Given his massive workload, perhaps it’s in bad taste to talk to the director of the Mardi Gras Film Festival, Paul Struthers, about Sydney’s recent good weather.
“I haven’t had much chance to see the sun,” he says with a laugh. “It’s been a bit hectic because the festival starts [soon]. The program’s a lot bigger, which means a lot more pushing of individual films. But [it’s] all good.”
‘All good’ is almost an understatement; now in its 23rd year, the festival has grown exponentially in both size and critical standing. It’s now a significant date not only for members of the LGBTQI community, but also for film lovers at large, and appealing to all tastes has long been Struthers’ guiding work ethic.
“It comes down to quality. The films have to be of a great quality. Good acting, great story, great direction… Because it’s a queer film festival, it’s important to choose films that cater for all aspects of the LGBTQI story, but also to choose films that cater for all cinema fans as well. I think it’s important to [appeal] to all tastes. If the story’s good … everyone will want to see it, not just members of the LGBTQI community. We like to have a wide range.”
Certainly a number of the festival’s films have very strong mainstream appeal, most notably The Lady In The Van. Based on the odd friendship that blossomed between the titular transient and Alan Bennett – the acclaimed author and playwright behind The History Boys – the film stars Dame Maggie Smith [below] and combines a very British brand of slapstick comedy and some tender, quiet tragedy.
Not that the program is in any way safe or neutered. Those who like somewhat stranger festival fare will be pleased to hear that Struthers has nothing but good things to say on the subject of Everlasting Love, a truly bizarre gem that he compares to 2013’s Stranger By The Lake, the acclaimed French erotic thriller.
“It’s like Stranger but a bit more gruesome, and Spanish. And the great thing about the film is that it’s a kind of modern, gay fantasy horror, and then there are weird moments when a band starts playing,” he laughs.
From his unique vantage point as the director of the festival, Struthers has seen a great deal of changes in the work submitted over time – changes he wholeheartedly embraces. As Struthers tells it, there’s a thought shift occurring throughout the movie industry. “I think film companies are seeing the market for LGBTQI films, and our stories are being represented a lot more. There’s a lot more films out there, and the quality is certainly much better.
“There have been a lot more documentaries submitted this year as well,” Struthers reveals, and indeed the program is studded with fascinating works of non-fiction, ranging from Hockney, a film that explores the life and work of celebrated British artist David Hockney, to Ecco Homo, an Australian-made study of Troy Davies, a tragic figure perhaps best known from his collaborations with INXS’ Michael Hutchence.
When asked if there’s a film that he expects to go down particularly well with audiences, Struthers takes time to answer, his hesitancy hinting at the program’s general quality. “There’s loads and loads. But I think people will really love the new Australian film Downriver, which is from director Grant Scicluna. He had a short film called The Wilding which we played in 2013. [Downriver] is a really interesting sort of coming-of-age film with a bit of murder mystery thrown in. I think people will love that for sure.”
Excitingly, Downriver isn’t the only Australian title the festival has to offer. “This year we’ve got five feature films or documentaries that are from Australia. We’ve got Downriver … But we’ve [also] got the premiere of season four of the hit web series Starting From… Now!,a series that has been watched by over 20 million people. And then we’ve also got a great documentary called Scrum, which played the Sheffield film festival and is about the Bingham Cup [a gay rugby tournament] … And we’ve got Remembering The Man, which is about the real life story behind Holding The Man, the book and the film. And then Ecco Homo.”
That said, although Australia is well represented, Struthers has gone to great lengths to ensure the festival is filled with international voices. “We’ve got films from all over the world. We’ve got films from Japan, Mexico, Germany, Colombia, Spain … the list goes on and on.”
Indeed, the film that kicks off the festival, Summertime, will be presented in conjunction with the Alliance Française de Sydney. A moving period piece set during the early 1970s in Paris, and screened with subtitles, Summertime is an exploration of political and personal worlds; a film that doesn’t just explore characters and their sexuality, but the society in which they live.
This shift in storytelling style is another change Struthers has spotted over the years, and one he wholeheartedly embraces. “Films might feature LGBTQI characters, but often now … the character happens to be gay, and the story revolves around the character, not the character’s sexuality. It’s great.”
[Main image: Summertime – Opening night screening]
The Mardi Gras Film Festival 2016 runs Thursday February 18 – Thursday March 3 at various cinemas around Sydney.More: queerscreen.org.au
