By Victor Gimenez
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Entertain, Enlighten and Empower
October 7-16
In-Person in Tampa and St. Pete
and Streaming Online
Details here
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NEA/Pinellas Recovers Grant Update
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The Tampa Bay International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival (TIGLFF) was founded in 1989. A time when it was illegal for us to marry. When we could be thrown out of the military, be fired from our jobs for simply existing. A time in which we didn’t exist in history or in the stories of the day, and a time when gay rights ordinances were repealed by voters in Irvine, California and cities around the country – and even our own Hillsborough County a few years later.
A time when being out and proud was a risk with repercussions. Attending the Festival allowed you to be empowered and let people know you exist, and you matter.
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Today we live in a time where it is not OK to say “gay” – where a sitting Justice of the Supreme Court thinks we should revisit United States v. Windsor which legalized same sex marriage. We live in a time where once again we face the possibility of being erased.
Entertain, Empower and Enlighten are the core words of our mission. The films we show entertain us. The documentaries we watch enlighten us. And attending the festival empowers us.
It empowers us because attending the festival was and still is a political act meant to let others know we exist, we have stories, we matter – and we are a community.
The Festival makes sure our history is preserved, our stories are told.
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And the Festival has adopted to the new landscape of how stories are shared. The 33rd Annual Edition is a completely hybrid experience.
With only two exceptions all films are available both in-person and online. If you are not ready to go to a theatre yet, or if you have a conflict, or you must be up early the next morning then please enjoy our films virtually. Or if you’re in another part of Florida and can’t make a weekday film, then please enjoy them virtually anywhere in Florida.
Otherwise, please join us in person to laugh together, cry together, remember together, meet old friends and make new friends.
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Coming to TIGLFF is an act of community. An act to show we are here, we matter, our history matters and our stories matter. Coming to TIGLFF is where some of our patrons met for the first time and have been with each other ever since. Coming to TIGLFF is when some of our patrons see each other for the only time of the year. And coming to TIGLFF is a show of support for both the Festival and who we are as a community.
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TIGLFF represents all of Tampa Bay. We are both in Tampa and St. Pete. Opening Night and weekend we are at the historic Tampa Theatre. Closing Night and weekend we are at the AMC Sundial in St. Pete. Monday through Thursday we are at the Green Light Cinema in St. Pete and the Florida Museum of Photographic Arts in Tampa.
Our Opening Night Film Mama Bears tells the stories of how mothers found acceptance of their trans daughter, gay son, and themselves as a lesbian in their interpretation of their faith and wanted to share their love to others who had been rejected by followers of that same faith.
The Centerpiece Film Keep the Cameras Rolling: The Pedro Zamora Way allows those of us of one generation to remember the importance of Pedro Zamora and what he meant to queer TV viewers, and allows those of another generation to know his story.
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Whatever your taste in film — comedy, drama, romance, documentary, etc. — we have a film for you.
This year more than most, queer stories need to be told, learned and remembered.
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This year more than most, show up, be seen and support.
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Find the schedule of in-person and virtual screenings
at tiglff.com/annual-festival/festival-schedule
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The Tampa Bay International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival
is a recipient of the Pinellas Recovers Grant,
provided by Creative Pinellas through a grant from the
National Endowment of the Arts American Rescue Plan.
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