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Real to Reel
QDoc projects the queer experience for a fifth year
“History’s not made by great men,” the
punk group Gang of Four famously sang in
the 1980s, and the line is just as true today as
it was then. The queer community, quite ac
customed to not relying on “great men” to ad
dress homophobia, racism and other social ills,
has shown particular skill at changing history
for the better. Most encouraging in this pro
cess has been the fact that so many of our he
roes have been self-created, rising not through
status or position or wealth but through sheer
force of will or personality to present alterna
tives to the tired status quo. From drag queen
performance artists to globally minded politi
cal activists, LGBT folk have contributed to
bettering society in all kinds rtf ways far out of
proportion to our numbers.
QDoc, Portland’s groundbreaking queer-
themed documentary festival, highlights some
of these pioneers, and the mosaic portrait of a
vibrant, ever-evolving community is an excit
ing one. The fest, which takes place at the
Clinton Street Theater from Thursday to Sun
day night, June 2-5, is as much a community
event as it is a cinematic showcase, with many
groups from queer youth to seasoned seniors
represented both onscreen and in the audience
thanks to the organizers’ outreach. Many of
the filmmakers and featured subjects will also
be in attendance.
Social change is the goal, but every revolu
tion needs its artistic diversions. Opening
night film Arias with a Twist: The Docufanta-
sy, directed by Bobby Sheehan (7 p.m.Thurs.,
June 2, USA, 88 min.), is a double valentine to
two major queer talents in collaboration. Drag
performance artist Joey Arias and master pup
peteer Basil Twist (whose brilliant creations
helped make The Ad da ms Family a Broadway
hit) worked together on the show that gives
JBMlTTED PHOTO
BY GARY MORRIS
Above: Director Bruce LaBruce on the set
of The Advocate for Fagdom
Right: Archival footage from On These
Shoulders We Stand
Using archival footage and
photographs and interviews with
survivors, [On These Shoulders
We Stand] shows exactly what life
the movie its title, a dazzling romp through
the Arias persona that includes such images as
Arias, dressed in dominatrix drag, whirling on
a neon gyroscope while serenading the audi
ence and being attended by ghostly Roswell
aliens courtesy of Twist’s visual legerdemain.
Arias is an irresistible personality, living his
art daily while remaining sweet and rather
humble. Twist, too, blends arresting art with
humility. A generous selection from the show
and interviews with friends and associates of
fer a multifaceted picture of two artists whose
work reminds us of the kinds of transporting
pleasures worth fighting for. (Arias will be in
attendance; see interview on p. 21.)
was like for pre- (and slightly post-)
Stonewall gays in Los Angeles.
Friday evening, June 3, opens with a gritty
doc on another kind of pioneer, David P.
Ebersole’s Hit So Hard: The Life and Near
Death Story of Patty Scheme/ (7 p.m., USA,
101 min.). Schemel gained fame as the drum
mer for Courtney Love’s group Hole at a time
when female drummers were scarce enough to
be on the endangered species list. Schemel
began drinking at age 12 and eventually be
came a major druggie, which went along with
the raging rocker lifestyle. The toll it took was
considerable, and the doc is unsparing in de
lineating the breakdowns, suicides and revolv
ing-door rehabs. Many of her associates,
friends and family are interviewed, including
Love who, as in the group, threatens to over
shadow the subject. But Schemel ultimately
dominates her own story as a beautiful, char
ismatic, near-tragic, ultimately triumphant
woman who survives homelessness, heroin ad
diction and street prostitution. (Ebersole and
producer Todd Hughes will be in
attendance.)
Next up is Marie Losier’s The Ballad of
Genesis and Lady Jaye (9:30 p.m., USA, 72
min.). Genesis is Genesis P-Orridge, the
highly influential inventor of industrial music,
founder of Psychic TV and Throbbing Gristle,
t
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