No: 21 Queer Film

GAZE

Bruce La Bruce’s ‘No Skin of My Ass’ was screened at the first GAZE, 1992

Now known far and wide as GAZE (a name coined in 2007 by Ailbhe Smyth when she was a board member), the Dublin Lesbian and Gay Film Festival was founded in 1992 by Yvonne O’Reilly and Kevin Sexton, who had previously run a popular monthly gay film club at the Irish Film Institute (IFI). From the very start, the festival has showcased the best in LGBT+ cinema from Ireland and around the world, first in the Irish Film Institute until 2009 and then at its current home, the Light House Cinema for the August Bank Holiday weekend.

Over those years it’s grown to become one of the most respected queer film festivals in the world under the watchful eyes of programmers including Glenn Hogarty, Deborah Ballard, Brian Finnegan, Paul Connell, Michelle Devlin, Cian Smith, Paul Rowley, David Mullane and present queen of the line-up, Roisín Geraghty.

We treasure the atmosphere of the festival weekend, where friends and not-yet-friends experience hand-picked feature films, short films and documentaries together. Lots of these films will only ever be screened once, and only at GAZE. This gives our audience a unique opportunity to be inspired, entertained, engaged even enraged by a film and its subject matter.

Many of the films screened at GAZE are Irish premieres, and through a submission process, filmmakers have the opportunity to have their work screened at the festival before anywhere else.

There’s also an annual programme of free events, including screenings, and where possible its organisers try to programme screenings outside of the festival weekend around Ireland and internationally.

The calibre of the films that GAZE has had the privilege to screen, and that of the visiting filmmakers that we have been able to attract to attend the festival over the years has been incredible. The 2018 GAZE crew are honoured to be part of a community spanning 26 years, of audiences, filmmakers, and storytellers, founders, board members, volunteers, programmers, festival crew, sponsors, and contributors.

Sarah Williams is the Chair of the GAZE board, www.gaze.ie