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Oska Bright adds LGBT+ strand for 2017 festival

Oska Bright Film Festival, the leading international festival of films made by or featuring people with a learning disability adds an LGBTQ+ strand to its programme for the 2017 festival.

The festival is looking for short and feature length films that tackle themes of identity, gender and sexuality. Films can be any genre, from music videos to digital art, animation to comedy.

Matthew Kennedy, a queer, femme, learning disabled filmmaker, said: “Being at Oska Bright has definitely given me some form of creative empowerment as a learning disabled filmmaker/artist, it is giving us a space as learning disabled filmmakers to carve out our own stories and narratives.”

Divas by Porky Thinks
Divas by Porky Thinks

The festival takes place every other year, with the next one taking place from November 15-17 at The Old Market in Brighton & Hove.

At the 2015 festival, 60 films were screened, from 11 different countries. Awards were presented by representatives from Warner Brothers, the BFI, Adult Swim and film director Andrea Arnold OBE. Nearly 3000 people came to the festival over three days.

If you want to be part of the world’s first and biggest celebration of learning disability film-making, submit your film by April 30, it’s easy and free to enter.

To submit your film, click here:

Or email: oskabright@carousel.org.uk

Latest TV launch new LGBT+ TV channel

Latest TV, the UK-based TV channel continue their equalities and diversity mission with the creation of the UK’s first ever LGBT+ TV terrestrial channel!

Broadcasting from February 2017, Latest LGBT+ TV will bring the best in LGBT+ news and entertainment to viewers’ TV screens on Freeview Channel 7 and Virgin Media 159 in the Greater Brighton area, as well as online globally.

Fronting the channel will be two well-known faces on the local LGBT scene.

Sophie Cook
Sophie Cook

Presenter and Head of Latest LGBT+ TV, Sophie Cook joined Latest TV in 2016 becoming the first ever transgender woman to front a news programme in Europe. The former RAF engineer, motorbike racer, newspaper editor and rock photographer, was also the first trans woman to work in the Premier League as club photographer for AFC Bournemouth.

Her news and chat show Beyond the Rainbow will become a weekly highlight of the LGBT+ schedule and in addition she will be creating new documentary programmes for the channel.

Sophie said: “I’m incredibly thrilled about the prospect of leading one of the most exciting developments in British television for decades.

“The world is changing, and not always for the better, throughout the world there is an increasing wave of bigotry and prejudice. This represents a very real possibility to combat that and change people’s lives. We’re aiming to entertain, educate and inspire our viewers.”

Andrew Kay
Andrew Kay

Andrew Kay, the presenter of Amazon Prime’s International Chef Exchange will bring his wit, charm and soufflé to the channel.  Andrew has worked in the creative world since graduating from Chelsea School of Art. For sixteen years he was an art director in the world of hard back books, designing innumerable book covers for some of the worlds best known and best-selling authors. After that he worked in theatre as a designer before joining Brighton’s magazine The Punter which went on to become The Latest Media group. Since the launch of Latest TV he has made several successful programmes and become a regular reporter on Latest TV News. On Latest LGBT+ Andrew will be presenting news, current affairs programmes and will also be fronting his own chat show AK Soufflè with guests from Brighton’s LGBT+ communities and beyond, with writers, musicians and people from the world of theatre talking about their lives and their careers.

Andrew said: “I see this as my chance to enjoy, in a public arena, being gay – but also in working towards a better and more equal world. Working with the Latest LGBT+ TV team is going to be exciting, challenging and fun and I hope that people –  whether they are LGBT+ or not – will join in.”

Bill Smith
Bill Smith

Bill Smith, Latest TV’s CEO and a nominee for the National Diversity Awards, said: “We’re delighted that our channel will be creating daily LGBT+ news programmes and entertainment shows, as well as screening the very best LGBT+ films from across the world. We’ll also provide a platform for LGBT+ filmmakers to share their work. With support from Coast to Capital, Latest TV has launched LGBT+ TV.  However we receive no ongoing public funding and so we’ve turned to crowdfunding to finance our service.”

Sophie Cook, added: “People power can change the world from the ground up and help to combat prejudice and injustice wherever it may appear. Together we can be the change that we want to see in the world, we’re giving people pride not prejudice.”

REVIEW: A LADD IN – The Alternative Panto

The Alternative Panto A LADD IN, returns for a second year to the comfortable surroundings of the Sallis Benney Theatre with a production perfectly judged for an adult audience and something you can take your favourite granny to.

Current and relevant with loads of brilliant gags, Andrew Stark’s script never takes the route of being gratuitous or offensive, rather it brilliantly highlights the panto’s much-loved characters and allows them room to develop during the show.

Set in Brighton and the Isle of Wight, rather than China, the storyline of A LADD IN is well rehearsed and does not need explaining here. However, this production is first and foremost a great ensemble piece with some inspired casting.

Jason Lee as the rapping Willy Wankey is on the money all night. Jason sings and acts really well, has great comic timing and creates a really loveable character with some memorable lines.

His mother Widow Wankey played by Jason Sutton (Miss Jason) has all the qualities of a fine traditional Panto Dame. Every time Jason arrives on stage he creates a little happiness and reminds me of so many famous panto dames I saw in my youth, including the great Dockyard Doris.

The show’s romantic interest is provided by Allan Jay playing Aladdin and Dave Lynn cast as the beautiful and ‘young’ Princess Dazz Lynn. Allan looks great, sings great and cuts, with finesse a traditional romantic lead. Dave Lynn’s performance is disciplined, very funny, at times self-deprecating and despite the obvious gap in ages of the performers, the pair are able to suspend our belief and make for a really convincing pair of lovers. Their flying carpet sequence makes for pure panto magic, giving both performers the opportunity to reveal their comedy credentials.

Stephen Richards (Lola Lasagne) glorious as Ivana Tramp, struts the stage like a lioness waiting to pounce on an unsuspecting victim, barely pausing to take the next breath during his word-perfect delivery. The comic timing in his two handers with both Dave Lynn and Miss Jason highlighting just how accomplished all these performers really are.

A convincing villain is essential to all good pantos. Ava’A’Varda is played to perfection by Christopher Howard. His sweeping, Shakespearian gestures gets the audience on board from his first entrance and they continued to hiss and boo to the bitter end. An accomplished actor and singer his is the perfect foil to all the other camp performances.

Jon Hughes (Sally Vate) cuts a convincing and loveable Jean, (Genie of the Lamp) in his first appearance in the alternative panto while David Pollikett (Davina Sparkle), playing Pam (Slave of the Ring) provides some lovely Les Dawson ‘glum’ moments with his facial expressions.

No panto is complete without the boy dancers and Steven Banks, Chris Hibbert, Bradley Rose and Luke William provided lovely eye candy.

Opening nights of new shows can be fraught with technical problems. Few here to mention and once the performers are over their first night nerves, I have no doubt this show will prove to be one of the better alternative panto productions of recent years.

A LADD IN is staged and directed by Quintin Young who played Buttons in Cinderella opposite David Raven in the first alternative panto at the Pavilion Theatre in 1989. He keeps the production moving along at a breathtaking rate and coaxes some fine and surprising performances out of his artists. His staging of the finale of act one brings much higher production values to the show as does the finale, complete with glamorous costumes.

Highly recommended for a good gay night out.

All bucket collections at the end of each performance and proceeds from the sale of the programs go to the LGBT Community Safety Forum, an established independent LGBT forum of eight elected, unpaid volunteers working with the LGBT Community to address and improve safety and access issues throughout Brighton & Hove.

A LADD IN runs until February 2.

To book tickets online, click here:

BOOK REVIEW: Mentaiko Itto Poster Book:

Mentaiko Itto Poster Book 1

Mentaiko Itto

You can’t imagine Japan’s manga scene without Mentaiko Itto’s strange but funny gay mangas. Bruno Gmünder publishes his works for the first time in English, introducing him to a broader audience. With two manga volumes already released: Priapus and The Boy Who Cried Wolf.  Now this Gay Manga darling has this cool poster book in a large-scale format. The posters are an ideal gift item, ready for framing. Mentaiko fans get ready…!

Mentaiko Itto is Japan’s Gay Manga darling. His drawings are hilariously funny, sexy, and cute they also explore the weird and wonderful world of Japanese gay manga in a colorful and engaging way.

Out Now

For more info or to buy the book see the publishers website here: 

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