By John Corrado

The 35th edition of the Inside Out Toronto 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival launches today, with both in-person screenings at TIFF Lightbox in Toronto, and Ontario-wide virtual screenings as well.

Tonight’s Opening Night Gala is the Canadian premiere of writer-director Elena Oxman’s drama Outerlands (May 23rd, 7:00pm), starring Asia Kate Dillon. The festival’s Closing Night Gala will be Brazilian director Allan Deberton’s The Best Friend / O Melhor Amigo (May 31st, 7:30pm). The festival’s RE:Focus Gala will be director Zackary Drucker’s documentary Enigma (May 24th, 6:45pm), and the Centrepiece Gala will be the Indian drama Cactus Pears / Sabar Bonda (May 27th, 9:15pm).

The festival will also be screening a few titles that I reviewed at other festivals, including Parade: Queer Acts of Love & Resistance (May 31st, 11:45am), which recently opened the Hot Docs Film Festival, and the Newfoundland drama Sweet Angel Baby (May 31st, 4:30pm/Virtual), which is screening again in the city after premiering at TIFF last year.

A few other notable Canadian titles include director Chloé Robichaud’s raunchy, female-centric Quebec comedy Two Women (May 25th, 6:45pm) which will be screening at the fest before opening at Lightbox next week. It’s a lot of fun. There’s also Lakeview (May 25th, 4:00pm), the sophomore feature from Halifax writer-director Tara Thorne, which functions as a pretty enjoyable hangout movie focused on a group of queer woman spending the weekend together.

The festival is notable for its number of shorts programs and industry events happening throughout the week as well. The full lineup, including all tickets and showtimes, can be found right here.