QFest showcases films such as the gripping Why Can't I Be Me?
Photo courtesy of QFest
For 23 years, Houston’s popular QFest has showcased iconic, trailblazing LGBTQ films and even peculiar, tawdry cult classics. But for its 24th year, like so many other in-person events, the festival is moving to screens for a virtual experience.
QFest 2020 announced on August 19 that it will run virtually Thursday, September 10 through Monday September 14. The event will be hosted by Cinenso and be available to online pass holders in Houston and across North America, EU countries, and Australia.
“In this time of COVID and with political and economic uncertainty, we’re excited to partner with Cinenso to give us a rare opportunity to showcase QFest and Houston to an international audience,” said Kristian Salinas, executive and artistic director, in a statement.
Not surprisingly, the festival lineup has yet to be announced. Organizers note that the complete lineup, as well as QFest Festival Pass information, will be available online on September 1.
The annual festival presents programs by, about, and of interest to the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer community. QFest is a sponsored project of Aurora Picture Show, a 501c3 presenting artist-made, non-commercial film and video, and dedicated to expanding the cinematic experience and promoting the understanding and appreciation of the moving image.
Houston Arts Alliance and City of Houston partially fund the event, along with assistance by The John Steven Kellett Foundation.
Billie Eilish in Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft - The Tour Live in 3D.
In 2021, at the tender age of 19, singer Billie Eilish was already the subject of a documentary, The World’s a Little Blurry. At that point, she had only released one album, so the film threatened to feel too early for such treatment. The ensuing five years have only made her a bigger star, though, so in many ways that movie now feels prescient for the person on display in the new concert documentary with the unwieldy title of Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft - The Tour Live in 3D.
Directed by Eilish and blockbuster filmmaker James Cameron, the film takes viewers inside Eilish’s 2024-2025 tour in support of her latest album, 2023’s Hit Me Hard and Soft. Filmed mostly at her series of shows in Manchester, England, the movie is a showcase for Eilish’s music, but it also serves as a smaller exploration of the type of person she is, as well as the impact she has had on her legion of fans.
The draw of the film is the use of Cameron’s beloved 3D technology, which he has employed in each of the three Avatarfilms. Unlike in those films, where the 3D has the odd effect of making the visuals too realistic for their own good, the technique brings an intimacy to the large-scale show that underscores the unique bond the singer has with her supporters.
Eilish and Cameron go back and forth between performances at the concert to behind-the-scenes sequences, detailing the enormous effort it takes to put on a show like that and how Eilish spends her time getting ready for it. As in The World’s a Little Blurry, this film continues to portray the singer as down-to-Earth, someone who yearns to maintain the connection to her fans that she’s had since she released her first single, “Ocean Eyes,” 10 years ago.
And as the many emotional songs in Eilish’s concert playlist prove, the feeling from the crowd is mutual. While Eilish has multiple bangers like “Bad Guy,” “Therefore I Am,” and the Charli XCX collaboration “Guess,” it’s the sad songs like “Everything I Wanted,” “Happier Than Ever,” and the Oscar-winning Barbieanthem, “What Was I Made For?” that hit the hardest. The depth of feeling emanating from her many sobbing fans singing along to crushing songs cannot be understated.
For audiences of the film, though, it’s the breadth of camera angles and shot choices that make it truly dynamic. There are cameras everywhere, including in the crowd, inside a cube at the center of the stage that rises and descends, following Eilish as she traipses every inch of the long, rectangular stage, and even a small one Eilish uses to bring an extra personal touch to the in-arena screen. Combined, they capture the complete energy of the concert, something that is not always the case in a film of this type.
Eilish has almost as many movies — two — as she does albums — three — which borders on overkill for a singer of her age. But both her music and the movies show her to be a person who knows the responsibility of being a celebrity, someone who understands that her fans are the reason she’s famous at all. Her career may go up or down from here, but it’s clear she’s already made a huge impact on those who love her most.
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Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft - The Tour Live in 3D opens in theaters on May 8.
