Queer Film Research Guide

This is a research guide dedicated to queer film. These resources include different mediums for an expanded search. Queer film has existed as long as film itself has and there is a wealth of information on the topic spanning nearly two centuries since the first moving images.

These resources are intended for students in film or adjacent subjects but can be used by film fans and cinephiles for expanded education! I chose these resources to represent the diversity of the LGBTQ+ spectrum and its intersecting queer, personal, sexual, and gender identities. Resources include several mediums including physical books and online resources.

I hope this guide serves you well in your educational or personal queer film pursuits!

-Flynn

Reference Books:

Malone, Aubrey. Queer Cinema in America: An Encyclopedia of LGBTQ Films, Characters, and Stories. Greenwood, 2023.

Porter, Darwin, and Danforth Prince. 50 Years of Queer Cinema: 500 of the Best Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgendered, and Queer Questioning Films Ever Made. Blood Moon, 2010.

Summer, C. The Queer Encyclopedia of Film and Television. Cleis Press, 2006.

Turner, Kyle, and Andy Warren. The Queer Film Guide: 100 Great Movies That Tell LGBTQIA+ Stories. Smith Street Books, 2023.

Books:

Russo, Vito. The Celluloid Closet: Homosexuality in the Movies. Harper & Row, 1981.

Weiss, Andrea. Vampires & Violets: Lesbians in Film. Penguin Books, 1993.

Databases:

IMDb, IMDb.com, www.imdb.com/, Accessed 2023.

Media History Digital Library, mediahistoryproject.org/, Accessed 2023.

Websites:

VIDEO DATA BANK, www.vdb.org/, Accessed 2023.

Criterion Collection, https://www.criterion.com/, Accessed 2023.

Roger Ebert, https://www.rogerebert.com/, Accessed 2023.

Founded by the School of the Art Institute of Chicago this video data bank focuses on contemporary artists in the media fields. This is a valuble resource for new scholarship of contemporary ideas and films.

Offering high quality copies of culturally important films The Criterion Collection is an essential tool for students and fans alike. You can access and stream films that have earned a high level of acclaim and accolades from anywhere.

Founded by the late film critic, Roger Ebert, this site contains all of his archived critics as well as a new staff of critics for current titles. Ebert's critiques are award winning and offer valuable criticisms of films students can find useful. As well as offering easily digestible and entertaining insights.

IMDb.com, or "internet movie database" is a vast and expansive database covering all things film and television related. With comprehensive information including crews that work on each film and relevant data such as dates and locations, IMDb is a valuable resource for queer film studies. Students and queer film fans will enjoy the ability to be presented with an expansive list of queer film and other lesser know titles.

A venerable classic in queer film studies. Vito Russo a prominent member of the queer community and author created one of the first studies of queer film in America. Focusing on homsexuality in men and women the book offers a valuable insight into gays on film. For many this was a groundbreaking book worthy of any student of cinephiles education.

This reference resource, Queer Cinema In America by Aubrey Malone, follows the history of cinema through a queer lense. In an encyclopedia format users can look up films,stars, and another prominent people and events. The focus of the book is American queer cinema but does contain further readings and citations of world events correlating to topics. An index is included for further ease to look up information.

This resource acts as a review by prolific writers Darwin Porter and Danforth Prince. It focuses on films that every student of queer film should watch. Written in a critical style but still humorous and relatable this is a valuable tool for both students and cinephiles. This book gives helpful insights and a good introduction for further research.

Offering and encylopedia of queer film and television from stars,shows,films,producers and more. A very comprehensive guide it travels across multiple countries and decades. Students will find this guide easy to navigate and it offers extensive citations for further research on topics.