Summary of organization/program
The Reelout Arts project organizes the annual Queer Film and Video Festival in Kingston, Ontario and runs a variety of school programs through it’s Reelout in Schools Project which focuses on diversity and gender diversity education.
Contact information
336A Barrie Street, Kingston, Ontario, K7K 3T1
(613) 549-REEL (7335)
Geographic region
- Provincial
Participants
- They accept film submissions from a number of different artists of all ages.
- The Reelout in Schools Project on the other hand, focuses on school-aged youth.
History/Background Information
The reelout queer film + video festival was originally established as a working group of the Kingston OPIRG in 1999.
Reelout’s founder, Marney McDiarmid, held test market screenings in the backroom of the city’s only gay bar, 477, to see if Kingston could sustain its own weekend-long queer film festival. As a result, McDiarmid rallied together both professionals in academia and enthusiastic film buffs and activists together to create what was known as the “reelout collective”. The group was formed around the consensus decision-making process ensuring that every member of the group had the opportunity to have a voice.
As time went by and Reelout went from a working group to a joint project of Kingston OPIRG, the organizers felt they were successfully on their way to bigger and better things which included incorporating as a non-profit organization called the Reelout Arts Project Inc. in 2004. This newly formed corporation could now lay the groundwork for future sustainability and growth by forming a board of directors and hiring paid employees to direct the administrative and artistic aspects of the festival.
In 2006, the festival was honoured with the Queen’s University Human Rights Initiative Award for their contribution to the community.
In 2007, the Reelout Arts Project Inc. became a registered charitable organization and a member of Volunteer Canada and in 2008 established the Reelout in Schools Project specializing in diversity and gender diversity education.
Dominant Media Forms
video production
multi media presentations
Objectives
- We strive to bring the best thought-provoking and pleasurable queer film and video to our audiences every year. (Objective of film festival)
Statement of Principles
not provided
Strategies
not provided
Samples of work
not provided
Funding Sources
Click here to access a complete list of supporters