Pride Films and Plays Announces Monthly PRIDE FILM FESTIVAL

Pride Films and Plays will curate and screen a monthly festival of LGBTQ independent films from around the world, PFP Executive Director David Zak announced today. The inaugural screening will be held Tuesday, October 10, the eve of National Coming Out Day on October 11, 2017. To celebrate that occasion, the PRIDE FILM FESTIVAL premiere will feature six films focused on the theme of coming out. Zak says, "Coming out is an experience shared by all out LGBT people - yet our experiences in that passage all have their uniquenesses. The films of the first PRIDE FILM FESTIVAL screening are each special in their own ways of capturing that moment when we open our hearts and share our identity with someone new."

The October 10 screening will be held in The Broadway, Pride Arts Center, 4139 N. Broadway, Chicago. The films to be screened are as follows:

ABOUT A FATHER - Directed by Roman Nemec, Czech Republic, 29:30 min.

Sixty-year old Jind?ich is waiting for a heart transplant. His wife, in an effort to protect him from a heart attack, has moved with him and their teenage daughter to their cottage in the countryside, so that he would have an absolutely peaceful life. But their son David comes for a holiday and he is not alone. He would like to discuss his life situation with his father but his mother intervenes as she is afraid that it would upset his father. Is, however, the worry about his health the real reason why she is making her children lie to their father?

MARIO, KIKE Y DAVID - Directed by Miguel Lafuente, Spain, 20 min.

Mario and Kike hook up on a dating app. What initially was never meant to be more than a sex date will turn into something else, in spite of their different ways of viewing their bisexuality and how they both cope with it in their respective social circles.

A MEAL WITH DAD - Directed by Brittany Alsot, USA, 15 min.

Haunted by a past that never was, Justine gets a lesson in cooking and family ties from an unexpected source. Based on the brain's ability to incorporate new information each time it calls up a memory, this film explores the healing possibilities --for an individual and a family--of revisiting and reinterpreting past experiences.

PENNY & DEE -Directed by Jamie Dack, USA, 5:38 min.

Penny never remarried after she divorced her ex-husband, Dee, who has transitioned gender. But the former couple did become best friends. They remain close figuratively and literally - they live in the same building and Penny actively supports Dee's blooming exploration into womanhood. Although it is clear the two women love and care for one another, their relationship comes with its own set of unique challenges.

SWIMMING POOL - Directed by Carlos Ruano, Spain, 10 min.

SANTI and JOTA are two guys living in the outskirts of Madrid. Like many others, they have decided not to study or work and they spend their precious time drinking beer cans in the park, going to sleazy clubs and talking about the hottest girls in the neighborhood. But Jota seems a little bit worried about something. Overwhelmed by the summer heat and confident about getting his friend to talk, SANTI will make an infallible plan to his pal.

WHAT ABOUT SHELLEY? - Directed by Kyle Reaume, Canada, 13 min.

Billy and Shelley are best friends, but their friendship is greatly tested when Shelley's boyfriend, Adam, secretly comes out to Billy - the only other gay man he knows. PRIDE FILM FESTIVAL November and December screenings will be November 14 and December 12, 2017.

Pride Films and Plays changes lives through the generation of diverse new work (or work that is new to Chicago) with LGBTQ+ characters or themes that is essential viewing for all audiences. We accomplish this mission through fully-staged productions, writing contests and staged readings, film screenings, and special events. We foster long term relationships with artists to create programming that is as diverse, unique, and complex as the community we represent. In 2015, Huffington Post called PFP "A powerful and empowering entity." The company acquired its two performance spaces at 4139 and 4147 N. Broadway in July 2016, renaming the spaces the Pride Arts Center.

Pride Films and Plays is supported by The MacArthur Fund for Arts & Culture at The Richard Driehaus Foundation, The Illinois Arts Council, City of Chicago's City Arts Fund, the Elliott Fredland Charitable Trust, Proud to Run, the AmazonSmile Foundation, Arts and Business Foundation, Tap Root Foundation and Alphawood Foundation.

PFP is a member of the Smart Growth Program of the Chicago Community Trust. Pride Films and Plays is a member of the LGBT Chamber of Commerce of Illinois and The League of Chicago Theatres.

For more information, visit www.pridefilmsandplays.com or call 1.800.737.0984.

Pride Arts Center (PAC), operated by Pride Films and Plays, opened in 2016 and consists of two performance spaces: The Buena at 4147 N. Broadway which has 50 seats and The Broadway at 4139 N. Broadway which has 85 seats. PAC has become an important part of the arts environment in the Buena Park neighborhood and beyond by hosting events including After Orlando, Bechdel Fest, SheFest and the 525,600 Minutes Cabaret. Additional tenants in 2017 include Walkabout Theater, New American Folk Theater, Cor Productions, Underscore Music Theater, 20% Productions, About Face Youth Theater, Another Door Productions, and of course Pride Films and Plays.

For more information about space at Pride Arts Center, visit www.prideartscenter.com, or www.pridefilmsandplays.com.

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