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OREGON'S LGBTO NEWSMAGAZINE
NOVEMBER It. 2011
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JAL P O W E R P P O O Ï
“TV has become more raw now that
A D el-uge of
Donovan
anyone with a camera can post crazy
things online, and TV has to compete
New pilot puts “post-camp” spin on
family sitcom
W hen Sissyboy founder M ark “Zebra”
Thomas teamed up with co-writer John C a
macho and director Devan M cG rath for a TV
sitcom pilot, all three knew it was going to be
something altogether different. Their creation,
Delusional Donovan, will screen at Mississippi
Studios Saturday, November 12.
Delusional Donovan follows the daily life of
8-year-old Donovan Summers (Dylan Hill),
witness to a traumatic event that has left his re
ality a swirl of colorful visions. Starring Lee Kyle
as Donovans drag queen mom, Splendora, and
former Portland resident-turned-Mattachine
matriarch Amber Martin as her partner, the
show challenges conventional, family-oriented
sitcoms.
Thomas hopes to sell the project to a con-
tent-hungry network, and says he feels net
work T V is ready to take on the more adven
turous programming of the Internet.
“T V has become more raw now that anyone
with a camera can post crazy things online,
and T V has to compete with that,” explained
Thomas.
Thomas and Camacho prefer to dub the
project “post-cam p”— a concept they mulled
over during the show’s development.
with that.”
—MARK “ZEBRA” THOMAS,
CO-CREATOR, DELUSIONAL DONOVAN
“We’re still working with those classic camp
ideas such as drag queens as mothers, or lesbians
with mullets, but we are adding another layer to
these often two-dimensional and offensive char
acters,” said Thomas. “Delusional Donovan gives
heart and complex emotions to characters that
in the past mostly made potty jokes.”
For more information, search “Delusional Dono
van” on Facebook. rIhe pilot screening takes place
Sat., Nov. 12 at Mississippi Studios (3939 N.
Mississippi Ave.). A red carpet reception begins
at 6 p.m., with screenings at 7 and 9p. m. Admis
sion is on a S5-Í10 sliding scale.
Southern Exposure
Heart Breaks Open hits
Stumptown as part of Northwest
Filmmakers’ Fest
In the Billie Rain-directed, Basil Shadid-
produced indie flick Heart Breaks Open, Jesus
(Maximillian Davis) is a suicide counselor and
queer activist who learns he’s contracted HIV
‘r.
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s+T+S'
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Sister Alysa Trailer (Brian Peters)
in Heart Breaks Open
following an infidelity.Tortured by the prospect
o f coming clean to his longtime partner Johnny
(Samonte Cruz), Jesus hits the bottle and the
pills until his self-destruction is curbed by Sis
ter Alysa Trailer (Brian Peters), a member of
Seattle’s Sisters o f Perpetual Indulgence.
Heart Breaks Open, filmed on location in the
Emerald City, uses improvisation and non
actors to create a documentary-like feel. But
whereas some features dealing with H IV
positive characters focus on the frequent mes
sage o f prevention, Heart looks at a more
unique struggle.
“We wanted to explore the complex reali
ties around an individual who tests positive
through decisions that don’t align with their
own values,” explained Shadid. “This is just
one story o f one person who contracts HIV.
W h at’s universal about the film, however, is
the story o f someone who wrestles with their
own shadow side.” JUS
Heart Breaks Open screens with Austin U n
bound at 8:45 p.m. Tues., Nov. 15 at the Port
land A rt Museum (1219 SWPark), as part o f the
38th Annual Northwest Filmmakers' Festival.
Tickets are $9, $8 fo r students/seniors/museum
members. Visit festivals.nwfilm.org/nwfest38,
and fo r more information on H eart Breaks
Open, visit heartbreaksopen.com.
YEARS
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