Free film screening celebrates Gay Pride month in Chicago at the Chicago Cultural Center
Thursday, June 30 at 6:30 pm
The Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events in partnership with the Chicago Office of Tourism and Culture, the Queer Film Society, the Center on Halsted, Chicago Filmmakers (the presenting organization of Reeling: The Chicago Lesbian & Gay International Film Festival), and The Legacy Project present an exclusive, one night only screening of MAKING THE BOYS, as part of Cinema Q, the presenting organizations continuing series of films celebrating outstanding LGBT movies. The free screening will take place on Thursday, June 30, 2011 in the ChicagoCultural Center's Claudia Cassidy Theater. The screening will feature a discussion and Q&A following the film. This film contains mature subject matter. Viewer discretion is advised. Major funding for this presentation has been provided by Sidetrack Chicago.
About Making the Boys
Before Prop 8, Milk or Will & Grace, before the AIDS epidemic, gay pride parades or the Stonewall uprising, The Boys in the Band changed everything. MAKING THE BOYS explores the drama, struggle and enduring legacy of the first-ever gay play and subsequent Hollywood movie to successfully reach a mainstream audience. Beloved by some for breaking new ground, and condemned by others for reinforcing gay stereotypes, The Boys in the Band sparked heated controversy that still exists four decades later. Featuring anecdotes from the surviving cast and filmmakers, as well as perspectives by legendary figures from stage and screen, MAKING THE BOYS traces the behind-the-scenes drama and lasting legacy of this cultural milestone.
On camera interviewees in the film range from Boys in the Band playwright and screenwriter Mart Crowley to Edward Albee, Larry Kramer, Terrence McNally, Tony Kushner, William Friedkin, director of the film version, along with cast members Laurence Luckinbill, Peter White, and a host of notable gay cultural figures — with Dan Savage, Cheyenne Jackson, and Carson Kressley among them. The 2009 film played festivals across the country last year, had sold out theatrical runs in New York and Los Angeles in the spring of 2011 and has received stellar reviews. The Hollywood Reporter described the film as "Impassioned, absorbing, illuminating and engrossing. Essential viewing!" The New York Times selected the film as a "Critic's Pick" and described it as "Captivating and entertaining." MAKING THE BOYS was directed and produced by Crayton Robey.
Further information on Making the Boys at http://firstrunfeatures.com/makingtheboys/
The Cinema Q film series celebrates outstanding LGBT movies made in Chicago. The second annual Cinema Q film series will take place on five consecutive Wednesdays in 2012: February 29 and March 7, 14, 21 and 28.
For more information on Making the Boys and other film programs at the Chicago Cultural Center, please visitwww.ChicagoCulturalCenter.org or call 312.744.6630.
Public programs, exhibitions, and related educational programming presented at the Chicago Cultural Center by the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events in partnership with the Chicago Office of Tourism and Culture are partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency. Transportation support is provided by United Airlines, The Official Airline of the Chicago Cultural Center. Lawry's The Prime Rib is the restaurant sponsor ofChicago Cultural Center exhibitions. Chicago Cultural Center concert pianos are generously provided by Steinway of Chicago.
THE QUEER FILM SOCIETY
The Queer Film Society (QFS) is a consortium of LGBT film critics, historians, artists, and scholars dedicated to the exploration and celebration of queer images in world cinema. Recognizing the diversity of identities and perspectives that comprise its membership, QFS is committed to showcasing vital films from equally vital, and sometimes widely varied, vantage points. From mainstream to underground and from artist to audience, a distinct and communal sensibility informs the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) cinema experience.
CENTER ON HALSTED
As the most comprehensive LGBT community center in the Midwest, the Center on Halsted serves as a catalyst for the LGBT community that links and provides community resources and enriches life experiences in a safe, inviting and nurturing environment. Center on Halsted has become an exciting and highly visible symbol for the LGBT community ofChicago, serving diverse social, recreational, cultural, and social service needs of youth and adults.
CHICAGO FILMMAKERS
Chicago Filmmakers is a 36 year-old media arts organization that fosters the creation, appreciation and understanding of film and video as media for artistic and personal expression, as well as media of important social and community impact. Chicago Filmmakers is the presenting organization of Reeling: The Chicago Lesbian & Gay International Film Festival. The mission of Reeling is to recognize the important artistic contributions that lesbian, gay and transgender filmmakers have made to our culture; to educate the general population and sensitize them to lesbian, gay and transgender issues; to investigate the history of LGBT film, including the stereotyping that has been a major part of this history; and to counteract this stereotyping with valid, meaningful and diverse portrayals of those in the LGBT community.
THE LEGACY PROJECT
The Legacy Project is a non-profit corporation committed to celebrating the contributions Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender (GLBT) people have made to history and culture. On October 11, 2012 we will dedicate "The Legacy Walk" — an outdoor museum recognizing the accomplishments of extraordinary people whose lives have been selectively edited - or removed entirely - from nearly every textbook used to educate the average person. The Legacy Walk will feature a series of bronze plaques mounted on each of the "Rainbow Pylons" that adorn the half-mile of the North Halsted Street corridor in Chicago's "Boystown." Each plaque will honor an inductee with a bas-relief likeness and a paragraph commemorating their life and accomplishments. Upon its dedication The Legacy Walk will be the only exhibit of its kind in the world.
CHICAGO DEPARTMENT OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS AND SPECIAL EVENTS
The Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) is dedicated to promoting an ongoing celebration of the arts; supporting the people who create and sustain them; and marketing the city's abundant cultural resources to a worldwide audience. DCASE, in partnership with the Chicago Office of Tourism and Culture, programs and promotes thousands of high-quality free festivals, exhibitions, performances and holiday celebrations presented each year at Millennium Park, Grant Park, the Chicago Cultural Center and other venues throughout the city.
CHICAGO OFFICE OF TOURISM AND CULTURE
The Chicago Office of Tourism and Culture (COTC) is dedicated to promoting Chicago as a premier cultural destination to domestic and international leisure travelers, providing innovative visitor programs and services, and presenting free world-class public programs. COTC supports local artists through grants and other resources and creates vital opportunities for artists of all levels. For more information please visit www.ExploreChicago.org .
