Join GFT and Exhale.group for this LGBT+ History Month screening of the acclaimed 1990s comedy drama The Watermelon Woman. Set in Philadelphia, young Black lesbian Cheryl works in a video store with her friend Tamara but is determined to make a documentary about the forgotten and uncredited Black actress from the 1930s known only as ‘The Watermelon Woman’. She encounters a range of people including her own mother as well as activist Camille Paglia, who help uncover the mystery — The Watermelon Woman's story proves to have surprising resonances with Cheryl’s own life as she navigates a new relationship with a white girlfriend (Guinevere Turner) — and in the process, she uncovers the hidden side to lesbian relationships.

A landmark of LGBT cinema as well as Black filmmaking, The Watermelon Woman won both the Teddy Award at Berlin International Festival and Audience Award for Outstanding Feature at Outfest in 1996. Directed by Cheryl Dunye, she also takes the lead role alongside Guinevere Turner (American Psycho, Who’s Afraid of Vagina Wolf?), Lisa Marie Bronson, activist poet Cheryl Clarke, artist Zoe Leonard and academic Camille Paglia.

Event host and Exhale.group founder Mahasin will be leading a discussion about the film with a panel of Exhale group members. Mahasin is a Glasgow-based QTIPOC+ community organiser and DJ, and the founder of Exhale.group. Exhale.group is a grassroots non-profit organisation creating safe spaces for QTIPOC+ (Queer/Trans/Intersex People of Colour)+ to dream, explore and connect. This is a captioned screening and the post-film discussion will have live captions.

https://www.glasgowfilm.org/movie/the-watermelon-woman-lgbt-history-month-discussion/