Hector Roddan examines the best of the Iris Prize Film Festival: CardiffÔÇÖs very own international LGBT+ short-film festival
Now entering its sixth year, the Iris Prize Film Festival remains one of the most important dates in the LGBT+ film calendar. Established in 2007, this yearÔÇÖs extravaganza, jointly hosted here in Cardiff by Chapter Arts Centre and Cineworld, saw 30 shorts battling it out for the largest prize in the LGBT+ film-making in the world.
A Stable for Disabled Horses, the winning UK short, depicts the camaraderie and awkward unrequited attraction between two supermarket shelf stackers. Like the festival winner, Polaroid Girl, meditates slightly longer on chance encounters and potential romances, in this instance between shy photographer Sofie and vintage-camera shop owner, June.
[pullquote]If you would like to watch the short films presented at the Iris Prize, they are all available on www.blinkbox.com ÔÇô under Gay and Lesbian ÔÇô Iris Prize 2012.[/pullquote]
Yet duration is not always the best measure of substance, as Deep End ÔÇô which follows a young boyÔÇÖs thoughts and reactions after his older brother comes out ÔÇô and Battlefield prove. The latter is a brief glimpse of the communication failures between two people whoÔÇÖve only just hooked up.
In a more overtly comedic vein, What You Looking At? examines the consequences of unexpected encounters as a drag queen and Pakistani girl in a hijab find themselves stuck in a lift together. Perhaps the funniest short, however, was The Arrival, a farcical account of two Irish con-women trying to persuade a gay couple to pay a large number of Euros to buy their non-existent baby.
ItÔÇÖs not all laughs though. Pride, addresses the difficult relationships some LGBT+ people have with their parents as out, proud and happy gay man Stephen is forced to address. He has to take in his homophobic father, who is now suffering from AlzheimerÔÇÖs. Whilst the conclusion suggests that even soured relationships can be redeemed, there is, perhaps, a lack of sincerity and the d├®nouement feels inevitable.
My Night With Andrew Cunanan? is a docudrama thriller based around the homophobic mass killing that culminated in the murder of fashion icon Gianni Versace in July 1997. Told from multiple perspectives, it examines a series of what-if scenarios made all the more chilling by their basis in fact.
Alongside the shorts, the festival also screened six features, covering topics as diverse as the American campaign for equal marriage (MollyÔÇÖs Girl, first top) to a sensitive portrait of the life of an ex-Israeli army doctor (Yossi).
For now, I want to talk more about Joshua Tree: 1951: A Portrait of James Dean (second top) directed by Matthew Mishory. James DeanÔÇÖs tragically short life has spawned a variety of biopics and documentaries. Perhaps as a result, this beautiful film eschews traditional narratives to provide an intimate portrait of Dean just before his ascent to stardom in East of Eden (1955). The story is conveyed through memories and recollections of DeanÔÇÖs room-mate and lover, William Bast.
Shot in stark black and white, interspersed with occasional bursts of grainy 1950s colour footage, Joshua Tree is quite simply a stunning piece of cinematography. Aided by this and the desolate tranquillity of the Joshua Tree National Park in south-eastern California, James Preston, who plays Dean, gives a nuanced and intimate portrayal of one of our ages most renowned outsiders.
Not only is this film breathtaking, but it also represents the first time that any film has addressed DeanÔÇÖs complex sexuality. Taking its cues from BastÔÇÖs biography of Dean, the film mixes real and imagined elements in order to meditate on DeanÔÇÖs gay relationships.
With so many films, covering a panoply of topics in a variety of styles, there really is something for everyone. Gay, straight, bi, trans*, whoever you are, if you appreciate great cinema and great stories, make sure you mark the Iris Prize Film Festival in your calendar.