T IS FOR TEACHER
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Mimi Stern Wolfe has lived in the same apartment in New York's East Village for nearly thirty years. In that time she's presented concerts, both as pianist and producer, always themed by important social issues - war and peace, welfare, civil rights,the Holocaust. When the HIV/AIDS epidemic swept through Manhattan, and indeed the world, during the 1980s and 90s, many of her friends and collaborators were lost to the disease. Since that time, she has devoted herself to learning and annually presenting the works of local composers who were lost to the disease in concert on World AIDS Day. ALL THE WAY THROUGH EVENING follows Mimi as she prepares for her 20th such concert, a small but gallant figure against the bustling Manhattan metropolis. Along the way, we meet her collaborators, the friends and family of the composers themselves, and hear the beautiful and tragic music painstakingly recreated by Mimi and her ensemble.
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This critically acclaimed work screened at many international film festivals in 2009-10. It was named by two Australian reviewers as amongst the best films of 2009. |
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This short documentary examines the work of the Center for Gender Based Biology, a reasearch arm of UCLA, California. Director Rohan Spong was given limited access to the controversial working methodology and findings of scientists currently undertaking studies into the biological basis for homosexuality and transgenderism. Dr. Eric Vilain administers a structural analysis of the transgender brain, using MRI scans of transgender subjects. Dr Sven Bocklandt is involved in the famed search for the 'gay gene', using DNA from gay and straight identical twin pairs. The resulting film incorporates interviews with the scientists themselves, research subjects and outside commentators, about the potential positive or negative outcomes arising from the publication of research findings. This work raises critical questions about the premises behind scientific study of GLBTI identities. |
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"I always thought that putting on a concert was like climbing a hill, a mountain, if you will." 
"I was nervous because they were going to meet me for the first time and I would never have to lie to anyone ever again." 
"Maybe it's just not such a good idea." 