The 18th was D-day for us - our world premier. It started at 8:30 in the morning with an APTV interview with Mike Cidoni, coordinated by Fifteen Minutes (a media and public relations company) to promote LGBT directors and films at Sun/Slamdance. I was one of a long line of LGBT directors, cast members, and producers that spent about 10 minutes with Mike, pitching our film and answering a few quick questions. Immediately afterward, Anna, Princess Donna and myself were ushered downstairs for a quick video interview that’s posted on the GLAAD blog at:
http://glaadblog.org/2009/01/19/graphic-sexual-horror-at-queer-lounge/

Here's the video

From there we taxied to the Outfest Brunch, a huge gathering of LGBT filmmakers in town for Sun/Slamdance, with free food, drinks, and open bar. I learned from the bartender that they were mixing their drinks at the newly legalized 1.5 ounces of alcohol per mixed drink, rather than the prior 1.0 ounce legal maximum. They have special measure and pour containers for accuracy.

Park City frothed with tourists, film buffs, celebrity appearances on Main Street – a party atmosphere punctuated with prowling police in SUV’s and on foot. By 1 PM, my partner texted from the Salt Lake City airport. She was driving toward Park City. Also Toban, one of the ex-members of the Insex website with whom we’d been in contact, arrived in town to view the screening. As I texted back and forth while sitting in the back of a panel on digital marketing, the pace I’d been keeping up for the past weeks hit me and I could feel myself starting to crash. Princess Donna and Atom had barely slept the night before and we had a big night ahead. I picked up the car from our primo parking space, gathered Anna, Atom, and Donna, and we drove back to the hotel for hot tub and sleep.

By 5 PM we’d all showered, dressed, and primped. We ate an early dinner. Toban graciously offered to drive us into the boil of film activity called Park City. As our screening time neared, our World Premier sold out. Anna and I entered the screening room and worked with the projectionist to make a few small adjustments to the sound.

After that, it all happened quickly. The room filled. Some sat on the floor. Anna and I took seats along the back wall after our introduction. The room went black and there it was, Graphic Sexual Horror on a large screen. It went much better than I had guessed. We only had a net loss of about three or four people who left in the middle. But the attentive crowd sat and watched, obviously affected by our film, the result of more than two years of work. The questions during the Q & A were insightful. The people attending had obviously understood the larger questions we sought to address in our film.

We had to cut the Q & A short in order to clear the room for the next screening. And as we filed out, Jonathon Hickman of e-Insiders pulled Anna and I and Princess Donna aside for our third interview of the day. By that time, Anna had to take over. I felt I had started to babble. Afterward, we talked with interested people who still milled around in the Slamdance lobby. Anna left to watch Mum & Dad by Steven Sheil. The rest of us went for wine and pizza. I left with my partner for the night, and Atom pretended to be me and finagled the hotel staff to open the hot tub at 1 AM for Princess Donna and herself. A shower of stars filled the night sky of Utah.