SHINDIG Film Festival is Chattanooga’s first and only celebration of queer cinema, from the creators of the acclaimed Chattanooga Film Festival. This two-day event will feature the best in short form and feature length narratives and documentaries from around the globe, bringing the newest and most exciting queer cinema to the Scenic City.

SCHEDULE

THURSDAY OCTOBER 5, 2017

8pm - ALABAMA BOUND @ The Palace Picture House
11pm - PRE-PRIDE WEEKEND DRAG SHOW @ Alan Golds Discotheque

FRIDAY OCTOBER 6, 2017

8pm - PRINCESS CYD (Opening Night) @ The Palace Picture House
10pm - MANSFIELD 66/67 @ The Palace Picture House
10pm - TENNESSEE VALLEY PRIDE KICK-OFF @ Images Night Club
11pm - SHINDIG AFTER PARTY @ The Coin-Op

SATURDAY OCTOBER 7, 2017

10am-12am - SCREENINGS ALL DAY @ The Palace Picture House
12am - PRIDE/SHINDIG DANCE PARTY @ The Palace Picture House

Our official features line-up:

NARRATIVE FEATURES

Opening Night Centerpiece:
PRINCESS CYD written and directed by Stephen Cone
Eager to escape life with her depressive single father, 16-year-old athlete Cyd Loughlin visits her novelist aunt in Chicago over the summer. While there, she falls for a girl in the neighborhood, even as she and her aunt gently challenge each other in the realms of sex and spirit. Cone is best known for his features The Wise Kids and Henry Gamble’s Birthday Party, both currently available to stream on Netflix.

ALASKA IS A DRAG written and directed by Shaz Bennett
*Writer/Director Shaz Bennett will be in attendance
Tough, but diva fabulous, Leo, an aspiring drag superstar, is stuck working in a fish cannery in Alaska. He and his twin sister are trapped in the monotony of fist fights and fish guts. Out of necessity, Leo learned to fight back, which catches the attention of the local boxing coach. When a new boy moves to town and wants to be his sparring partner, Leo has to face the real reason he's stuck in Alaska. Based on the hit short film and co-starring Matt Dallas (Kyle XY) and Margaret Cho.

THELMA co-written and directed by Joachim Trier
In Trier’s follow-up to the critically acclaimed Louder Than Bombs, shy college student Thelma moves away from her religious family to attend college in Oslo. After experiencing a violent seizure, she becomes powerfully attracted to Anja, another woman on campus. As her passion becomes all-consuming and her behavior increasingly reckless, her seizures—a manifestation of some inexplicable paranormal abilities—intensify. Soon, Thelma must confront the terrifying implications.

SATURDAY CHURCH written and directed by Damon Cardasis
After the recent death of his father, Ulysses’ mother Amara is always at work. Agreeing to keep an eye on Ulysses and his little brother, his stern and conservative Aunt Rose steps in to help out. Ulysses has begun experimenting with his sexuality and gender expression; his nights are full of stolen nylons and high heels. But Aunt Rose is having none of this so Ulysses flees the Bronx, finding refuge in the West Village, at a place where voguing is more important than sermons. He finds himself enthralled by a new group of colorful, streetwise friends who introduce him to the Ball community and teach him survival skills that he will need all too soon.

A CLOSER WALK WITH THEE directed by John Clark & Brie Williams
*Co-Writer/Co-Director John Clark will be in attendance
Like The Exorcist as directed by Gregg Araki, this queer erotic horror-comedy follows Jordan, a young Christian missionary who gets caught watching his handsome pastor Eli in the shower. The house church ostracizes him until Eli (who happens to be a fledgling exorcist) suggests it may be demonic possession that's giving Jordan his ungodly urges. What starts as an exorcism to save their friendship quickly descends into psychosexual madness.

DOCUMENTARY FEATURES

THE DEATH AND LIFE OF MARSHA P. JOHNSON directed by David France (How to Survive a Plague)
This documentary uses never-before-seen footage and rediscovered interviews in a search for the truth behind the mysterious 1992 death of black transgender activist and Stonewall veteran Marsha P. Johnson.

QUEST directed by Jonathan Olshefski
Filmed with vérité intimacy for almost a decade, QUEST is the moving portrait of an American family living in North Philadelphia. Beginning at the dawn of the Obama presidency, parents Christopher "Quest" Rainey, and his wife, Christine'a "Ma Quest" Rainey raise a family while navigating the poverty and strife that grips their neighborhood. They nurture a community of artists in their basement home music studio, but even this creative sanctuary can't always keep them safe. Epic in scope, QUEST is a vivid illumination of race and class in America, and a testament to love, commitment, healing and hope.

ALABAMA BOUND directed by Lara Embry & Carolyn Sherer
Alabama Bound explores the legal roller-coaster ride of LGBTQ family rights in the South over the last decade. The film offers an intimate view into the lives of three lesbian families in Alabama as they set precedents and fight the courts for their children during the time that federal marriage equality comes to a head. This is the story of a powerful community living with both frustration and hope in a conservative state, where the line between church and state is often blurred.

MANSFIELD 66/67 directed by Todd Hughes & P. David Ebersole
MANSFIELD 66/67 is about the last two years of movie goddess Jayne Mansfield's life and the rumors swirling around her untimely death being caused by a curse after her alleged romantic dalliance with Anton LaVey, head of the Church of Satan.

PRISM PRIZE (grand prize)
BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
BEST NARRATIVE SHORT
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT

Wristbands are $35 and provide entry into ALL Shindig films as well as Shindig sponsored parties from October 5th-7th (the absolute best deal). Tickets to individual films and parties are $10 and available at the box office, if seating or entry is available.

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • john clark

    It was the first year for this festival, so there were some hiccups (mostly technical, all of which were solved quickly), but overall, it was a fantastic experience. The people involved are truly dedicated to queer cinema, the audiences were great, with some really devout filmgoers attending almost every movie, and the lineup was impressive in both its diversity and quality. I hope this becomes a lasting presence on the LGBTQ festival circuit.

    October 2017