Festival favourite Ferzan Ozpetek (Ignorant Fairies; Saturn in Opposition) returns to with a light-hearted tale of family obligation and repressed desire that is as playful and sunny as a weekend on the Italian Riviera. Tommaso is the youngest son of the well-to-do and ultra-conservative Cantone family, who own a pasta factory in Puglia. He returns home for an important family dinner at which his father plans to hand over the business to Tommaso and his brother Antonio. But Tommaso has a comfortable life in Rome as an aspiring writer and a steady relationship with his boyfriend Marcoa life he has kept secret from his family. He has no desire to move back to his hometown or to give up his writing career, so he plans to announce to his family at the dinner that he is gay. That evening, however, just as Tomasso begins his speech, he is upstaged by his brother, who, to everyones surprise, reveals his own secret! Antonio is promptly disowned and their father Vincenzo collapses from a heart attack. With the family in a state of turmoil, Tommaso reluctantly steps in to run the factory with Alba, the daughter of their new business partner. The comedy follows Tommaso as he balances running the firm, consoling his outraged family and keeping his homosexuality a secret in case the news altogether kills his stricken father. A surprise visit from some of Tomassos friends, including boyfriend Marco, uncovers some well-hidden family secrets and helps to change some long-held beliefs among the family. Loose Cannons is a witty, penetrating drama, beautifully acted by its ensemble cast. The film takes a lighthearted approach, revealing each family member’s quirks in a story that meanders through an emotional terrain of unspoken feelings that are played out against a backdrop of sumptuous beauty. (Description courtesy of Inside Out: The Toronto LGBT Film Festival.)

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In celebration of Mother’s day we are screening films that deal with LGBT parenting issues, trying to be a parent, or just being a parent of LGBT children. We’ll be presenting Alison Segar’s film And I Am Me, an honest portrayal of the relationship between a lesbian mother and her adopted, Ethiopian son, as well as Same Difference, Catherine Opie and Lisa Udelson’s short film about two artists raising young sons with same sex partners.

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For the first time ever we are collaborating with MIX NYC to bring the best in queer experimental film to the festival. Founded in 1987 by author Sarah Schulman and filmmaker Jim Hubbard, MIX NYC produces New York’s longest-running lesbian & gay film festival. MIX NYC promotes, produces and preserves experimental media that is rooted in the lives, politics, and experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and otherwise queer-identified people. MIX’S work challenges mainstream notions of gender and sexuality while also upending traditional categories of form and content. (This program was curated by Bug Davidson.)

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