TLVFest
Location | Tel Aviv, Israel |
---|---|
Founded | 1 January 2006 |
Founded by | Yair Hochner |
Website | www |
TLVFest, officially the Tel Aviv International LGBTQ+ Film Festival (Hebrew: הפסטיבל הבינלאומי לקולנוע גאה), is an annual film festival held in Tel Aviv, Israel. The festival is focused on LGBTQ-themed film from around the world.[1]
The festival, based at the Tel Aviv Cinematheque. is open to all types of audiences, not only to members of the LGBTQ community. The festival also spotlights LGBTQ Palestinian films, consults LGBTQ Palestinians in its film selection process, and is outspoken in its commitment to Palestinian human rights.[2]
The festival is increasingly active outside Tel Aviv, and bringing LGBTQ culture across the country to cities and towns such as Sderot, Beersheba, Haifa, Jerusalem, Kibbutz Mizra, Rosh Pina, Ness Ziona, and Pardes Hanna-Karkur,
The festival runs around the same time as, sometimes concurrently, with Tel Aviv Pride.[3]
History
TLVFest was founded by Yair Hochner.[4] The first-ever LGBT film festival in Tel Aviv was held in 2006, and focused on LGBT-themed films that would otherwise never have received theatrical, TV or DVD distribution in Israel. The festival took place at the Ha’ozen Hashlishit (Hebrew for "Third Ear") music venue on King George Street and screened in five tiny theaters[4] of 20–40 seats each. The festival opened with
The festival moved to the bigger Tel Aviv Cinematheque in 2007.[4] IndieWire included it in its list of "10 LGBT Fests You Can’t Miss" in 2014 and 2015.[5][4]
TLVFest founded TLVFest Drag Star Search, a competition for Israeli drag queens and drag kings.[4] It has hosted drag artists from around the world including Peaches Christ, Sherry Vine, Jinkx Monsoon, Sharon Needles, Peppermint, and Alexis Michelle.[4]
In 2020, due to COVID-19, the festival moved to November.[6]
Guests
Over the years, the festival's guests have included
Opening Night Films
- 2006 - Mysterious Skin[8]
- 2007 - The Gymnast[9]
- 2008 - FD Tel Aviv[10]
- 2009 - Strella[11]
- 2010 - I Love you Phillip Morris[12]
- 2011 - Melting Away[13]
- 2012 - Leave It on the Floor[14]
- 2013 - Snails in The Rain[15]
- 2014 - Guttman X 5 [16]
- 2015 - Fresno[17]
- 2016 - Oriented[18]
- 2017 - The Wound[19]
- 2018 - My Days of Mercy[20]
- 2019 - 15 Years [21]
Selected films, screened at festival
- Greg Araki
- One Kiss. Directed by Ivan Cotroneo
- The Wound. Directed by John Trengove
Controversies
Funding 2012
The Israeli Film Council threatened to withdraw funding for the festival; however it did not cancel the funding.
Calls for boycott
2017
A number of scheduled speakers canceled their attendance at the event in response to pressure from the
2020
More than 100 filmmakers from 15 countries signed a petition launched by the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel calling for a boycott of the festival out of solidarity with the struggle by the Palestinian queer community. Among the signatories are filmmakers Charlotte Prodger, Alain Guiraudie, Thomas Allen Harris, Harjant Gill, Ian Iqbal Rashid, Sarah Schulman, John Greyson, Adrian Stimson, Richard Fung, Catherine Gund and Raquel Freire, as well as film scholars Alexandra Juhasz, Thomas Waugh, Marc Siegel, Shohini Ghosh and Chris Berry.[28]
2021
In October 2021, over 200 celebrities, including
References
- ^ "LGBTs Talk BDS in TLV". Haaretz. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
- ^ "TLVFEST STATEMENT". TLVFest. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
- ^ "The Tel-Aviv international LGBT Film Festival". Retrieved 6 May 2016.
- ^ a b c d e f g "About". TLVFest. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
- ^ bent (2015-05-20). "Big Summer Film Festival Preview: 10 LGBT Fests You Can't Miss". IndieWire. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
- ^ "TLVFest New Dates | TLVFest". Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ "About | TLVFest". Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ "About | TLVFest". Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ "TLVFest 2007". tlvfest.com. Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ "program2008.doc". Google Docs. Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ "TLVFest2009.pdf". Google Docs. Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ "TLVFest » אני אוהב אותך, פיליפ מוריס" (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ "TLVFest » OPENING NIGHT FILM: Melting Away". Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ "TLVFest » אירוע הפתיחה" (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ "TLVFest » אירוע פתיחה" (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ "TLVFest » אירוע הפתיחה: גוטמן כפול חמש" (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ "TLVFest » אירוע הפתיחה – פסטיבל 2015" (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ "אירוע הפתיחה: אוריינטד | TLVFest" (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ "אירוע פתיחה פסטיבל 2017 | TLVFest" (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ "אירוע פתיחה בחסות UBS – הקרנת הסרט "מרסי" | TLVFest" (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ "15 שנה – אירוע פתיחה חגיגי | TLVFest" (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ Stern, Itay (May 29, 2017). "Wave of Cancellations Hits Tel Aviv LGBT Film Festival Due to BDS Pressure". Haaretz.
- Jerusalem Post.
- ^ Agencies, IMEMC News &. "Wave of Boycotts Hits Israeli LGBT Film Festival as International Artists Heed Palestinian Call to Respect Picket Line".
- ^ Ennis, Dawn (May 30, 2017). "Why queer filmmakers are boycotting Israel's LGBTQ film festival". LGBTQ Nation.
- ^ Stern, Itay (May 29, 2017). "Wave of Cancellations Hits Tel Aviv LGBT Film Festival Due to BDS Pressure". Haaretz.
- ^ "Tel Aviv LGBT film festival targeted by BDS". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com.
- Times of Israel, 2 March 2020; 130 Queer Filmmakers Pledge Not to Participate in Israeli Government Sponsored LGBT Film FestivalBDS, 2 March 2020;
- ^ "Over 200 celebrities sign letter denouncing boycott of Israel". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. Retrieved 2021-11-01.