11th Annual QFest St. Louis runs from April 4-8 at .ZACK

Tonight's the night to get your Q on! The 11th Annual QFest St. Louis, presented by Cinema St. Louis, runs April 4-8, 2018, at .ZACK Theatre.



The St. Louis-based LGBTQ film festival, QFest will present an eclectic slate of two dozen films (14 shorts, six narrative features, and four documentary features). The participating filmmakers represent a wide variety of voices in contemporary queer world cinema. The mission of the film festival is to use the art of contemporary gay cinema to spotlight the lives of LGBTQ people and to celebrate queer culture.



The fest is especially pleased to host the St. Louis premiere of “Snapshots,” which features Piper Laurie (“Carrie,” “Twin Peaks”) in its fine ensemble cast. Director Melanie Mayron (“thirtysomething,” “Jane the Virgin”) and writer/producer Jan Corran will attend. Two of the shorts directors, John Gross (“Bob”) and Josalynn Smith (“Enfin Seule”), are St. Louis natives, and both will attend. Maplewood-set “Becks,” the winner of the St. Louis International Film Festival’s 2017 New Filmmakers Forum Emerging Director Award, will open the festival on Wednesday, April 4. “Becks” was co-directed by St. Louis natives Elizabeth Rohrbaugh and Dan Powell.



Among the other QFest highlights are this year’s Q Classic, Hettie McDaniel’s coming-of-age love story “Beautiful Thing”; the music doc “Queercore: How to Punk a Revolution”; and Emmy-winning director Josh Howard’s “The Lavender Scare,” a documentary that chronicles the devastating effects of President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s decision to label homosexuals as “security risks” and to fire any government employee discovered to be gay or lesbian. Both shorts programs and “The Lavender Scare” are free and open to the public.



The 2018 QFest St. Louis begins on Wednesday, April 4, and runs through Sunday, April 8. Tickets go on sale March 1. Cost is $13 each or $10 for students and Cinema St. Louis members with valid and current IDs. All screenings will be held at .ZACK Theatre in Grand Center. The venue is located three blocks east of Grand Boulevard at 3224 Locust St., St. Louis, MO 63103. Advance tickets are available through MetroTix. Direct ticket links are available on the QFest website.



For the schedule of screenings and events, including trailers and full descriptions of the films, visit the festival website at www.cinemastlouis.org/qfest. The official QFest St. Louis page on Facebook is www.facebook.com/QFestSTL. Advance digital screeners of the features and some of the shorts are available for press review on request. Please inquire with QFest St. Louis artistic director Chris Clark.



QFest St. Louis, a presentation of Cinema St. Louis, is sponsored by Jeffrey T. Fort, AARP in St. Louis, Whitaker Foundation, Regional Arts Commission, Missouri Arts Council, Arts & Education Council, Dekkoo, Just John Nightclub, Show Me Bears, HiBearNation 24, Cheap TRX, Pauly Jail Building Co., Cindy Walker, Robert Pohrer, James Agnew, Pam Merritt, and Michael Reiser.