Full Festival Pass: $99 + fees
Single Film Tickets: $15 + fees
Also known as "The Gay Brothers," this short film showed two men dancing together.
Best Picture at the Academy Awards and also depicted one of the earliest onscreen same-sex kisses.
Alfred Hitchcock's "Rope" tells the story of two heavily coded gay men who murder one of their classmates for the sheer thrill of it.
The well-known drama includes clear, coded gay subtext between troublemaking teen protagonist Jim Stark (James Dean) and his new classmate, Plato (Sal Mineo who later came out)
Robert Aldrich's film about the breakdown of an aging lesbian TV actress included a lesbian sex scene that broke down a major taboo associated with the Code's erasure of gay characters on screen.
Director, John Waters, challenged the concept of camp by making deliberately filthy, transgressive films that let their queer, outcast characters gleefully behave badly.
William Friedkin's "Cruising" was reviled by many gay viewers, with one pamphlet saying that, in the film, "gay men are presented as one-dimensional sex-crazed lunatics."
Donna Deitch's "Desert Hearts" tracks the romance that develops between repressed English professor Vivian and free-spirited rancher's daughter Kay. It's regarded as the first mainstream lesbian film with a happy ending.
Jennie Livingston's acclaimed documentary chronicles New York City's Black and Latino Harlem drag ball scene of the late 1980s, bringing the vital subculture into the public eye in a major way.
Director Cheryl Dunye plays a Black lesbian filmmaker working on a project about "The Watermelon Woman," an obscure 1940s Black actress.
Hedwig Robinson, a gay East German rock singer develops a relationship with a younger man, Tommy, becoming his mentor and musical collaborator, only to have Tommy steal her music and become a rock star.
Ang Lee's film about the long-term secret romance between two cowboys (Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger) made history as one of the first big mainstream movies that centered on a gay love story. The film became a critical and box office success and won three Oscars, proving to Hollywood that LGBTQ+ stories had a place outside of strictly independent filmmaking.
Lesbian filmmaker Dee Rees arrived on the scene with her 2011 debut narrative feature film, "Pariah." The semi-autobiographical film centers on a Black Brooklyn lesbian's experiences with coming out and reckoning with her identity.
Moonlight tells the story of a young Black gay man named Chiron as he grows up and comes to terms with his identity. It made history as the first LGBTQ+ movie and the first movie with an all-Black cast to take home the top prize.
Director Wanuri Kahiu's "afro bubblegum" film "Rafiki," which tells a love story between two teenage girls, became the first Kenyan film to screen at the Cannes Film Festival.
The animated documentary "Flee" centers on a man identified as Amin Nawabi, a refugee from Afghanistan who left his country for a new life in Denmark, as he shares a painful hidden past ahead of marrying his soon-to-be husband.
In the early 1960s, Agnes Torres — a pseudonymized transgender woman — participated in sociologist Harold Garfinkel's gender health research at UCLA, making her the first subject of an in-depth discussion of transgender identity in sociology.
Novelist Sandra Voyter ends up on trial for the death of her son and her bisexuality is weaponized against her.
On a mission to bond in this new stage of life, Ferrell and Steele embark on a 17-day cross-country road trip from New York to LA.
Ryan White’s documentary follows a couple – Andrea Gibson and Megan Falley, who are both celebrated queer poets – as they come to terms with the fact that one of them is going to die of terminal cancer.
The Fairy Tales Queer Art & Film Festival returns for its 28th year.
🎬 Films from around the world
🎭 Live performances
🎧 DJs, drag, and nightlife
🖼️ Creative installations & community activations
📍 @contemporarycalgary
📅 May 13–17
Mark your calendars. You won’t want to miss this.
Full program drops soon. 🎬
#FairyTalesFilmFestival #FairyTales2026 #QueerFilm #QueerArt #YYCEvents #CalgaryArts
Five days. 42 films. 20 Countries. One unforgettable Festival.
The 28th Annual Fairy Tales Queer Art & Film Festival returns May 13–17 at @contemporarycalgary
Stay Tuned for more 👀
#FairyTales2026 #QueerFilm #CalgaryArts
✨ Get Your Tickets!
Join JUNO-nominated artists and award-winning writers on April 11, 2026, for a powerful celebration of National Poetry Month. And help fund queer and trans youth arts programming in Calgary! 🎤📖
📝 Roots to Sky: Writers Retreat | April 11 | 9:30 AM �🎟️ Free with registration – Limited spots available
🎶 Roots to Sky: Live Revue | April 11 | 7:00–9:00 PM �🎟️ $25 – Proceeds supporting queer and trans youth arts programming.
Roots to Sky features the epic talents of Mackenzie Bedford, Audrey Lane Cockett, Skylar Kay, Shone Thistle, Jason Valleau, Samantha Whelan Kotkas, Sheri-D Wilson, and John Wort-Hannam. ✨
Roots to Sky invites you into a day of writing and an immersive evening of language, rhythm, and shared wonder. 🌌
Come be part of something that resonates far beyond a single night. 💫
🔗 Ticket link in bio and available through Eventbrite.
#NationalPoetryMonth #YYCArts
CALLING ALL QUEER & ALLIED BABES
Volunteer with Fairy Tales Queer Art & Film Festival!
May 13-17, 2026
In person orientation the week before: Wednesday, May 6 at 6 PM for those who are able to attend.
We’re looking for kind, creative, reliable folks to help with:
✓ Load in, set up and tear down
✓ Front-of-house and ushers
✓ Box office and merch table
✓ Green Room hosts and admin support
There’s a variety of roles to suit your ability, personality and availability!
Perks? You bet. Free tickets per shift or a festival pass for full day volunteers, community joy, behind-the-scenes magic, and a volunteer fam you’ll never forget.
We’re also looking for volunteers for year round programming. So fill out the form linked in our bio (or found on our website below) and let us know how you’d like to get involved.
calgaryqueerartssociety.com queerfilmfest.ca
@queerartsyyc
Join the team making Queer art and community come to life!
🎬 SOMETHING NEW IS HAPPENING IN CALGARY 🎬
FAIRY TALES QUEER ART & FILM FESTIVAL PRESENTS FROM THE VAULT, a brand-new queer cinema series bringing hand-picked films straight to YOUR community. With generous support from Chinook Fund Lasting Legacy and Alberta 2SLGBTQIA+ Chamber of Commerce.
And we’re launching with a bang. 🌈
📽️ BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM
A love letter to women, soccer, friendship, and breaking the rules.
📍 Women’s Centre of Calgary
📅 Thursday, March 19 @ 5-7 PM
🎟️ FREE (limited to 65 seats)
💕 All genders welcome
What to expect:
✨ Curated queer cinema
✨ Real community connection
✨ Conversation that matters
✨ Good vibes only
This is the FIRST screening of a series we’re building together. Come be part of something.
REGISTER NOW → Link in bio to grab your spot!
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/from-the-vault-launch-screening-bend-it-like-beckham-tickets-1983998594203?aff=oddtdtcreator
Spots are limited. Don’t miss it.
Calgary Queer Arts Society
#FromTheVault #QueerCinema #Calgary #WomenInSports #CommunityFirst 2SLGBTQIA BendItLikeBeckham CalgaryEvents
🌈 LET’S GET CREATING! 🎨
Calgary Queer Arts Society is excited to launch a NEW Intergenerational Arts Club for 2SLGBTQIA+ community members of all ages — a space to meet people from different generations, explore creativity together, and build community through hands-on workshops.
What’s it all about?
✨ Meet new people
✨ Learn new creative skills
✨ Share ideas about the kind of arts programming you’d love to see
Good to know:
• Different art forms will be learned
• No experience necessary
• Participants receive an honorarium per session to help offset any barriers to participation
• April – September | 1–2 sessions per month | 2–3 hours each
• Held in various Calgary locations with light refreshments
• Accessibility supports available — transit assistance, sensory supports & ASL interpretation based on participant needs
• Light application + lottery selection to ensure a mix of ages and lived experience
🗓 Applications open until March 6
📬 All applicants will hear back by mid-March with next steps.
APPLY NOW — link in bio!
Special thanks to @calgaryartsdev. 💙
#YYCArts #2SLGBTQIA #Intergenerational #QueerCommunity
✨ STILL TIME TO SHINE ✨
Hey filmmakers! The clock is ticking but there’s still time to get your queer magic in front of our audience! 🎬💫
Fairy Tales Queer Art & Film Festival submissions are STILL OPEN until February 15, 2026; that’s your chance to be part of the 28th yeat of one of Canada’s most vibrant celebrations of 2SLGBTQIA+ cinema!
Why submit NOW?
💰 We pay screening fees to ALL selected films
🎨 Your work gets paired with expanded art programming
🏳️🌈 Join a 28-year legacy of queer storytelling
📍 Screen at one of Canada’s largest queer film festivals
What we want:
· Films with queer filmmakers, cast, or crew leading the way
· Shorts & features released in the last 2 years
· Work that hasn’t screened in Calgary yet (priority for shorts)
· Features NOT available online in Canada
· English subtitles/CC + content warnings required
Categories:
🇨🇦 Canadian Short
🇨🇦 Canadian Feature
🌍 International Short
🌍 International Feature
⏰ DEADLINE: February 15, 2026, at 11:59 PM MST
Don’t let your story sit on the shelf — this is your moment! Whether you’re a first-time filmmaker or a festival veteran, we want to see what you’ve created. Your perspective matters. Your art deserves an audience. And we’re ready to roll out the rainbow carpet for you. 🌈✨
Submit via FilmFreeway (link in bio) 👆
Your art. Your truth. Our stage. Let’s make 2026 unforgettable.
#FairyTalesFilmFestival #QueerFilm #2SLGBTQIA #FilmSubmissions #QueerArt YYCArts CanadianFilm QueerCinema FilmFreeway CallForSubmissions IndieFilm QueerStorytelling
Today, on World AIDS Day, we remember, honour and recommit.
This past year, our community lost the incomparable Joe Average — a visionary whose vibrant colours and bold compassion reshaped how the world sees HIV/AIDS, queerness, disability, joy, and survival.
Joe lived with HIV for nearly four decades, choosing to channel his diagnosis into a lifelong art practice that radiated life rather than fear. His work reminds us that resistance can be joyful, that tenderness is radical, and that communities affected by HIV and AIDS have always led with creativity, care, and courage.
As we mark World AIDS Day, we hold Joe’s legacy close:
A reminder that art can heal.
That visibility saves lives.
And that no one is ever disposable.
On this day and every day we recognize the leadership and love embedded in the work of @safelinkalberta and @thesharpfoundation. Everyone deserves care, housing, community and dignity. ❤️
Photo: Joe Average in his studio, 1996. ARLEN REDEKOP, THE PROVINCE
🏳️🌈 Calling Queer business owners — Make magic with us!
CQAS is taking 27 years of queer cinema out of the theatre and into everyday community spaces. We’re seeking Queer-owned businesses interested in hosting one free pop-up film screening + artist Q&A as part of our new series From the Vault.
No cost to you — just space and a commitment to safer-spaces.
Help us bring queer stories and community vibes into all four corners of the city.
Interested? Curious? Send us a message or email [email protected]
Special thanks to the Calgary Chinook Fund for making this series possible and to our community partner @ab2slgbtqi Chamber of Commerce!
In moments like these, we are reminded of the power of community, creativity, and the stories that refuse to be erased.
This week, the Alberta government invoked the notwithstanding clause to shield, harmful, anti-trans and non-binary policies from the constitutional scrutiny they would not withstand. This is cowardly, deliberate, and deeply harmful. It sanctions invasive interest in a child’s body, restricts access to life-saving healthcare, erect barriers in sport, and forces teachers into the impossible position of outing their students.
To take this action two days before Trans Day of Remembrance is not an accident. It is cruel, calculated, and meant to intimidate. Instead, what we witnessed at yesterday‘s Trans Day of Remembrance rally was the opposite: courage, solidarity, and a community refusing to be erased. We saw grief and rage, but we also saw creative power, Joy, joyful resistance, and a shared refusal to abandon one another.
Calgary Queer Arts Society, our art, our voices, and our imagination represent A freedom, the terrifies those who cling to fall wineries. They cannot legislate away our existence, our brilliance, or our future.
To our Trans and Non-Binary community members:
You live in the real world, one that is rich with color, creativity and diversity. They live in fear and imaginary constraints. We see you. We love you. You matter and you are more powerful than you know.
Take action today:
- Find your MLA at assembly.ab.ca
- Sign the petition at bit.ly/3XzG3TU
- Phone or write your MLA
public pressure works, and together we can turn the tide.
Whatever weight you are carrying, we hope it feels lighter in community.
Thank you for showing up, for making art, and for reminding us again and again that we are infinitely more powerful than those who seek to erase us.
In solidarity, and creativity, and in love.
mural credit - the incredible, local and creative power house, @kat_simmers. This 90 foot floral mural in the colours of the progress flag, including the Lone and playful be, stands as a beacon of hope and empowerment to all Calgary’s who refused to let hate and division to find this place we call home.
