(SHOWcase): RAK - Random Acts Of Kindness!

 

RAK is a short film about humanity. This is Our Pal, Chris Savatore's project. It will remind you of how a random act of kindness, can literally save a life. Or how judgement can change the course of history forever. Our hero Paul, leads us through many social issues we are facing today including addiction/alcoholism, homelessness, bullying, over population in animal shelters, teen suicide, mental illness, gay rights, Alzheimer’s and domestic violence.

Our film demonstrates how the solution actually starts within you. A random act of kindness can change a life forever and have a lasting positive impact towards these problems being resolved. It doesn’t take much to change the world, in fact the power is within us all. It’s there, each decision, every moment ~ and each and every judgement.

We can all agree that these issues are still a massive problem in our society and the world at large. Our film, RAK will bring awareness, educate and empower people to stand up and make a difference on an everyday level. Whether it's helping an old lady do her hair or taking a senior citizen to the grocery store. These random acts of kindness change lives forever. What do you have to give? Support this Project.

(SHOWcase) MK's Birthday Wish!

 It's MK's Birthday and he would like your Help. Please contribute, share, reshare and spread the word. This is just one of the exciting projects that MK will deliver to his Fans in the coming year. Please Fulfill his wish! Let's Raise 50% in the next week!

Update: Follow MK to Phoenix, SLC, and Texas in Early 2015! More awards will be Added!

MK in SF (2014)

The Project

After 3 years of Researching and traveling from Seattle to San Diego and Back and from Seattle to New York and Back, I have had the budget of $400 per trip that last about a month each (going by Ride Share, Trades and Couch surfing). Now I need to complete it so the Book can be published in Early 2016.

My Research

I started researching this book as early as 1989 (even though I didn't know it at the time that I would take a series of trips of self-discovery and test of Self-Reliance, and as a Openly gay Man, a much bigger Test, and going against stereotypes) and 25 years later, I am getting more experiences in traveling on a low budget and going on the roller coaster of staying at Airports and Train Stations to 4 star Hotels. I have Traveled through Canada, the Northern half of the US to Boston and New York, as well as up and down the West Coast. One moving and Humorous story after another.

To finish this book, I need to finish traveling I still need to travel the SW (From Las Vegas to Texas), the Deep South (From Texas to Key West) and the SE (From Atlanta to Washington DC).

(SHOWcase) Casper Andreas' Star-Studded, Kiss Me, Kill Me!

While confronting his unfaithful boyfriend Dusty blacks-out. When he comes to, his boyfriend was murdered and he's the prime suspect.

"Kiss Me, Kill Me" is an Alfred Hitchcock/Agatha Christie-style "Who-done-it" set in a little town called West Hollywood.

The All-Cast is a who's who of Outview Faves: Gale Harold (QAF), Van Hansis (Eastsiders, ATWT), Matthew Ludwinski (Going Down) and more. Plus some that MK has interviewed in the past from Willam Belli (Rupaul's Drag Race, TOTWK) to Jonathan Lisecki (Gayby).

Our pal, Casper Andreas will produce and Direct!

(SHOWcase) Adoptable! - Season One!

ADOPTABLE! is an awkward and bittersweet comic web series written by and starring Scott Lowell loosely based on his own experiences searching for his birth parents back in the late ’90’s. It is presented as a documentary being directed by Jennifer Lim (Linda Park of TV’s “Enterprise” & “Crash”) which follows successful actor and adult adoptee Scott Fishman (Lowell, "Queer as Folk", "Bones") of the hit TV show “Cops & Bottoms” in which he co-stars with Jerry O’Connell ("Sliders", "Stand By Me", "Jerry Maguire") as a fictionalized version of himself. Bowing somewhat to pressure from his fiancé, Lisa Crane (Emily Swallow, “The Mentalist”, “Monday Mornings”) and their therapist Bob Raskin (Jim O’Heir of “Parks and Recreation”) as well as his own desire to know himself a bit better before getting married and starting a family, Fishman embarks on the journey of seeking out his birth parents. He is aided along the way by an intermediary named Mary Elizabeths played by multi-Emmy Award® winner Sharon Gless (“Cagney & Lacey”, “Burn Notice”, “Queer as Folk”).

(SHOWcase) A Very Sordid Wedding - film sequel by Del Shores!

Sordid Lives, by Del Shores, hit the big screen in 2000 and became a huge cult hit phenomenon with its hilarious and authentic exploration of the antics of the residents of Winters, TX. The film was followed by Sordid Lives: The Series, a prequel for LOGO. Now, after years of fans asking for a follow up with these beloved characters, Del Shores has written a sequel, the final chapter in the Sordid Lives saga - A Very Sordid Wedding.

The original film explored the coming out story and how conservative southern families deal with gay family members. The sequel picks up 16 years later and continues the comedic exploration of important issues by addressing marriage equality. The characters audiences fell so in love with have all moved forward to new places, some good, some ridiculous, and as always with this colorful cast - always entertaining.

Del Shores has spent this entire year writing the new script, bringing back all of these beloved characters and carefully shaping what they are each up to after so many years. The story is once again hilarious, touching and addressing an issue affecting LGBT people and their communities and families with Del's trademark subversive humor and heart. SUPPORT This Project.

(SHOWcase) "Encyclopedia Madonnica" 20th Anniversary Edition!"

The lavishly illustrated, 20th Anniversary Edition of the ultimate, unofficial Madonna book—by a fan, for fans! Help Make a Definitive Update of the Ultimate, Unauthorized Madonna Fan Book a Reality!

From the author, Matthew Rettenmund:
The 1995 edition, featuring Nose-Ring Madonna!

THE ORIGINAL BOOK

Back in 1995, the esteemed editor Thomas Dunne at St. Martin’s Press published my first book, a humorous, irreverently reverent, exhaustive, unofficial A-to-Z on the life and career of Madonna called Encyclopedia Madonnica.

"Rolling Stone" piece on the 1st book from 1995! "Rolling Stone" piece on the 1st book from 1995!

(SHOWcase) Wayland Flowers' MADAME Stages Come Back! ‏

Help Jump Start Madame’s Comeback tour! The sassy, outspoken and loveable “old broad” is calling on all her fans, old and young, to rally around and get her back ON TOP where she belongs. Do YOUR part and Go to her Indiegogo page then pick a “thank you” level; make sure you check out Madame’s NEW music video “Jump Start My Comeback Tour”, a tongue in cheek song parodying the hit song “Fancy” in TRUE Madame style.

A bit about Madame (in case you didn’t know): Madame was created by the legendary Wayland Flowers in the mid-1960s. Flowers's first big break was an appearance on the The Andy Williams Show. The character of Madame is an "outrageous old broad" who entertains with double entendres and witty comebacks. Bedecked in fabulous evening wear and "summer diamonds" ("Some are diamonds; some are not"), Madame's look is based on movie stars such as Gloria Swanson. Madame's many TV appearances included Laugh-In; a long run on the game show Hollywood Squares (replacing Paul Lynde in The Centre Square); a recurring comedy skit on Solid Gold; a regular on ABC's short-lived summer replacement show called Keep on Truckin', various TV guest spots; and as the star of her own syndicated 1982 sitcom, Madame's Place, which in itself was the precursor to every reality TV show out there!

(SHOWcase) Inside MK's Secret Project!

Our very own, MK Scott (whose Full name is Michael Scott Shafer-Montgomery) has been working on a secret project for as long as OUTview has been in existence.

MK says he wouldn't be who he is today without his Mentor, James N. Erickson, a legend in the Portland Theater Community. Erickson was the Theater Arts Teacher for Beaverton High School for 29 years, until his retirement in 1999 and his eventual death in 2004. Erickson was like a Broadway caliber Director, Choreographer, Designer and Producer all at the same time.  As MK has mentioned on more than one occasion, several other notables got their start under the style of Erickson, including our very own Jesse Archer (Jesse on the Brink, Four Letter Word) as well as Broadway stars, Brooks Ashmanskas (currently seen in on Broadway in 'Bullets over Broadway') and Shoshana Bean (Wicked) and Recording artists like, Stephanie Schneiderman.

As the keeper of the past and how we can create more talent in the future, MK has carried on the Erickson Legacy with creating a Fund to help to preserve the legacy and to help keep After-School Theater Programs alive.

(SHOWcase) Ruthie Doyle's La Vernia!

In LaVernia, queer Brooklynite EstherAnn Graber gets a call that her grandmother has passed away, and she returns to the rural Texas town of LaVernia for the funeral. Esther's travels not only bring her complex relationship to her family into focus, but also highlight the many roles Esther plays.

Ruthie Doyle (writer/director/EstherAnne Graber) is a filmmaker based in Los Angeles via Brooklyn. Often lyrical and impressionistic, her work makes a non-literal exploration of issues surrounding family, memory, identity, gender and sexuality. Ruthie's past work includes interactive screen pieces: for performance via physical computing, and for audience engagement using mobile phones. She is also influenced by her social justice activism and work in health and healing.

(SHOWcase) Does EastSiders deserve a Season Two? YES, YES, YES!

Season one of "EastSiders: The Series" left Cal and Thom uncertain of their future together. All the lies were out in the open and they were splitting up the Christmas ornaments, but they couldn’t deny their feelings for each other. Is being in love enough of a reason to be together?

“EastSiders” launched last year to a lot of love from fans and critics alike, with Entertainment Weekly calling the show “funny and heartbreaking” and After Elton praising it as “sharp, well-written and acted.” We won Best Web Drama at the 2013 LA Weekly Awards, Best Ensemble at the Indie Series Awards and were nominated for a Satellite Award from the International Press Academy, among numerous other accolades, but the most rewarding part has been getting to interact with the fans of the show. If it wasn't for the support of amazing people like you we wouldn’t have been able to make "EastSiders" in the first place.

(SHOWcase) Sweet Nothings: An Indie Musical Comedy!

Sweet Nothings is an indie musical comedy that celebrates love, food, music and that moment you realize that you have to stop wasting time and follow your dreams. 

Jack is a chef who dreams of opening an all-desserts restaurant; Gwen is an actress afraid to put up her hilariously weird one-woman show. Flitting through life, these two try their very best to avoid failure. But a deflated soufflé brings them together. And their lives will never be the same.

That's right! There is only one thing missing from our production— you! We have put together some of the best and brightest from the New Mexico film scene and the University of Southern California and are ready to move forward with this project. Your help is paramount to making that happen. Making a film is never easy, and we can't do it alone. So please help our little movie find its voice. Support this Film by April 2nd.

(SHOWcase) Jinkx Monsoon's 'Drag Becomes Him’ almost Ready!

Now that the Initial Goal has been Reached, let's raise more in by Thursday, just $10,000 to get Our wildest dreams - $35,000 Stretch Goal - For Distribution & Syndication: To get Drag Becomes Him to the widest audience possible.

If you Love JINKX Monsoon (Outview's Person of 2013) let us get this film right!

Directed by MK's pal, Basil Shadid, who shot and edited his doc short, 'Drag Queens' in 2005.

Click Here to support this Project! 

OVTV: (SHOWcase) 'The Queen', a 1968 Documentary About the Early Days of Drag: FULL VIDEO!

A full-length version of The Queen, a 1968 documentary about the early days of drag has appeared on YouTube in full:

The Queen was filmed in NYC in 1967 and released in theaters in 1968.

 

In 1967 it was illegal for men to dress as women. The documentary follows a 1967 Drag pageant judged by Andy Warhol among others. It stars Jack Doroshow aka Flawless Mother Sabrina, Richard Finochio aka Rachel Harlow and Crystal LaBeija. Crystal went on to start The House of LaBeija pageants which was the premise of the 90's documentary "Paris is Burning."

 

In 1972 Richard Finochio underwent sex reassignment surgery to become Rachel Harlow, she began dating John B. Kelly, Grace Kelly's brother. The relationship ended when John's mother said she would disinherit him if he married Rachel. Rachel opened the Philadelphia night club "Harlow's" in the 1970's. The only person to surface since this classic film was made is Jack Doroshow when he was interviewed by James St. James on youtube.

 

International Chrysis (1951-1990) can be seen as a teenage boy rehearsing dance numbers. These are the Queens who opened the doors for RuPaul and RuPaul's Drag Race of today.

OVTV: (SHOWcase) THE FOXY MERKINS!

The filmmakers who brought you the indie hit CODEPENDENT LESBIAN SPACE ALIEN SEEKS SAME are making a new comedy about lesbian hookers!

THE FOXY MERKINS is a feature length, female prostitute buddy comedy, paying homage to and riffing off of iconic male hustler films. This film is FINISHED! We want to get it to SUNDANCE and take it to audiences everywhere with your help!

OVTV: (SHOWCASE) Best of 2013 and Updates!

MB in 2001  /Katz

In 2013, our Showcase series focused on highlighting some of the best projects, film, and TV series that needed that extra special attention for their crowd funding campaigns.

The following are the top 5 posts of our showcase series (and yes most were successful) based on page views: (Click the Links to see what episode was the most watched of the year)!

(SHOWcase) Real Heroes -- Behind the Mask!

A comedy about B-string superheroes who go on a reality show in hopes of hitting the big time.

Superman? The Dark Knight? Wonder Woman? This is not their story.

This is the story of B-string superheroes hoping to hit the big time. The guys you’ve never heard of. The ones who go out every night fighting crime and hoping that someone will notice. The ones who are desperate enough to go on a reality show.

(SHOWcase) Pier Kids: The Life!

Pier Kids: The Life is a documentary about the homeless gay and transgender youth who call the Christopher Street Pier home.

"Here are the descendants of the people in Paris is Burning, depicted by someone who's lived the madness and can relate, first-hand, why this is an important New York story and an important American story. Join the community of people making this film a reality!" ~ Jennie Livingston, director of Paris is Burning

"Pier Kids is already proving to be as raw as an open wound, a film that is at once provocative as it is necessary." ~ Eric Torres

"We are totally transfixed by Pier Kids: The Life." The film is an "absolutely must-watch. Like Paris is Burning, these subjects have grabbed us and we cannot stop thinking about them." ~ Matt Baume

(SHOWcase) DADDY - a new film based on the hit play!

Colin is a stud. Stew, not so much. They've been virtually inseparable for 20+ years. But now Colin has fallen for a much younger man.


Colin McCormack (Gerald McCullouch) thinks he has it all — a great job, a steady stream of hot younger guys, and a best friend, Stew (Dan Via), whose devotion he takes for granted. But when a charming and mercurial intern sweeps him off his feet, Colin sees a chance for something more: A family of his own. What he discovers instead is a shattering truth that may cost Colin everything -- and everyone -- he holds dear.

By turns funny and heartbreaking, DADDY explores the universal need for love and connection, and the evolving understanding of "family" in today's rapidly changing world. Following a buzz-heavy world premiere in New York and an extended run in LA, the critical smash play by actor/writer Dan Via is now coming to the big screen in a film directed by Gerald McCullouch (Bear City). Support this Project (by 12/13)!

(SHOWcase) SEASON 2 of Hunting Season: the Hit Gay Comedy Series!

Alex will face challenges in Season 2 that make him question his true goals, and test him in ways he didn't expect. Tommy, TJ, and the whole cast of characters will grow and change and the show will go deeper into their relationships and their lives. Season 1 was just the beginning -- wait til you see what we've got in store for you next!

Jon Marcus, the creator of the show, paid for Season One out of his own savings, and then he borrowed the money to finish to show. We sold enough downloads to pay back the loans, but he can't pay for any more of the series himself.

(SHOWcase) Matt Zarley's HOPEFUL ROMANTIC...NEW album & 3 NEW videos!

Award winning, Billboard artist Matt Zarley promises a timeless collection of pop songs and videos that embrace matters of the heart.

The 2012 OutMusic Award Winner for ALBUM & SINGLE OF THE YEAR!

From Matt Zarley:
I have always wanted to do an album that was purely romantic. The original concept of this album was inspired by a true love that I had experienced. I now believe in "love at first sight", cuz I lived it. When I first started to work on this, my relationship unexpectedly ended...leaving me heartbroken and confused. Since then, I've uncovered truths about myself and lessons were learned. What started as a sweet valentine to the one I loved, was now becoming alot more dimensional. Though this is inspired though my own personal experience, it's a universal story...told through an optimistic lens.