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Out! – short gay movie 2020 – movie review

14/07/2021 By ACOMSDave Leave a Comment

Out!

 

Title:  Out!

Date:   August 3, 2020 

Length:   9.59mins  

Genre:   Gay

Director:   Ben Hull

Actors:   Pauline McLynn and Paul Sloss

 

Out! - 3 - Pauline McLynn Out!-1 - Paul Sloss

Out! Takes place at the dinner table between the Mother and the son, with a noticeable gap at the table. It revolves around what was said, what wasn’t said and then finally with the son coming out.  It also puts straight into the open homophobia, or perceived homophobia, and how a mother always knows.

It covers family relationships, the fear of rejection and the desire for acceptance.

 

Funny line ‘I didn’t like curry until I tried it’

 

For me what makes the movie interesting is the interaction between the mother and son, it almost is a re-enactment of the typical Irish matriarchial mother.

 

‘Anyone that you want to bring here to this house is welcome, so long as they respect you and treat you well’

 

the film ends with a laugh (if not a downright snigger) – you will enjoy this movie, and I would rate it 4.5 out of 5.

 

Links:

  • IMDB – Out!
  • YouTube – Out!
  • A Silent Truth – Gay Short Film 2012 – Movie Review

 

Filed Under: Movie Reviews, Reviews Tagged With: Ben Hull, family, gay movie, homophobia, OUT, Paul Sloss, Pauline McLynn

Yank Mags – ‘Men’s Style’ and ‘Out’

06/07/2015 By ACOMSDave 1 Comment

Reprinted and edited (adjusted)  from upstart in the distant past…
 
Comag Magazine Marketing sent NIGRA two mags to look at and comment on; they were Men’s Style and Out.

Pat Robertson Christian Coalition

Pat Robertson Christian Coalition


Of the two, Out, is the most substantial (most US Gay magazines take ‘The Advocate’ as a template), it has the usual showbiz gossip, some political news from around the States, and internationally, a big interview, and in this particular edition, an investigation into the enormous wealth of Pat Robertson.  He is one of the main figures in the Christian Coalition (currently, and successfully, ‘entering’ the Republican Party, with the ardour of born-again Trotskyites).  He is also head of a quite enormous media empire founded on a television network, which, because it is ‘religious’ and ‘charitable’ is not liable to tax.  Surely Jefferson’s Constitution forbids the endowment of any religion?
Out is easy to read and get around, though it was difficult to pin down how old it was – it’s was in it’s second year when we did this review.  It is not as US-bound as many other American publications.  It also does not have the fascinating (and rather frightening) Personal Ads with the strange hieroglyphs – yet.
This particular edition had a piece about the composer Pauline Oliveros, and her ‘life-partner’, Ione.  It reads like a full sclae interview that has been cut down (somewhat) to fit one page.  There is also a full-page picture of Oliveros and Ione, two women in their sixties at that time, facing the page of text.  Presumably, Out is making it clear that it is not going to be as youth and sex-obsessed as such glossies tend to be.  Out was to be produced ten times a year, with a cover price of £2.95 at that time.
Men’s Style also cost £2.95, and was bi-monthly.  There is an interview in the edition to hand with a very American celeb – he doesn’t even appear on out telly between 2 and 2 am (yep, he was that obscure – but obviously “mega” in American).  The rest was basically pictures of pretty, handsome and beautiful young men wearing seriously naff threads.  Three quid is a bit much to pay to gander at men with clothes on, especially as there was a lot of opposition – FHM, GQ, half a dozen others come to mind.  (There’s was also loads of footie, and other sports magazine with the likes of Ryan Giggs, David Ginola and various Brazilian and Portuguese boy-babes…um…sportsmen, wearing short shorts, and often very little else at that time.
 

Also posted juxaposed to this article was a picture in B&W of Dani de Cruz Cavallo – I have tried to find the picture online and cannot, so I have used another and will print the comment from our previous paper edition:

Dani Da Cruz Carvalho Magazine Cutting Full Page Photo Ref J (I don't know the photographer for this picture).The comely youth is Dani de Cruz Caravallo, he was a footballer on West Ham’s first team.  He was a middle class Portuguese, and according to an interview (with Just 17 – yes, we hadn’t realised it was a footie-mag either) he can “look after myself – I can cook” (a Latin boy?) and “I have a number of friends who are girls”.  He seems to have walked off the plane and into a modelling contract.  The mind doesn’t quite boggle – it just throbs a wee bit.
 
 
 

Filed Under: Book Reviews Tagged With: Comag Magazine, Dani da Cruz Carvalho, Men's Styles, OUT

Manchester’s LGBT history to be celebrated on new digital platform OUT!

25/06/2015 By ACOMSDave Leave a Comment


BY BETH ASHTON

OUT! will bring together the heritage trail and digital histories to provide a central place for all of Manchester’s rich LGBT history

Manchester Pride has been awarded funding by the Heritage Lottery Fund to create a digital platform that will explore the history of LGBT life in Manchester.
OUT! will bring together the heritage trail and digital histories to provide a central place for all of Manchester’s LGBT past.
Visitors to the website will also be able to create their own personalised trails based on where they are in Manchester, a theme or a time period, giving them the ability to discover and explore without the need of a tour guide.
The trails will use the rainbow tiles, which mark historic occurrences around the city centre, that were installed as part of Europride and OUT! will bring together a variety of projects championed by organisations including Gaydio, LGBT Foundation, Archives+ and the LGBT Youth North West.

The platform will also allow users to contribute to the research, with opportunities for crowdsourcing and digital games that enable the public to engage with and contribute to the ever-growing resource.
Mark Fletcher, Chief Executive of Manchester Pride comments; “Two of the main aims of Manchester Pride are to celebrate LGBT life in our city and to create opportunities for engagement. With ‘Out!’ we aim to commemorate and unite the rich and vibrant past by providing a factual and insightful legacy resource in one single location.”
“Our vision is to enable communities, historians and researchers, tourists and locals to learn about these histories and encourage them to contribute to the content and engage more fully with and to understand this important part of Manchester’s past.”

Manchester Pride is currently recruiting a number of volunteer research pioneers for this project who will collate information from both the LGBT community and other sources. The funding will provide training for the research pioneers who will visit community groups, researchers and local history societies to introduce the digital tool, ’OUT!’, and gather content including videos, photography and stories.
Daniel Jessop, Project Manager on the OUT! Digital Histories project said, “It’s great to join the team and make sure that stories in the LGBT community are shared. The Heritage Lottery funded project will empower volunteers through training, collecting oral histories and encouraging people to question the past and find out more. ‘OUT!’ celebrates LGBT heritage and if anyone is interested in being part of this please do get in touch.”
Alongside the creation of the digital platform, ‘OUT!’, the funding will also provide:
The training of 40 volunteers to visit community groups, researchers, local history societies etc to introduce ‘OUT!’.
Training of local historians to investigate archives to examine them for LGBT content.
A stand at the Expo Stand at the Big Weekend 2015 to explain the project and demonstrate the digital tool.
A panel discussion during Manchester Histories Festival 2016 to help the wider community to understand the heritage of the LGBT Community in Greater Manchester.
32 individuals will be trainees in oral histories and interviewing skills throughout the life of the project. 18 will initially be trained at the start of the project (12 community volunteers, 6 Gaydio interns) to conduct interviews for the theatre piece, digital booths and during the Big Weekend from the Expo Stand. A further 14 will be trained as a part of LGBT History Month in January 2016 in order to collect stories to add to the resource.
A digital exhibition at Archives + during the Manchester Pride Festival 2015 creating a new strand to their “Radical Histories” unit.
A live performance based piece in conjunction with Hope Theatre in the Gay Village that utilises oral histories and heritage on the digital tool.
A digital game run through Twitter and based around the digital tool to encourage engagement and usage.
To get involved in the project or find out more email Daniel Jessop on daniel@manchesterpride.com .

Filed Under: Anti-Bullying & Homophobia, History Tagged With: digital archive, lgbt history, manchester, OUT

GO! Athletes builds support network of LGBT high school & college athletes

01/05/2015 By ACOMSDave Leave a Comment

Republished form Outsports.com – By Lauren Elizabeth Neidigh on Apr 30, 2015, 10:18a +

Many of the GO! Athletes board members attend the annual Nike LGBT Sports Summit.

GO! Athletes has a new board of directors, and they are making a push to connect with as many LGBT athletes, particularly in high school and college, as they can.

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As members of the GO! Athletes network, we often hear about how LGBT athletes want a network of friends that they can identify with. At GO! Athletes, we can provide you with just that! We work to create safe spaces for athletes through visibility, advocacy, and education. We have an amazing group of people working on high school and college campuses across the nation. A few of these members are our board of directors, made up of LGBT athletes and coaches. Here they are:

Executive Director Chris Mosier is an inspiration to LGBT athletes. He is dedicated to advocating for trans people in sports, and he is a triathlete. In 2013, he launched the website transathlete.com as a resource for students, athletes, coaches, and administrators to get educated about trans issues. Chris can help LGBT athletes at all levels and is a great person to talk to about your experiences as an LGBT athlete.

Sean Smith, Managing Director, is a former NCAA swimmer and now the Chief of Staff at Imagine Swimming in New York City. As an LGBT athlete, he is a resource for athletes competing at all levels. Sean can help you by sharing his experience with working hard and overcoming adversity as an out athlete. He is extremely dedicated to building relationships and friendships with the members of our network, and would love to have you join us as a member of GO! Athletes.

As the GO! Director of Strategic Initiatives, Nora Cothren is looking forward to her role as an opportunity to guide our network to the next level. She is a former captain and ice hockey player at Smith College. She loves the GO! community and has met many amazing people through her time with GO! Nora believes that each person brings a new perspective that can spark conversation and help us see issues and concepts from different angles.

Katie Barnes, the 2015 Network Director, is a former basketball player and a coach. Katie is passionate about making sports environments safe for all people, regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. Current and former LGBT athletes and coaches can look to Katie as a role model for inclusion and courage as an out member of the LGBT community. Through the GO! network, they work to build communication in the LGBT community through conference calls.

Josh Sanders, our Director of External Engagement, speaks across the nation about intersectional issues such as religion, homophobia, sexism, racism, and other topics. He believes that sports are a catalyst for changing culture and impacting the world for the better. As our Director of External Engagement, his mission is to build on our goals of engaging, educating, and empowering LGBTQ athletes and others. Josh will lend a helping hand to young athletes who have struggled with their identities and faced negative situations due to their sexuality or gender identity, in order to make sports an inclusive and positive experience in their lives.
Monica Rochon, our Director of Educational Leadership, is a running back for the Tampa Bay Inferno tackle football team. They believe political education is critical to understanding the history of oppression, power, privilege, and the intersections of identity. As the, GO! director of educational leadership, they want to give social justice education opportunities to current and former athletes. Young LGBT athletes can reach out to Monica to learn about and discuss important issues surrounding race, gender, and sexuality in sports, as well as how to establish a GO! Chapter at their schools.

I’m proud to say I was given the Director of Social Media and Digital Initiatives position and the opportunity to work with these amazing people. I have been swimming since I was 8 years old, competing from age group events to the Olympic Trials and NCAA competitions. Coming from a place where there aren’t many other LGBT athletes, I felt like I fit in with GO! and was more confident being a part of the group. I would love to have you reach out to us via social media, so we can start important conversations about issues and solutions that you are passionate about, and provide you with support.

Our board is excited to be working together towards inclusion, and helping LGBT youth. We encourage you to reach out to any of us through our social media platforms. Promoting equality in sports is a team effort, and we want you on our team. You can check out our website: goathletes.org and learn more about the GO! Athletes network.

Check out GO! Athletes on their Web site or Facebook page.

Filed Under: Anti-Bullying & Homophobia Tagged With: athlete, gay, Go! athletes, LGBT, OUT, proud

History Recalled – the Letter that OUT did not print about Peter Mandelson coming to Ulster

12/01/2014 By David McFarlane Leave a Comment

(Out-take from upstart November 2000)
 
HISTORY RECALLED  – The Letter That OUT did NOT print
 
OUT Letters
Prince Street Station
PO Box 630
New York NY 1001
 
Dear Editor,
 

‘MANDY’ MANDELSON & NORTHERN IRELAND

 
In your January 2000 edition (issue 74) you carried an item about Peter Mandelson — the former Cabinet Minister, and Tony Blair favourite — being given the job of Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.  It was strongly implied that we quaintly reactionary Ulster-folk would be horrified at having a ‘Sodomite’ sent amongst us, a notion gleaned from the self-consciously fashionable (and stupid) Gay publications produced in London.  A city which is 55 minutes away from Belfast by plane, but several light years psychologically – think Manhattan and Juneau.
The response to Mandelson in Northern Ireland has been pretty muted, apart from the odd mildly satirical article about his spending the Christmas holiday with his Brazilian ‘friend’, with a local television personality who is also famously (and rather futilely) closeted.  Gayness is simply not pass-remarkable in this part of the world anymore, partly due to the work of this organisation over nearly thirty years.
Other groups have of course played their part: the major one being Cara-Friend the befriending and welfare wing of the over-all Gay movement, which has helped tens of thousands of lesbians, gay men, bisexual, transsexual, transgender and transvestite people to come to terms with themselves, over the past quarter of a century. The Pride committees have also done a great deal to make the community come forward.  2000 will be Belfast’s Tenth LGBT Pride and all the stops will be pulled out to make it a memorable festival.
That might be difficult, because in 1999, Pride enjoyed talks from Bishop Pat Buckley on the ‘ethical’ aspect of being Gay, while Jeff Dudgeon (about whose struggle against the UK government at the European Court of Human Rights, BBC Radio 4 UK broadcast a dramatisation in November 1999) gave a workshop on Roger Casement’s wide and deep connections with Belfast.  There was a Civic Reception in City Hall addressed by the Deputy Mayor Ms Marie Moore, and a half-hour programme shown on prime time television.  There were many other events and workshops, a poetry -reading and an art exhibition among other things.
NIGRA since 1993 has organised solidarity actions with ILGO (the Irish Lesbian & Gay Organisation of New York) in its struggle against the bigotry of the AOHA (Ancient Order of Hibernians in America).

Yours faithfully,

Seán McGOURAN

Secretary,

NI Gay Rights Association

[The above letter was sent in January 2000, by ‘snail-mail’, we think.  The date ‘November 2000’ had to do with the erratic production of upstart, a private concern that depended on whether or not the people producing it were employed and in funds.]

Filed Under: Anti-Bullying & Homophobia Tagged With: history, London, OUT, peter mandelson, Ulster

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