Real Change News | Reel Grrls to allow boys, too, for film production

July 15, 2009
Vol: 16 No: 32

News

Reel Grrls to allow boys, too, for film production

by: Laura Rumpf , Contributing Writer

Gender-questioning project screens at Lesbian and Gay Film Fest

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Queer and questioning Seattle youth get the chance to create and screen their own films on gender and sexual identity at the 14th annual Seattle Lesbian and Gay Film Festival (SLGFF) this October, through Reel Queer, a brand new initiative of local non-profit Reel Grrls Media.

Reel Queer’s challenge to LGBTQ-identifying teens to engage in dialogue about media stereotypes through film is the latest in a number of youth-led projects Reel Grrls has launched since its founding in 2001, to empower Seattle teens to confront damaging media images and present their own alternatives to the mainstream through original film production.

Reel Grrls is a year-round after school media and tech-training program that motivates young women to criticize and challenge mass-media portrayal of womanhood by developing their own media skills and creating films that depict women in original and realistic ways.

Examples of past work done by Reel Grrls participants include “Black As Me,” a video created in 2004 which tells the story of three young African-American women, how they view themselves and how others perceive them. The video screened twice daily throughout the month of February at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian’s “Shared Experience” exhibit in Washington, D.C. Additionally, student productions have been screened at the Sundance Film Festival Gen-Y studio, the Hong Kong and Korean International Film Festivals, Hamptons International Film Festival, San Diego Film Festival and the MediaRights Online Festival among others.

Volunteer mentors at the Central District-based nonprofit won a $5,000 grant from the Seattle Pride Foundation to enable the creation of Reel Queer this summer. Pride Foundation grant program director Jeff Hedgepeth noted that a Spring 2005 production by Reel Grrls participants, “Coming Out,” a parody about a teenage girl having to confess to her entirely gay friend group that she likes boys, was one impetus for the grant committee’s decision to fund the new Reel Queer Initiative. “It was a really powerful film,” said Hedgepeth. “Our (all-volunteer) committee was touched by the video and the work the young people do.”

Though it is known as the first year-round media program exclusively for girls in the country, Reel Grrls will open its studios to young men as well as women for the Reel Queers program. “We knew it was important to open [this camp] to all genders to be able to talk about their sexuality,” said Maile Martinez, Reel Grrls program manager.

Groups of three to four teens will work with an adult mentor to discuss issues pertaining to sexuality and gender identity, and experienced filmmakers will train first-time participants to use the media equipment and begin production once topics have been selected. Thanks to the Pride Foundation grant, participation in the camp is entirely free, and applications are still being accepted. The camp runs for four days this month: July 20, 22, 27 and 29, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Reel Grrls New Media Lab in Seattle’s Central District.

Final productions will be showcased to the public at the Seattle Lesbian and Gay Film Festival, held this year from October 16-25. Three Dollar Bill Cinema’s executive director, Rachael Brister, says the SLGFF producers were glad to be approached by Reel Grrls to be a part of the Reel Queer video production project. In addition to exhibiting all of the final films from the project, one of the Three Dollar Bill staff members will act as a mentor for the young film makers during the production process this month.

“We’re excited about the fact that [Reel Grrls] is helping create future and present filmmakers,” says Brister. “They’re putting production in the hands of young queer kids who may not realize they have a voice.”

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