29th Annual Vancouver Queer Film Festival Comes to a Close

The Vancouver Queer Film Festival (VQFF) closes its 29th Festival by announcing its award winners for best feature and short films announced at last night's Closing Gala. Vancouver's own Linnea Ritland won the juried Gerry Brunet Memorial Award for the short film, Violet and June.

People's Choice Awards went to locals Joella Cabalu and Milena Salazar for the short documentary, Do I Have Boobs Now?, and Filipina director Samantha Lee for her first feature, Maybe Tomorrow (Baka Bukas).

OUTtvGo People's Choice Award for Best Feature: Maybe Tomorrow (Baka Bukas). Director: Samantha Lee, Philippines

OUTtvGo People's Choice Award for Best Short: Do I Have Boobs Now? Directors: Joella Cabalu and Milena Salazar, BC

Gerry Brunet Memorial Award for Best Short Film Made in BC: Violet and June. Director: Linnea Ritland

Gerry Brunet Memorial Award for Best Short Film Made in BC (Honourable Mention): Stay Gold Man Up. Director: Ray McEachern

"Our Vancouver Queer Film Festival not only showcased cutting edge queer film, it also gave our audiences all the best feels," said Executive Director, Stephanie Goodwin. "We laughed. We cried. We got angry. And we loved. We forefronted stories that are underrepresented, yet have the power to transform lives."

The Gerry Brunet Memorial Award is an annual juried prize for the Festival's best BC short film that was established in 1997 in recognition of Gerry Brunet, a lifelong contributor to the arts and an early board member of Out On Screen. OUTtvGo supports queer film annually by sponsoring People's Choice Awards for best short and best feature film.

"We are immensely grateful to our artists for their generosity and creativity of vision, and to our audiences for engaging with our films and interdisciplinary programming with empathy and inquisitiveness," said Artistic Directors, Anoushka Ratnarajah and Amber Dawn. "Thank you for joining us in love and resistance for our 29th year!"

The 2017 Vancouver Queer Film Festival featured twenty-eight features and forty-two short films along with seven national premieres. In addition, the Festival played host to seven visiting filmmakers/directors, nineteen local directors, and numerous local performing artists. The Festival hosted multidisciplinary artist and filmmaker Vivek Shraya as our Artist in Residence, who hosted a detailed and invigorating presentation of her body of work for festival audience.

For more information and highlights from the 2017 Vancouver Queer Film Festival, visit www.queerfilmfestival.ca, or follow on Facebook: www.facebook.com/VancouverQFF, Twitter: www.twitter.com/queerfilmfest (#VQFF2017), and Instagram: www.instagram.com/queerfilmfest.

Out On Screen is a charitable organization that illuminates, celebrates and advances queer lives through film, education and dialogue. The Vancouver Queer Film Festival creates a dynamic platform for queer cinema that reflects a diversity of experiences while connecting and strengthening our communities. The award-winning Out In Schools anti-bullying program brings age-appropriate queer cinema into secondary school classrooms to combat homophobia and transphobia. Out On Screen is proud to be among the leaders in Canada working to create an equitable society where sexual and gender diversity are embraced. www.outonscreen.com

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