Dear SIFF: Why Is The Party For Your GayLa At A Club That Turned Its Back On The Gay Community?

Gay-La Film and Party
Wednesday, June 4 | 7:00PM
Film venue: Egyptian Theatre
Party: Q Nightclub

$25 | $23 SIFF Member  Ticket includes admission to the film and after-party.
$12 | $10 SIFF Member
  Ticket includes screening only.

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Oh, how far we’ve come from the dark days of rampant homophobia. But teenager Lloyd Cooper (Jason Dolley) may think society—or at least his mother—has progressed a bit too far on this topic. Lloyd’s mom Maggie (a hilarious Nia Vardalos) says she would not only accept a gay son, she actively encourages it, as it would be “really cool” to have one. In fact, Maggie becomes so convinced that Lloyd himself is gay that she “outs” him to his entire high school. Like any good “helicopter mom,” who hovers over every aspect of her children’s lives, Maggie takes control of Lloyd’s social life, setting Lloyd up on dates with boys whom she has approved and filing for a gay student college scholarship. There’s just one wrench in her grand plans: Lloyd doesn’t even know whether he’s gay or not. Director Salomé Breziner, who added fresh touches and well-rounded characters to her previous coming-of-age comedy The Secret Life of Dorks (2013), breaks new ground in Helicopter Mom as well, depicting a mother who is willing to accept her son for who he is—or at least who she thinks he is. The film shows, in uproarious fashion, how an overabundance of understanding, however well-intentioned, can be almost as stifling as narrow-mindedness.

Director Biography

Belgian-born and Florida-raised writer/director Salomé Breziner caught the directing bug early, becoming a script supervisor on various projects while still a teenager. After directing a few shorts, her debut feature was Tollbooth (1994). Her other feature credits include the action dramas An Occasional Hell (1996), and Fast Sofa (2001), plus the teen comedy The Secret Life of Dorks (2013).

Sponsored by Three Dollar Bill Cinema, Greater Seattle Business Association, The Stranger, Poquitos, Q Nightclub