Long Beach "Q" Film Festival

(Jason Dottley of Sordid Lives smiles as actor/comedian/emcee Alex Boling sneaks a kiss)



(Kate Siegal and Alan Ritchson of Steam)



(Del Shores with cast members of Sordid Lives)

I attended the 1st night of the Long Beach "Q" Film Festival as a volunteer photographer and was absolutely blown away by the incredible screenings of the moving sneak peek at the documentary Teach Your Children Well, the hilarious show Sordid Lives and the beautiful movie Steam.

Teach Your Children Well (by Gary Takesian & Roz Esposito) is a documentary about a the recent murder of a young, gay, Oxnard teen, Lawrence King.

Sordid Lives (written and directed by Del Shores) is a TV show about the people in a small Texas town who "learn to see each other for who they are instead of who they wish each other to be." It is hilarious and the actors are incredible. Del participated in a Q&A session after the screenings along with cast members Jason Dottley, Newell Alexander, Rosemary Alexander, David Cowgill, Ted Detwiler, Emerson Collins, and Ann Walker.

Steam is an incredibly beautiful film about the lives of three different women: a recently widowed elderly woman (Ruby Dee), a recently divorced single mother (Ally Sheedy), and a young lesbian college student (Kate Siegal). The women meet in a sauna and see each other almost weekly and talk. We follow their personal and family relationships. Some parts are hilarious and others actually made ME cry (I rarely do that).

The Q Film Festival is taking place all weekend long at Art Theatre located at 2025 E Fourth Street, Long Beach and was organized by The (Gay and Lesbian) Center of Long Beach. All proceeds from this weekends events are going toward the theatre and to get more VOTE NO ON PROP 8 commercials aired.

The event is being emceed by Alex Boling, Carlease Burke, and Lynda Montgomery. All are accomplished actors and/or comedians.

DC area friends: Steam will be screening at the AFI Silver Theatre & Cultural Center in Silver Spring, MD on Sat, October 18. I highly recommend going. Visit Reel Affirmations for details.