Buskirk’s PRIDE Film Festival celebrates 8th year

To the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transexual and Questioning community, family is a word that can take on a variety of meanings. But for the Buskirk-Chumley Theater’s eighth annual PRIDE Film Festival, family will be applied in the broadest sense.

“Every year we set a theme for the festival,” PRIDE coordinator Danielle McClelland said. “The main purpose of it is to stimulate active conversation amongst our audience throughout the festival, and family has been a constant topic of discussion in recent years.”

The Buskirk-Chumley Theater will have its eighth annual PRIDE Film Festival Thursday through Sunday. The festival will feature more than 20 films from around the world that will celebrate and inform audiences of important LGBTQ issues of today.

Festival passes as well as individual tickets are available at www.pridefilmfestival.org.
PRIDE will also include other activities, such as a mixer at the Kinsey Institute on Friday and a dance party at the Buskirk, following Saturday’s screenings that are open to all guests.

An important aspect of this weekend is the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Alumni Association Homecoming. McClelland said nearly one third of PRIDE attendees are IU GLBT alumni, and a series of special events will be programmed for them throughout the weekend.

PRIDE has worked closely with local establishments and has made solid community
connections throughout the years. To further the community’s involvement with the event, PRIDE developed a video shoot-out to allow local filmmakers to create their own short features to be showcased at the festival.

“Everyone is more than welcome to submit a short for this part of the festival,” Steering Committee member Abby Henkel said. “The audience really enjoys this part of the festival because they are able to select their favorite short to be screened at the end of the festival.”

Henkel stressed that the festival is welcoming of everyone that wants to attend.

“The festival has something for everyone. The events are designed to not be extremely overwhelming and are geared toward the celebration of our community,” Henkel said.