based at The Foundry.Swanson wasdoing a show there and that ishow they first met. When they started talking,they not

The film takeson special significance at thisperiod of time due to local politics,namely Governor DeSantis' "Don't Say Gay Bill" and SB1438,which banned all public drag performancesin the state. "These billswere signed into law by DeSantis,strengthening our resolve to finish the film and have it seen by asmany Floridiansand Americansas possible," said Dalton,"We wanted audiencesto understand that these lawsdo not represent most Floridians,and certainly not the majority of usin the horror and film communities."

The first screening of the film at Popcorn FrightsFilm Festival on Aug.11,which wasitsworld premier,wassold out.Then,it had another screening the next day.Not only that,but it ended up winning the audience award. It then went on to other festivals around the country. They had an after party after the first night at TropicsGrille.

"We knew when we were making 'Big Easy Queens' that we had something very special on our hands,and it'sbeen so great to see that feeling validated by audiencesaround the country!" said Dalton. "We are incredibly

Director Erynn Dalton

Minnie Bouvèé, played by Eric Swanson & Mimi Bouvèé-Truve, played by Benjamin Shaevitz

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proud of 'Big Easy Queens' and are excited for more audiencesto discover thiscrazy genre-bending film."

"It'sso nice to see hard work pay off," added Swanson. "The successif fleeting so we are just enjoying it all while we can."

Not sure how fleeting thiswill be,asthisfilm definitely stickswith you.Look for "Big Easy Queens" at afestival near you,and who maybe even eventually streaming.Thiscertainly is not the last you will hear of thisfun and campy troupe of enthusiastic actorsand crew. If you are a fan of cult filmslike those of John Waters,you will love this!

Seemoreabout what Daltonisuptoonpage13.

ISfounder Rachel Galvin with DP Laszlo Thomas at after party at Tropics Grille.

(Above Left) Cast & crew interviewed by Marc Ferman (Right): Actors Alexander Zenoz (as Giuseppe), Benjamin Shaevitz (as Mimi), Matthew Darren (as Jackson), Eric Swanson (as Minnie) and director Erynn Dalton.

Striking a pose at after party

Rachel Galvin with actors Colleen & Christopher Pinto

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The women discussthe typesof relationshipsthey have had as escortsand in their personal lives,aswell asthe type of men who are attracted to them,and how each type reactsdifferently. They also talked about some of the responsesthey get to them in public and among their families.

Presenting aswomen isnot that easy.It requireshormones,often electrolosis,makeup,wigs,eyelashes,implantsand even more extensive surgery. Each woman hasto decide for themselveswhat is best.We get an inside look to what makesthese women who they are.

Opening up a dialogue: "Kokomo City"

Photo: Liyah Mitchell in "Kokomo City."

By Rachel Galvin

Unapologetically who they are,the women and men featured in "Kokomo City" tell an intriguing story ...their own. The documentary, shown in black and white,featuresthe story of four black transgender sex workersin Atlantaand New York City,and some otherswho have something to say about the issue.

In the film,the discussion coversmany issuesfrom their perspective -- why someone becomestrans,what it takesto be trans,what they encounter and how far they would go to live their lives. But also it includeswho isattracted to a transwoman and who isnot,and talks about transphobia,aswell ashow they fit into the culture around them

The life isahard one but these women live it to the best of their ability,facing the slingsand arrowsof their outrageousfortune but standing against their seaof troublesone day at atime in an effort to boldly be themselvesand simply to survive.They face everything from discrimination,to abuse,to downright violence.Some,like Koko Da Doll,pay the ultimate price,asshe waskilled by gun violence after the film wasfinished and it isdedicated to her.

The topicsdiscussed are told in an intimate way,asif the viewer isa new friend in the living room or next to them in the car told something private in confidence. These are the typesof storiesmany of usnever get to hear.The film opensup the world of a group that isoften unseen,unheard and really unknown.The frank conversations allow for a dialogue and break the stigma surrounding the word transgender in a new and groundbreaking way.

The storiesare interspersed with beautifully filmed b-roll showing everything from the ordinary, like an egg being cooked,to the beautiful, like adancer giving it hisall. Showing how there isbeauty

in the mundane and how the livesof these people who are often discounted are not only worthy but beautiful in their own way.

Be aware that these storiesare raw and real,and include graphic topicsfrom sex to violence,and that includesplenty of profanity and also nudity.

The movie wasdirected by Miami native D. Smith,who isatwo-time Grammy-nominated producer, singer and songwriter and also made history asthe first transwoman cast on aprimetime unscripted TVshow,and executive produced by LenaWaithe.

The film hasalready gotten accolades,winning the Sundance Film Festival?sNEXTInnovator Award and NEXTAudience Award,aswell asthe Berlinale?sAudience Award in the PanoramaDocumentary section.

It hasalready been seen at the Miami Film Festival and OUTShine Film Festival earlier thisyear,as well asOCinema South Beach. In addition to locationsin the Floridamarket,it also opened in New York,Atlanta,GAand elsewhere.

Formoreinformation,visit https://www.magpictures.com/kokomocity.

Daniella Carter in "Kokomo City " All Photos courtesy of Magnolia Pictures.

Koko Da Doll in "Kokom o Cit y"

Director D. Smith

Film Review:"Deliver Us"

By Rachel Galvin

"Deliver Us" followed ayoung priest who investigatesa nun who saysshe hasbeen impregnated through immaculate means. She iswith twins,it seems,and one could be a Messiah but the other an Antichrist.While some want to eliminate the problem permanently,the young priest (played by co-director Lee Roy Kunz) strugglesto help the nun survive in Estonia.What they encounter isinterference from humansand also the supernatural.

Some found the film a bit confusing during the premier screening at Popcorn FrightsFilm Festival.Perhapsthere wastoo much content put into a short amount of space and there were some surprising elementsseemingly with no context. It wasin need of exposition. It turned out that some of the captionshad been missing in the initial screening! Thiswasatechnical glitch that they will be fixing before it isshown again,and that certainly will clear up some things.

Even though the film came off a little unclear in parts,the rather surreal film had beautiful visualsand excellent acting,including from MariaVera Ratti,who playsthe nun. It wasso arresting and you could not take your eyes off the screen. It included so many intriguing elements. You could feel the angst building up asthe film progressed to a frenzied pace,with some inspiration from filmslike "The Shining." The eclipse that is presented was reminiscent of

Some cast & crew from film pose with audience at Savor Cinema (photo by Judith Vigil).

the movie "Melancholia" asasymbol of ever present doom.

"I am Catholic and that informed a lot of the story I wrote with my brother Kane," said Kunz. "But [I also studied] other religions." He said he looked at different cultureslike the Egyptian and the story of Loki and hisbrother,and Kane and Abel,and Jesusand Satan ...He found the themesof brothersand good and evil again and again.

He talked also about how he met hisco-director Cru Ennisand ended up taking an acting classtogether,and eventually making thisfilm.

When Ratti wasasked how she got involved,she said,"I auditioned.I sent aself tape during COVID They cast me I did not expect it "

She added,"I studied Russian in college. One thing I alwaysknew is that I wanted to act in Russian because I love Chekhov and that wasmy dream. I got thisaudition and it'severything condensed in one.I had never met these guys.It wasall through the internet.I flew over to Estonia."

Thiswasthe first time she had seen the film.Her first thoughts?"I wasvery impressed.Seeing it together,it'ssomething," she said. Isaac Bowman,the cinematographer,said,"It'sfunny,watching the film. It brought me back.When you watch afilm,the scenesgo by and itssmooth and sexy.But,we shot in February and March in Estonia,a walk from the Baltic Sea.It wasso far below zero.We were in massive outfits.The actorswere absolutely freezing.You see the actorsand they are in regular clothesand then you see the behind the scenesand everyone isin giant parkas.We tried so many things.There isnothing you can do to make your feet not hurt.When it's10 degreesbelow zero pluswind chill,you are in the snow up to your ankle,your feet are just killing you by the end of the day ... and there'swolves... and you have to do thisfor 12 hours,13 hours.And you have to be performing at ahigh level,and there were many night shootsoutside. But it'slike one of those pain istemporary but pride isforever. When you're in that situation,you have to remind yourself,the audience isnever going to feel the pain that I am in right now but they will see the image,so got to deliver.

Kane Kunz added,"One thing no one hasmentioned yet isthat we shot thisduring full lockdown during COVID. Extrascoming in and testing positive and having to recast them on the fly."

He added,"The wolveswere amazing. I never thought I'd work with real wolvesbefore.They were real wolves.We had avery eccentric animal handler named Zoltan,who isHungarian.,and he also brought the deer We kept asking,'Can we have the wolvesaround the deer?' Hisresponse was,'Of course,they work together.'"

Thiscast and crew wasawelcome addition to Popcorn Frights.

Look for the film in theatersnear you starting on September 29.

Moreinformationat www.magnetreleasing.com/deliverus.

(Above): Director Cru Ennis speaks next to actress Maria Vera Ratti; directors Cru Ennis and Lee Roy Kunz with actress Maria Vera Ratti in back, with ISfounder Rachel Galvin; (right): directors Cru Ennis and Lee Roy Kunz with Maria Vera Ratti and Kane Kunz

Film Spotlight: "Kindling"

By Rachel Galvin

There issomething dark and foreboding in the film called "Kindling." Betrayal isuncovered aswell asterrifying family secrets. Unspeakable actionsare taken.There isphysical pain and emotional.

The film isjust the first of an anthology directed by Erynn Dalton Thisseriesstartswith a spark and issure to burn even more brightly asit progresses through each episode of the series.

One of Dalton' actresses,Anne Bobby,wasin attendance at the screening of the movie at Savor Cinemaaspart of Popcorn Frights. Bobby also wasthere for the movie that followed,"Nightbreed," which she also wasin.

Dalton wasat the fest also with another film she directed called "Big Easy Queens" (see pg. 7).That film,although set in New Orleans,was actually shot here in Sunny South Florida,whereas"Kindling" wasshot in Michigan in achilly November.

Asked how she got involved in the project,Bobby said,that Jason Hignite,who also wasin the film,approached her."I have known Jason for maybe 10 yearsor 12.We met at Horror Hound. Jason approached me and said,'You know there isthisscript and I think you will really like it.' And I really really did. I love that it isan anthology. I am a big fan of anyone who can write a story inside of half an hour. I am abig 'Twilight Zone' fan.I really do challenge anyone.I can quote pretty much every episode.I just really love smart,economical stories especially if they are scary."

"I read the whole script," she continued."You will see thisfilm,Lord willing and the creek don't rise.Thisispart of a massive anthology piece and I thought thisissuch asmart,quick story,and she (her character) issuch abitch.And I thought thiscould be really,really fun. And you know the ideaof taking on a role that technically is

confined to being trapped in so many ways?in her body (in a wheelchair),in thiscycle,thisfamilial revenge cycle ...It just really, really hit me.It wasvery mythological and I just went,'Yeah,okay,I'll do that,' and then I heard that,you know,awoman wasdirecting this. You know,it'ssuch a wonderful thing to have awoman?centric story being directed by agifted,gifted woman director like Erynn.And I just couldn't say no."

Fellow actor LukasHassel (Known for moviesaswell asTVshowslike "The Blacklist","Law & Order:Criminal Intent," "Elementary" and more) also found out about the project through Hignite.

"I have done alot of network TVand my heart isan independent film because it iscollaborative.The reason I got into acting wasto work with other visionary fabuloustalentsand creative souls,and network TVisnot the collaborative thing that you can do because you hit your mark and you know your linesand you don't messup and go back in your trailer and wait."

"But,you do get paid a lot of money," quipped Bobby.

"Yes,that'strue. You do get paid alot of money and you get exposure,but with independent cinema,it'scollaborative,you can sit and talk about the script and figure out your character. It'ssort of like sitting around a campfire with friends," said Hassel.

"Kindling" waswritten by Joseph Zettelmaier and Michael Alan Herman.Asked about how the script initially came together, Zettelmaier said,"So,I spent most of my adult life as aprofessional playwright That ishow I make aliving Thismovie isactually based on

Pictured: Anne Bobby at Q&A (on left) and in character (still from movie) (on right)

aplay I wrote. After the first weekend [Erynn and I did another movie called 'Gravedigger'],she hit me up immediately and said, 'What do we do next?' and she wanted something more horror based.And I had thisplay. We needed more charactersand more locationsand thisplay hasthat. I worked with aformer student of mine who had gone off to Hollywood and got amastersin screenwriting at UCLA,and has gone on to do some really great things.

We sat down and he taught me a lot about screenwriting. Roles reversed.We sat down and pounded out the script.I wrote thisand two othersof the anthology seriesand Michael wrote the fourth story. Then,we both kind of polished the script together."

"I don't fraternize with my students. Important they understand I'm your teacher,not your friend.But afterward [when you are no longer in my class],we can talk."

Tyler CharlesKane,who also wasin the film,said,"Thisis my 10th prodction with Erynn.I'm so thankful. I couldn't believe she asked me to do it. I wasso excited.That mansion is their home. It wasahaunting experience because there was something there. It waswonderful meeting everyone. I just continue to grow with Erynn."

He said to Dalton,"I am just so thankful to you. You really have given me ahome."

"Thisiswhat isreally cool about independent film and independent horror film in particular.What I love isthat there isalot of teacher,student crossover. Thisgenre isso deeply collaborative.There'svery little pride of ownership.Let'sjust work and work together.That I think isvery exciting.It'sone of the most intimate and communicative," said Bobby,who added,"I wasso scared when I did my first con. The cabal cut of 'Nightbreed.' What'sgoing to happen?Am I going to be stalked?These were the nicest people.I am afan.I geeked out at half the people at all the other tables."

Dalton said."We had money to make one [film].So,we made thisone. We have the other three segmentsto still shoot. We

have them cast.Our cast --one starsAdrian Barbeau. Another one stars Jim Beaver from 'Supernatural.' And then the third one wasthe bad guy from 'Green Inferno,' [played by Ariel Levy]. We have them cast and ready to go and are in fund-raising mode."

For moreinformationontheanthology,visit www.kindlingmovie.com.

Actors Anne Bobby & Lukas Hassel

Some of the cast & crew at the screening

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Thisyear?sannounced Centerpiece Film will be "Glitter & Doom" (USA/Mexico,2023),a fantasy summer romance.The film followsa musician who wearscharisma ascamouflage and acarefree kid about to run away with the circusasthey fall in love at first sight.

Additional eventsinclude a Men?sSpotlight Film & Party on October 21,aLadies?Spotlight Film & Party on October 27,and the Closing Night Film,party and awardsceremony on October 29.The well-received Cocktails& Cinema community filmsand Happy Hour initiative,launched during last year?sFort Lauderdale film festival,will also have variousscreenings.

OUTshine After Dark at Paradigm Cinemas: Gateway Ft. Lauderdale, the newest addition to the festival line-up,will showcase a curated international selection of queer horror films,erotic thrillersand offbeat films.Filmsto be screened include psychological horror films "The Judgement" (Egypt,2023) and "Almamula" (Argentina,France and Italy,2023),horror film "You?re Not Me" (Tú noeresyo) (Spain,2023) and the erotic thriller "The Trace of Your Lips" (LaHuellaDe Unos Labios) (Mexico,2023).

OUTshine LGBTQ+ Film Festival Ft. Lauderdale

OUTshineLGBTQ+ Film Festival Ft. Lauderdale isset to take place October 19-29. Thisfest isinternationally acclaimed asone of the largest LGBTQ+ cultural festivalsin the world. The 15th Annual film festival celebratesqueer culture with internationally acclaimed features,shorts,and documentariesthat inspire,entertain and educate.There will also be plenty of partiesand special eventstaking place throughout Broward County.

?Momentum isbuilding for our milestone OUTshine LGBTQ+ Ft. Lauderdale edition and we couldn? t contain our excitement,?said Mark Gilbert,OUTshine LGBTQ+ Film Festival Fort Lauderdale interim executive director.?We?ve been working diligently to fine-tune this year?sthought-provoking premieres,featuresand shorts.?

Opening night will commence on Thursday,October 19,at NSUArt Museum Fort Lauderdale.

Other announced filmsinclude the Spanish parenting drama"Leon;" Berlin Festival favorite "Norwegian Dreams" (Norway & Poland,2023); the dramedy "I Love You More" (Kosovo/Albania,2023); the U.S. premiere of "Luise" (Germany,2023),aWW1 chamber drama; "Opponent" (Motstandaren) (Sweden/Norway,2023),aBerlinale favorite; OUTshine?sCocktails& Cinema locally produced feature "Big Easy Queens" (USA,2023); the filmed in Miami narrative "February" (Febrero) (Cuba/USA,2022); and "Solo" (Canada,2023).

Ticket subscription packagesare on sale,now. Individual ticketsgo on sale on Sept.29. Formoreinformation,call 877-766-8156 or visit outshinefilm.com.

OUTshineLGBTQ+ Film Festival Fort Lauderdale will present the U.S. premiere of the German film Luise, a WWI drama about love, com pet it ion, and hat e