Queer Thursdays Cinema – Dec 12 @ 7:30 PM – “ADAM”
ADAM
Awkward, self-conscious Adam (Nicholas Alexander), a high-school teenager, jumps at the chance to spend the summer with his hip older sister Casey (Margaret Qualley) in New York City. Since leaving home, Casey has integrated herself into the LGBTQ+ community, openly embracing her sexuality and making activism a part of her daily life. When Adam tags along to a marriage-equality march, he sees the beautiful, savvy Gillian (Bobbi Salvör Menuez) and is instantly smitten. Gillian mistakes Adam’s gender identity, and he can’t quite bring himself to correct her error as the two grow closer. Before long, what started as a simple misunderstanding evolves into a comedy of errors that lays bare how out of his depth Adam truly is.
First-time feature director Rhys Ernst brings Ariel Schrag’s funny and unconventional boy-meets-girl novel to life with razor-sharp wit and honesty, nailing a satirical look at the nuances of sexual identity and the details of this early-2000s period. Nicholas Alexander carefully imbues Adam with vulnerability, complicating easy assessments in this unapologetic, playful, and raw coming-of-age comedy.
We want to hear from you! Discussion to follow the film, facilitated by Lindsey Pembrooke (Hartford PFLAG, New Haven Pride Center).
Venue: Cinestudio
2019 | USA | 95 min
Director: Rhys Ernst
Watch the trailer here:
About the filmmaker:
Rhys Ernst, a transmasculine filmmaker and artist, was a Producer and Director on Amazon’s Transparent and created the title sequence for the series. He was nominated for a 2015 Emmy Award for directing and producing the webseries Transparent: This Is Me, which won a Special Recognition GLAAD Award. In 2016 he teamed up with Focus Features to create the online series, We’ve Been Around. In addition to the 2014 Whitney Biennial, Ernst has shown work at Sundance, Oberhausen, and The Hammer Museum; he has won awards at Outfest, Chicago International Film Festival and the LA Transgender Film Festival; and he was a Point Scholar, a Project Involve Fellow, and was awarded with the 2015 Point Foundation Horizon Award and the ACLU Liberty Award for his work on transgender representation in the media.
