OUTwatch, the wine country film festival dedicated to cinema that shows the fabulous, rich diversity of the LGBTQI experience, opens this Friday, October 12. Now in its sixth year, the Festival will be presenting seven films over three days at the Rialto Cinemas in Sebastopol.

This year, in addition to their slate of films, they’ve added two special programs. The Sunday Cinematic Salon will include a discussion of queer film, and the LGBTQI Classic Film Revival will be a  presentation of a groundbreaking film that changed the landscape of cinema.

Here’s the schedule of films running Friday through Sunday:

Friday, October 12 @7:30 p.m.

Mapplethorpe  – an unflinching look at the life of acclaimed photographer Robert Mapplethorpe from his rise to fame along with best friend rocker Patti Smith in the 1970s to his untimely death from AIDS in the 1990s.

 

 

 

Saturday, October 13 @ Noon

Man Made  – follows four men, their partners and families through the challenges and joys of transitioning as they prepare for Trans FitCon, the world’s only transgender bodybuilding competition.

 

 

 

Saturday, October 13 @ 2:30 p.m.

Ideal Home  – a  glamorous foodie couple’s (Steve Coogan, Paul Rudd) lives are turned upside-down when a 10-year-old grandson shows up and threatens to change their lifestyle forever in this hilarious and endearing comedy.

 

 

 

Saturday, October 13 @ 5 p.m.

The Rest I Make Up –  María Irene Fornés, was a lover of Susan Sontag and an integral member of New York’s experimental theater scene. Grappling with memory loss, she still radiates inquisitive curiosity and unquenchable creativity in this emotional documentary.

 

 

 

Sunday, October 14 @ 1 p.m.

Dykes, Camera, Action!  – documentary that explores what happened when lesbians picked up cameras and changed how queer women are seen in film. Includes insightful interviews with pioneering filmmakers like Su Friedrich, Cheryl Dunye, Yoruba Richen, Rose Troche, and Barbara Hammer. This Sunday Cinematic Salon will include a post-screening discussion about the topics and issues raised in the film lead by film scholar Jane Winslow.

 

 

Sunday, October 14 @ 3 p.m.

The Watermelon Woman  – a newly restored edition of the 1996 lesbian classic. Cheryl and Tamara are making a video about their search for the mysterious film actress from the 1930s known only as the ‘Watermelon Woman.’

 

 

 

For more information and ticketing, go to outwatchfilmfest.org