Fairy Tales film festival returns to Calgary with global queer stories, community conversations

The 28th annual Fairy Tales Queer Art and Film Festival is sparking conversations about identity, resilience and what representation really means.

The 28th annual Fairy Tales Queer Art and Film Festival is returning to Calgary this week, bringing together filmmakers, artists and audiences from around the world for five days of queer storytelling, live performances and community conversations.

Running May 13 to 17 at Contemporary Calgary, the festival features 42 films from 20 countries, including documentaries, feature films and short films exploring themes of identity, migration, resilience and belonging.

Organizers say the festival has evolved significantly since it first began nearly three decades ago.

“Fairy Tales began 28 years ago when a group of community members saw an opportunity to share stories from the two LGBTQIA-plus community on stage and screen in ways that we weren’t seeing in popular media,” said Shone Thistle, executive director of the Calgary Queer Arts Society.

“I think one of the things that we hear from community, especially from older folks who are just coming out or experiencing who they are in their full spectrum of being is that they never thought that they would see themselves on screen in a way that was celebrated.

“You can’t put a price tag on that.”

Opening Night

The festival, one of Canada’s longest-running queer film festivals, opened Wednesday with Starwalker, a Canadian musical written and directed by Oji-Cree artist Corey Payette.

The film follows a Two-Spirit performer navigating identity and chosen family in Vancouver’s drag scene.

Blending powerful music with Indigenous storytelling traditions, Starwalker celebrates cultural reconnection, resilience, and queer joy.

Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas attended Wednesday’s opening ceremony, telling Calgarians how proud he was to celebrate influential queer stories on the silver screen.

“This is the longest running film festival in our city and congratulations on 28 years of courage, 28 years of creativity, 28 years of telling stories that matter and that now, more than ever deserves recognition.”

Films from around the world

This year’s programming spans six continents and includes stories from Canada, Iran, Japan, Ghana, Brazil, Palestine, Mexico and the Philippines.

Kyle Marshall, one of the festival’s programming co-chairs, said organizers intentionally sought a broad range of voices and perspectives

“We had hundreds of short films, dozens of feature-length films submitted to us from all over the world,” Marshall said.

“We wanted to make sure that each of the acronyms in 2SLGBTQIA-plus were represented, and we were able to hit that goal as well, which is very exciting,” he said.

The festival includes feature films such as Sally!, a documentary about lesbian feminist activist Sally Gearhart, and Warla, a Filipino film centred on a group of transgender women funding gender-affirming surgeries through criminal activity.

Festival events also include drag performances, panel discussions, live music, DJ sets and collaborative art installations.

On Friday, organizers are also partnering with the Mexican Consulate to transform the atrium at Contemporary Calgary into a festival-style celebration tied to screenings of NIÑXS.

Marshall said queer cinema also helps audiences understand experiences beyond their own.

“When people hear the term queer film festival, oftentimes some people have a very specific idea of what that actually means,” he said.

“We really take a look at what does it mean to be queer, what does it mean to be a specific type of queer in all these different cultures, all these different places around the world.”

Marshall also pointed to the power of film to foster empathy.

“Films are empathy machines,” he said.

“When you get to see and experience a story that is very near and dear to somebody’s heart from a different location that maybe you’ve never even been to, I think it opens it up and lets you feel for them and with them.”

‘People will absolutely show up for you’

Among the films featured this year is Snakeskin, a short film starring Verónica García.

The film follows a young trans woman confronting the emotional fallout of being outed against her will.

“It’s kind of a reverse coming-out story,” García said.

“Instead of it being this big triumphant thing, it’s more of a coming to terms that she was outed against her will.”

García said the experience portrayed in the film reflects conversations happening throughout queer and trans communities.

“It’s removing their agency in a way,” she said.

“It should be up to the person who it is to come forward and be like, ‘Yeah, this is me.’”

She also spoke about the importance of queer representation and community support.

“I love my community very much,” García said. “We’ve come a long way and we have a long way to go at the same time.”

For those still exploring their identities or attending the festival for the first time, García also noted that community spaces can offer support and connection.

“If you actually go touch grass and talk to people and show up in community in your city, wherever that may be, people are amazing and will absolutely show up for you and welcome you with open arms,” she said.

“Ultimately, we’ve all got each other.”

Conversations amid a changing political climate

This year’s festival also arrives amid ongoing debates around gender identity, queer representation and access to gender-affirming care in Alberta and elsewhere.

Thistle said storytelling remains important during periods of political tension.

“I think that it’s a really powerful time now, but it has always been, to tell our stories in their fullness and to celebrate our resilience, queer joy, and our contributions to culture as a whole,” they said.

“I think what happens sometimes in political spheres is queer bodies are often politicized.”

Thistle added that the organization tries to focus on storytelling and community-building rather than political conflict.

“We’re here. We’ve always been here. We will always have our joy and our lives, and that stuff will take care of itself as long as we keep telling our stories.”

Marshall echoed similar concerns while discussing his own short film which he wrote called ‘Time for a Eulogy, Bitches,’ which follows a drag performer reflecting on identity, family and self-expression while preparing for a performance.

“While not necessarily being overtly political, there is still a political message there when we see legislation, when we see society still going after some of the most vulnerable people that we have in our society,” he said.

For Thistle, helping lead the festival now also carries personal significance.

“I moved to Calgary in 1998, which was the very beginning of Fairy Tales,” they said.

“This is where I first found community in Calgary. So, to be a part of it in this way, to be helping to steward the organization alongside our incredible volunteers and the amazing team that we have, is such a privilege and it feels like a full-circle moment for me.”