auflust 5.2005 - jllSt OUt 41
Candid
Camera
Gay director Darren Stein has been ready
for his close-up since childhood
by
G ary M orris
ut the Camera on Me documents the
“oeuvre” of Darren Stein, a now
grown-up gay boy who, during the
1980s, made amateur short films in
suburban California on surprisingly sophis
ticated topics from age 8 to 15.
Stein used neighbor kids (mostly boys)
for mini-dramas about zombies, death
camps, child abuse and Vietnam, but all are
infused with the sensibility of a budding
drag queen—especially “Gay as a Whistle!”
The documentary samples all these works
and interviews parents,
siblings and actors, most
of whom are straight
but recall their early
“careers” with affection.
P
GM: What particularly inspired your
“diva boy” persona, both in front of the
camera as actor and behind it?
DS: That’s just the way I’m wired,
I guess. I’ve always been pretty theatrical
and outspoken. I was always a big fan of
Tim Curry in Rocky Horror. My brother was
playing with his Star Wars and He-Man
action figures, and I was dancing around in
my mother’s control top panties, singing
“Sweet Transvestite.” I was a sweet and sen
sitive kid, but also a bit of a child tyrant.
I’ve definitely mellowed
out with age.
GM: Did you feel at
the time that you were
pushing the envelope with
efforts like the Nazi film
or the child abuse film?
Gary Morris: It’s
unusual for a kid in his
preteens to assemble a
“stock company” of
neighbor boys and
make movies, but more
so for a gay kid to do
it. Did you know you
were gay on any level?
Darren Stein:
DS: I was just telling
stories about the things
that I had the need to
express or work through...
doing what I loved. It
wasn’t until I watched the
films as an adult that I
realized I had a pretty
major body of work.... If
only I could match that
output now! jm
I always knew I was
different. And yeah—
attracted to boys.
I don’t know if I’d call it
Darren Stein's early films touched
“gay.” I was definitely in on adult subjects such as jealousy,
D arren S tein will answer
denial about the whole
questions
after the screening
cruelty and sexuality.
label thing—as a kid,
of Put the Camera on
that was sort of admit
Me 7 p.m. Aug. 13 at
ting defeat. To be gay was to be an outsider.
Clinton Street Theater. Stick around for his
And who wants to be left out when you’re
1 999 film Jawbreaker, which is fast becoming
a kid?
a cult classic.
phers, too. They have access to a talented pool
of dancers who are willing to try anything. And
since the project places no expectations on the
choreographers, they have the freedom to be
truly creative. That is a rare gift in these days of
funding crunches, when choreographers are
often pressured to complete full-length pieces
and, above all, to fill seats.
Slipper isn’t aware of any other program like
this in the country. Between a slew of gifted
choreographers, vibrant organizations and
receptive audiences, Portland is becoming
known across the nation as a dance community,
she says. So it seems fitting that the Rose City
is home to what Slipper calls a “unique,
extraordinary project.”
The NW Professional Dance Project will
have a public showing 8 p.m. Aug. 12 at
Portland State University’s
Lincoln Hall, 1620 S.W. Park Ave.
Tickets are $ 15 at the door or $ 12
in advance from 503-421-7434.
—Rebecca Ragain
Girls on Gay
gets goin’
Where is a 30-something, full-
time student, mother of two and
active volunteer advocate for
abused and neglected children
going to meet a nice woman for
dating and romance? Surely not at
a bar, thought Rochelle Sprunk,
co-creator and president of Girls
on Gay, the 6-month-old promo
tional company behind Speed
Dating, Lesbian Style.
Andy Stout adjusts the filament on his chair in preparation for
the third annual St. Johns Window Project.
“We wanted to give back to the
community, and we wanted to he
able to have some fun,” says
Sprunk.
Uove one w uS‘
Girls on Gay took off quickly. It has organ
ized s<x:ial events at several metro locales and
plans to add more venues, some outside the city
limits, and gay male-themed events, too.
“We try to switch the venue around because
we know different women go to different types
of places,” she says.
Spnink describes herself as the face of the
company, while her business partner, Karen
Hooper, is the pen. Sprunk controls much of
the promotion, and Hooper handles technical
and business matters such as the Web site and
bookkeeping.
The group also plans to organize summer
and winter getaways for gays and lesbians.
Despite the success of Speed Dating—the
next one planned for 4 p.m. Aug. 7 at Vitis
Enoteca—the group’s first large-scale event
flopped before it ever got off the ground.
Girls on Gay had planned A Black &
White Affair, a fund-raising night of gourmet
dinner and top-rate live entertainment at
Crystal Ballroom, carrying a weighty ticket
price of $55. According to Sprunk, the price
was justified by the quality dinner and high cost
of throwing the party. She had hoped to raise
money for Basic Rights Oregon, in line with
the company’s philanthropic philosophy. When
ticket sales had not crested the double digits,
Girls on Gay cut its losses and backed out.
“We just decided maybe we tried to do the
grand finale a little sixin," says Sprunk, who
expressed disappointment about not having the
opportunity to wear a tuxedo at the event.
The group continues to judge its success by
how much fun its Speed Dating participants
have, though it plans to revive A Black &
White Affair.
“If we can get together as a community and
be proud and meet our neighbors, that’s awe
some,” she says. “If everybtxJy really enjoys
themselves and makes some connections, that’s
a success.”
To register for Speed Dating, Lesbian Style,
visit www.girlsongay.com.
—JRC
Get a Free Test for HIV,
syphilis, or hepatitis Cl
iÊETauGIïS]
9-11:30pm
Mxdtnornok County
44eoltk Department
Field day
The 20th annual Lesbian Community
Project Softball Tournament will be held from
Aug. 5 to 7 at Prairie Fields, 13599 N.E. Prairie
Road in Bmsh Prairie, Wash.
“It’s women together playing softball at
Brush Prairie Fields for 20 years,” says tourna
ment organizer Nancy Zimmer about the sig
nificance of the event.
The continued popularity of this event has
been so great that the 2005 tournament was
opened up to 36 teams. Softballers from Oregon
and Washington will compete in four different
divisions ranging from recreational to A level.
The first two days will consist of a round robin
format, with the finals to be held Aug. 7.
Although registration for this year’s event is
already full, spectators can expect to have a ball
(pun intended).
“I’ve attended a lot of the tournaments,”
says Debbie Caselton, LCP co-chairwoman.
“They’re very spirited; everyone gets along.”
Through the years, as many as 500 people
have shown up to cheer on and support the
teams in the summer sun. In addition to watch-
ing the games, spectators can enjoy other activ-
ities such as live music, raffles and lots of
prizes—and, as those of you who have been in
the past know, the after-dark Slip-n-Slide is a
crowd favorite.
The Oregon Breast and Cervical Cancer
Program, one of the event’s title sponsors, will
also be on site reaching out to inform the les
bian community about this important issue.
For more information call 503-227-0605.
—CP JH
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