Festival directer notes "it's very important as a gay and lesbian film festival to communicate with the wider community. People might think that Family Day at a gay film festival is an oxymoron. So, it's important for the Festival to push the issues forward, to encourage families, community organizations, synagogues, churches and the like to come and learn about a topic that affects all families in the broadest sense."

Both the 1pm and 3pm Family Day programs are definitely appropriate for ages 10 and up. Festival programmers note that they are mostly documentaries and may not hold the attention of younger children. Children under 10 will be admitted free to the theater.

Other programs at this year's Festival are also appropriate for younger viewers accompanied by an adult or for older teenagers on their own, with some of the films being exclusively for adults. Most of the Festival's films are unrated because they are so new or are not in commercial release in the United States; parents are encouraged to read film descriptions in the Festival's program guide carefully, and are encouraged to call the Festival at 305-534-9924 if there are any questions about which films are best for their particular family.

For adults who wish to see the films without their younger children, the Festival will provide professional childcare at no cost for those between the ages of 2 through 10 at Happy Kids Day Care Center, 1700 Jefferson Avenue, three blocks from the Colony Theatre. Advanced reservations are required to guarantee a slot by calling the Festival office at 305-534-9924.

The line-up for the 4th Annual Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival is even more global and wide-ranging in form and content than ever before, including the Festival's opening night feature, the North American premiere of Spain's Sagitario (Friday, April 26, 7:30pm), a film about a group of 30 & 40-somethings, gay and straight, looking for love and happiness amidst the comic urban madness of contemporary Madrid. It features a slew of veteran Spanish actors whose credits include between them Carne trémula (Live Flesh), La ley del deseo (Law of Desire) and Martín Hache; Julieta Serrano, a long-time Almodóvar favorite; and Mirtha Ibarra, the internationally acclaimed star of Cuban cinema, whose credits include Fresa y chocolate (Strawberry and Chocolate) and Guantanemera.

Other films include the North American premiere of Festival closing night film The Trip, a love story that looks back at the fabulous '70s from a gay perspective, touching on Anita Bryant and other historical events along the way, and starring Alexis Arquette and Jill St. John, among others; the East Coast premiere of Festival Centerpiece The Cockettes, a fresh-from-Sundance feature documentary about the legendary gender-bending theater company, with interviews and performance footage from such icons as Divine, Sylvester, John Waters and Holly Woodlawn; the North American premiere of Sugar Sweet, from Japan, a wild and in-your-face comedy about a group of women who get together to make a lesbian adult film; the North American premiere of Guardian of the Frontier, the first female-helmed feature from Slovenia that tells the story of three college friends who embark on an innocent kayak trip that becomes an unsettling tale of sexual awakening; the East Coast premiere of the groundbreaking Hong Kong film Lan Yu, a gay male love affair set against the backdrop of the Tiananmen Square massacre - shot in part surreptitiously in mainland China; from Germany, the East Coast premiere of Journey to Kafiristan a kind of lesbian The English Patient set in 1939 that follows two women adventurers on their way across Europe to Afghanistan; the North American premiere of Bob and Rose, the new British TV series from the creator of the original U.K Queer as Folk, with the programs' creator Russell T. Davies in attendance; the South Florida premiere of Metrosexuality, another groundbreaking television series from Great Britain; and the North American premiere and the clips-talk program, Bette Midler: Dirty Girl in a Bathhouse, a presentation highlighting the early years of Bette Midler's career along with her relationship to the gay community and her own Jewish identity.

But Rosenberg isn't sitting back and lighting his hand-rolled cigar (a local favorite once distributed for a Festival party with the MGLFF logo affixed) just yet. The award-winning filmmaker (Before Stonewall) known for his attention to detail has charged himself, the Festival's Board and the new year-round staff with deepening the Festival's quality and impact with a projected $600,000 budget. In the wake of last year's Festival, which was expanded from six to 10 days, this year's Festival, scheduled for April 26-May 5, 2002, will both open and close at the 1,700-seat, landmark, 1920s Gusman Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Miami, a move only a few gay or film events have tried.

This year's MGLFF has teamed up with PlanetOut.com, a leader in gay Internet content, to present the PlanetOut.com Short Movie Awards, sponsored by HBO. Participating filmmakers are eligible for competitive awards given in a number of categories, including Best Dramatic and Documentary Features, and Audience Favorite. Twenty-five finalists will be selected by a jury that includes an HBO executive to compete for online Audience Awards determined by visitors to www.planetout.com, the PlanetOut.com website, during the month of March. The prize-winning films will be screened at a special PlanetOut.com program and awards presentation at this year's Festival, where $7,500 in cash awards will be given out. Jenni Olson, PlanetOut.com's Director of Entertainment, commented that, "The Miami fest has quickly become one of the most prestigious stops on the gay film festival circuit, and this is a wonderful opportunity to showcase the best GLBT short films and to support the filmmakers themselves."

"Our festival is now the largest gay event in terms of audience size in all of South Florida, and already one of the most prominent film festivals of its kind in the United States," Rosenberg said. "We are poised this year to strengthen the entire Festival, including the quality of the films we present, the relevance of our programming, the caliber of our visiting filmmakers and the reach and depth of our audiences. We will continue to assist in the development of a local film community through panels, lectures with visiting filmmakers, distributors and actors, and screenings of independent work. Taken altogether, we offer a fun cultural event to our community, a meaningful venue for artists and a prototype for film festivals around the world. The buzz is there; we're going to deepen the groove."

History
The Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival began a short three years ago after South Florida had well established itself as a gay-friendly place to live and visit. The Festival was the area's first regularly scheduled arts programming specifically geared toward showcasing works by gay and lesbian artists and catering to gay and gay-friendly audiences. After the first edition of the Festival drew more than 5,000 attendees and the following year's event attracted 7,000 attendees, Rosenberg and the Festival Board decided to expand the Festival from 6 to 10 days in order to accommodate both growing audiences and the increasing amount of solid material the Festival had been receiving from filmmakers from across the globe. Last year's Third Annual Festival sold more than 11,000 tickets and featured more than 70 feature and short works from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, England, France, Germany, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Puerto Rico, Spain, Thailand and the U.S.

Sponsors
The Presenting Sponsor of this year's Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival is Southern Wine and Spirits of South Florida.

Other sponsors include Abbey Hotel, Absolut, Advanced Radio Systems/ Motorola, The Advocate, American Express, Burstein Family Foundation, Cabana Boy Run, Corazon Tequila, Dade Human Rights Foundation, Party 93.1 WPYM-FM, Design Center of the Americas (DCOTA), Express Gay News, Ferraro Family Foundation, Florida Department of State and Cultural Affairs Council, Genre Magazine, HBO (Presenting Sponsor Of The Planetout.Com Short Movie Awards), Hotel Nash, Indian Creek Hotel, Laurent Perrier Champagne, Miami Beach Cultural Arts Council, Miami Beach Visitor & Convention Authority, The Miami Herald, Miami New Times, Miami-Dade County Cultural Affairs Department, Miamigo Magazine, Passport Magazine, Planetout Partners, Planetout.Com, Regal Cinemas, Robert Mondavi Wines, Rubell Hotels, Savoy Hotel, Tangueray, TWN, and Voss Water (sponsor list as of March 19, 2002).

The Festival's Honorary Board supports the organization financially and with their expertise. Members include Executive Producers Harvey Burstein, Stephen Herbits; Kent Karlock, Raben & Feldman, Rene T. Rodriguez, Lee Brian Schrager, Jacques Soukup & Aaman Crane; and Bruce Weber & Nan Bush.

Directors include Jerry Chasen and Mark Kirby, Desmond Child, Scott Dansky & John Dawson, Dwina Gibb, Rick Hanley & Paul Kahn, Marc Levin, Sheldon & Myrna Palley, Mayda Perez & Simone Mayer, Alan Randolph, Robert Schafer, Michael Toomey & Dr. Patrick Ward.

What:			Sexto Sentido at the Fourth Annual Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival
When:			Sunday, May 5, 3pm Friday, April 26, through Sunday, May 5, 2002
Where:			Colony Theatre, 1040 Lincoln Rd., Miami Beach Opening and Closing Night screenings:       Gusman Center For The Performing Arts,       174 E. Flagler St., downtown Miami
Tickets:			$11 general; special prices for special events
	Tickets for all screenings & events go on sale April 1 via: Festival Office:     Telephone: 305.534.9924 (credit card only)     FAX: completed order form to 305-535-2377 (credit card only)     Mail: completed order form to Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, Attn: Ticket Sales     1521 Alton Rd., #147, Miami Beach, FL 33139     (check, money order or credit card) must be received by April 19th     on-line: www.mglff.com (credit card only) Gusman Center box office Tickets are available here only for Opening & Closing Night tickets, in person at the box office,174 E. Flagler St., beginning April 1, from 12-2:30pm and 3-5:30pm Mondays-Fridays (cash, Visa & Mastercard). Colony Theatre box office: 1040 Lincoln Rd., Miami Beach, beginning April 1st, (cash only) from noon-5pm Tues.- Sat.. The Colony does not sell opening and closing night tickets. TicketMaster: 305.358.5885, 954.523.3309 or www.ticketmaster.com (credit card only); or in person at TicketMaster outlets. Rush Sales: A limited number of tickets will be available for films sold out in advance. Special Rush Line will form beginning one hour prior to screening at Festival Ticket/Will-Call Table. Rush tickets sold for $11 on first-come, first-served, cash-only basis; no complimentary or discounted rush ticket sales.
For information: 305 534 9924 or www.mglff.com.

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