QFest came out waaaay before Anderson Cooper

Sorry AC, but Philly’s been there and done that. Now in its nineteenth year, QFest has evolved into one of the nation’s leading LGBT cinema festivals. This year 55 features from 26 different countries will be screened, marking the event’s biggest year ever. Screenings, parties, receptions, Q&A sitdowns, foam parties (maybe?), disco balls, sedate discussions about growing crossover of LGBT stories into the mainstream media, and probably a whole lot more.

Just to give you a little taste of the talent on hand, here’s a teaser for the festival:

Check the festival schedule and you can watch trailers for most of the films. My favorite after watching, like, seven trailers? BearCity 2: The Proposal. I missed the first BearCity and now I feel like I have to watch it in order to fully enjoy BC2:TP, but here’s the trailer:

Seriously, the enthusiasm in that is contagious, and Kevin Smith also makes a cameo! This film is the closing screening on July 22. Other films at the top of the class are fest opener Elliot Loves by tyro writer/director Terracino, Beauty from South Africa’s Oliver Hermanus, Thom Fitzgerald’s Cloudburst which stars Olympia Dukakis, I Do from David W. Ross, and North Sea Texas by Bavo Defurne. These ones get two snaps, a twist, and a kiss!

Additionally, the festival features six separate short film programs, several awards events, the fabulous “Way Gay Sing-a-Long,” special party/dinner/drinks events for several of the screenings, and festival shindigs at Table31 and Sugar House. The schedule is packed for almost two full weeks.

Visit the event website for complete details, including film schedule, ticketing, list of host hotels, and much more. Some screenings are already sold out, so get busy if you want in on the fun.

Philadelphia QFest

July 12-23