Inside Out 2011 Preview

Tonight marks the opening of the 21st Inside Out Toronto LGBT Film and Video Festival with the Opening Gala screening of the Italian film Loose Cannons / Mine Vaganti from directed Ferzan Ozpetek at TIFF Lightbox, which seems to be one of the new homes of several of the festivals in the city! As always the festival boasts 11 days of festival goodness shimmied around the Victoria Day weekend and has a total of three Galas: tonight's Opening Night Gala of Loose Cannons / Mine Vaganti, Centrepiece Gala of Weekend (Tuesday May 24, 2011) and Closing Gala of The Night Watch (Sunday May 29, 2011). Galalicious goodness!

There are lost of films at this years festival I have my eye on including Christopher & His Kind (starring Matt Smith aka the current Doctor of "Doctor Who"), the Greek film The Guide / o xenagos where in a bit of a flip around the guide learns from sightseers, and Leading Ladies centered on a ballroom dancing-but-crazy family. I'm also always drawn to the Icon Documentary Series program and this year has another stellar line up including the French doc L'Amour Fou centred on on fashion designer Yves Saint-Laurent and his ex-lover Pierre Berge, directed by Pierre Thoretton (which opens theatrically in Toronto on May 27, 2011), I'm also looking forward to Making the Boys as docs on the performing arts are always a big draw. We also have The Real Anne Lister, a nice follow up to last year's The Secret Diaries of Miss Anne Lister which re-plays at this years fest.

Coming of Age & hot teachers feel like a mini theme for the ladies this year in both Bloomington and The Evening Dress / La Robe du soir. If music is your thing there is lots to choose from including Sleeping Beauty of East Finchley described as an all dyke version of Glee, we also have OFF BEAT from Switzerland and following rapper played by actual rapper Hans-Jacob Mühlethaler. One of my favourite titles of this years festival is Who Took the Bomp? Le Tigre on Tour. I just want to keep saying Who Took the Bomp? because it sounds so fun. And the film follows the Le Tigre and who doesn't a band that can be describe as not only badass, but also sexpots and political. Sounds awesome to me!

The festival also offers an amazing array of shorts programs to enjoy, I'm particularly fond of Hogtown Homos featuring homegrown Toronto Talent (Wednesday May 25, 2011) and the Queer Video Mentorship Project (Saturday May 28, 2011). They also have Transplanetarium, Animate This!, World's Best Docs, Working Stiffs, Sexy Boys, Naughty Girls (Need Love Too) and Straight, Not Narrow to name a few more of the exciting shorts programs if you prefer you films in quick, bites sized pieces.

It's always exciting time when Inside Out is around town, and it's easily one of the busiest festival in the city. I highly recommended checking Ticket Availability and to be safer than sorry get tickets in advance (check out the Online Box Office and Box Office Information) to enjoy all the goodness the festival has to offer.

For more information, check out the Inside Out Website, Film Schedule, Festival Planner, Online Box Office, Ticket Availability, Box Office Information, Venue Information and Party Information.

The Inside Out Toronto LGBT Film and Video Festival 2011 runs from May 19-29, 2011 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.