It's a very exciting time of year for queer-themed film lovers! Starting this Thursday it's the Vancouver Queer Film Festival! "The nature of what defines queer cinema just becomes more all-encompassing as time goes on. This goes a long way to explaining how what began as a smaller boutique screening series is now Western Canada’s largest queer arts festival featuring all the galas, special events and unique programming you’d expect of a marquee event," reports The Province.

A scene from Daniel Ribeiro's film, "The Way He Looks"

“In the early days, almost anything that was made with a queer character or by someone in the queer community might have found a place in the festival because there was limited availability,” says festival programmer Shana Myara. She adds, “But now we receive over 800 films for consideration, and bring that down to 40 that we consider the most authentic for our event. Today, that includes cinema from all over the world and from an incredibly diverse number of communities.” One such film is from Brazilian director Daniel Ribeiro. His new movie is called "The Way He Looks (Hoje Quero Voltar Sozinho) and it will open the festival (watch the trailer below). Myara made note that, "some of the best quality storytelling that comes to the programmers come from outside the traditional North American and European markets." The Vancouver Queer Film Festival is now in its 26th season!  “We’re very conscious of bringing voices from around the globe from these really rich filmmaking traditions such as Brazil or Taiwan,” she says. “Last year, we focused on India which corresponded to the 100th anniversary of filmmaking there.”

Follow the links below for ticket information:

Vancouver Queer Film Festival 
From August 14 to August 24, 2014.
Tickets/Info: Vancouver Queer Film Festival


The Way He Looks Official US Trailer (2014)

Directed by: Daniel Ribeiro
Starring: Fabio Audi, Ghilherme Lobo and Tess Amorim