POLARI NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION

The Polari Organization (previously AGLIFF – Austin Gay and Lesbian International Film Festival) cultivates the Texas LGBTQI community by enlightening, educating, and entertaining our clients and patrons through programs that enrich the LGBTQI and ally communities while developing LGBTQI awareness. Polari Nonprofit Organization Programs include the Queer Youth Media Project, My Queer Movie, Filmmaker Assistance Program, Community Partnership Program and Polari Family Screening Program, all of which culminate in the annual Polari Film Festival Program.

Population Served

The constituency served by the Polari nonprofit organization is primarily the LGBTQIA communities of Central Texas as well as national and international LGBTQIA communities. Polari has about 6000 members and engages an outreach of over 10,000 people, approximately 70% of whom were LGBTQI-identified. As Polari has grown in scope and vision, the constituency has broadened and diversified. The organization has evolved from a program primarily based on entertainment and the experiences of American gay white men into an internationally-recognized community organization committed to reflecting and speaking to a broad range of issues across cultures, race, immigration status, class, gender identity and expression, age and region.

Film Festival Program

Polari Film Festival Program entertains our community through the exhibition and support of the best in recent LGBTQIA international, national, and regional films. The festival showcases features and shorts, in addition to mainstream, and avant-garde films. Festival events connect members of the community. Symposia and panels explore current political and social trends; and increasingly the festival serves as a venue for first-time filmmakers. Special shorts programs have focused on the issues faced by LGBTQI youth, immigration of LGBTQI people, gender identity and expression, adoption, marriage, military service, religion, racial identity, cultural issues, and hate crimes against LGBTQI-identified people.

Queer Youth Media Project

QYMP provides a platform for LGBTQIA youth to discover the art of filmmaking, build their LGBTQI youth community and address at-risk issues; discrimination and suicide. The QYMP offers leadership skills, encourages artistic expression, offers involvement in real world issues, facilitates relationships between youth and the community, develops community and civic skills, and engages youth from different cultures and backgrounds.

My Queer Movie Project

The My Queer Movie Competition provides a vehicle for young LGBTQI filmmakers to break into the industry and gain awareness for their projects. My Queer Movie Competition showcased thirteen selected short film projects from all over the nation to screen in front of the Polari Film Festival community.

Filmmaker Assistance Program

Polari devotes our resources to independent artists through the Filmmaker Assistance Program. This program assists LGBTQI filmmakers with building community partnerships, assisting with film agency exposure and providing filmmakers with personalized professional resources for their projects.

Family Screening Program

The Polari Family Screening Program focuses on providing film screenings and community building for LGBTQIA families. Polari is dedicated through this program to give families the opportunity to build LGBTQIA family awareness and support.