QDoc 2012

---

As The Dixie Chicks learned all too well, the world of country music isn’t the most inviting place for anyone who deviates from the narrow Nashville norms. In 2010, singer Chely Wright put this conservative environment to the test when she became the first major country music performer to publicly come out as lesbian. Having made a strong debut as the Academy of Country Music’s Top New Female Vocalist in 1995, Wright went on to score big hits with “Shut Up and Drive” and “Single White Female.” She was romantically linked with superstar Brad Paisley and was invited to perform at “The Mother Church of Country Music,” the Grand Ole Opry.

Behind the scenes, though, Wright was struggling with her sexuality and her Christian faith, and she was haunted by a difficult childhood in rural Kansas. After attempting suicide, she decided to risk her career by releasing Like Me, a memoir about her years in the closet. Named after a track from Wright’s album “Lifted Off the Ground,” Wish Me Away is a candid profile of a groundbreaking figure in music history. —Jimmy Radosta

Wish Me Away: Dirs Bobbie Birleffi and Beverly Kopf 2011 USA 96 min.

Assigned female at birth, Lynne, Rocco, Kaleb and Miguel span a decade or more in age, speak different languages and live in urban cultures as dispersed as San Francisco, New York, Paris and Barcelona. And yet, in director Valérie Mitteaux’s sympathetic hands, the stories of their journeys into transmasculinity reveal common themes. How does a boy who was raised
as a girl learn to be a different kind of man? How can transmen inhabit a masculinity that is fluent and authentic, while learning to use the privilege that once oppressed them? It’s fascinating to see the various ways by which these incredibly charming guys and their
friends untangle these conundrums. Especially involving are scenes depicting relationships with family: Rocco awkwardly interviewing his parents and twin sister about his coming out,
and Lynnee (aka Lynn Breedlove of revered dyke-punk band Tribe 8) interacting in loving exasperation with his mother, who is something of a fabulous diva herself. These scenes help
reveal the context that formed each person’s unique expression of masculinity.

While the realm beyond the gender binary is no longer terra incognita, at least not for queer Portland, the film’s quietly nuanced perspective is rewarding no matter what one’s gender expression. As Mitteaux observed in a recent Q&A about the film, “It’s not a film about trans persons. It’s a film about looking at femininity and masculinity through the experiences of trans persons.” —Stella Maris

Girl or Boy: Dir Valérie Mitteaux 2011 France 61 min.

Community Partner: Pride Foundation

You may not recognize the name Ralf König, but you probably recognize his art. One of the most commercially successful German comic book creators, he is best known for books like “SchwulComix (GayComix)” that offer a twisted take on queer culture. Equal parts Tom of Finland and R. Crumb, König’s comics are sexually charged and often politically incorrect, portraying daily routines of gay life alongside serious subjects like AIDS.

Having grown up in a village centered around a sauerkraut factory, König worked as a carpenter before coming out as a gay man in 1979. After achieving minor success when
his work appeared in the Munich underground magazine Zomix, he attended art school and eventually caught the attention of a gay publishing house. In 1994, König achieved worldwide notoriety when his comic book The Most Desired Man was adapted into a liveaction film of the same name, starring Til Schweiger.

King of Comics is a touching portrait of a cutting-edge artist with a wicked sense of humor.
All hail the king! —Jimmy Radosta

King of Comics: Dir Rosa von Praunheim 2011 Germany 80 min

In this enormously compelling and tender-hearted film, director S. Casper Wong chronicles the journey she shared with her former teacher, best friend and on-again/off-again companion over the last 15 months of LuLu’s life. Armed with a predilection toward profanity, an ever-lit cigarette and a can of cheap beer, LuLu unflinchingly battles a disease

she knows only far too well.

Dr. Louise Nutter, affectionately known as LuLu, is a renowned cancer researcher on the cutting edge of developing a promising anti-cancer drug. Passionate, driven and inspiring

to scientific peers and students alike, LuLu is known as much for her 16-hour workdays as for her hard-living lifestyle. When she herself is diagnosed with breast cancer, LuLu remarks, “I don’t have time to do this shit,” and never allows the diagnosis to transform her

spirit or shake her trademark sense of humor.

The raw self-reflection expressed at times by those experiencing breast cancer, as well by those closest to them, is all captured here. But at its core The LuLu Sessions is a completely unconventional love story–an intimate and deeply personal portrait of two

people confronting a terminal illness with honesty, laughter and love.

The LuLu Sessions: Dir S. Casper Wong 2011 USA 87 min

Community Partners: Asian Pacific Islander Pride, Planned Parenthood Columbia Willamette

In Italian “La Bocca del Lupo” means “mouth of the wolf.” It is also the name of the bay of Genoa, as well as slang for finding oneself in hard times or behind the barred windows of
prisons. In his film La Bocca del Lupo, Pietro Marcello weaves all these meanings into a cinematically expansive and deeply intimate love story between two unlikely partners and the city where they dream of making a new life together.

Released from prison for murder, Enzo returns to the back alleys and red-light districts of Genoa to reunite with his true love Mary–but all is not what it seems with these two outsiders who dream of finding a quiet haven together. One revelation after another unfolds as the course of their affair moves from prison yards, to neon-lit bars, to an astounding interview in the home they share. The result is both a unique tale of commitment and fidelity and an exploration of the violent and tender sides of life in the city’s underworld. Using the audio tapes that the lovers exchanged during incarceration; contemporary and archival footage that evokes classic Italian cinema; and a narration reminiscent of Proust and Jean Genet, La Bocca del Lupo blends personal passions and poetic history to create a hymn to love, to memory and finally to Genoa and the lives of those at its margins. –Donal Mosher

La Bocca del Lupo: Dir Pietro Marcello 2009 Italy 75 min.

On May 6th, 2009, Maine became the first state in this country to legislatively grant samesex couples the right to marry. Seven months later, on November 3rd, 2009, Maine reversed
that decision by voter referendum, becoming the 31st state to say “no” to marriage equality.
Question One chronicles the fierce and emotional battle that took place in Maine during that time, a battle whose political symbolism is a bellwether for the greater ideological battlefield
in American politics.

Closely mirroring California’s Prop 8 battle, Question One chronicles the behind-the-scenes workings of both sides of the conflict. The filmmakers spent the duration of the campaign
imbedded in the war rooms and strategy sessions, capturing the private thoughts, insights, fears and conflicts expressed by key leaders as they crafted and created their messages and strategies. Equally fascinating are the interviews with foot soldiers from each side who passionately believe in their cause.

With the state of Washington facing its own voter referendum this year, and the equality movement in Oregon carefully strategizing its next move, Question One provides an insightful and timely examination of the inner workings and cross-continental tactics that are being
employed in marriage equality battles across the country.
Panel discussion facilitated by Basic Rights Oregon following the film.

Question One: Dirs Joe Fox & James Nubile 2011 USA 113 min.

Community Partners: Basic Rights Oregon, Human Rights Campaign Portland, Equal Rights Washington