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Celebrating its 12th year, (fondly referred to by organizers as the 12th season) of their beloved TV camp, the annual ATX TV Festival took place in Austin over the first weekend of June and brought eager fans and various industry figures together, all in the cause of mutual love for the small screen. The festival included engaging panels, networking events and opportunities to watch stand out shows.

It was only on September 6, 2018, that homosexuality was finally decriminalized in India with the Supreme Court overturning the British Colonial-era Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code and calling the law “irrational, indefensible and manifestly arbitrary” in its ruling. (The law still exists in some British colonies, but Singapore is another country that has overturned it.

At the EqualVoice Summit in Zürich, Switzerland on June 6, Golden Globes President Helen Hoehne made a special appearance to talk about equality in movies. An initiative of international media company Ringier AG, the second annual gathering of media, business and political executives aims to advocate for gender equality across various industries.

Just in time to kick off Pride Month, this year’s ATX TV Festival in its 12th year featured one of the most thought-provoking discussions over the weekend-long events, tackling queer representation on the small screen and the dire need to expand it beyond the commonly repeated narratives. Titled “Queer Stories We Want to See,” the panel welcomed four actors who shared their own experiences and ideas of what Hollywood has to do to better serve and showcase LGBTQIA+ characters and stories, emphasizing that while some work has been done, a lot more still has to change and evolve.

We take a look at some movies that show how the western is also a place for "queer" stories. "In no other western film have we seen two men making a bed," said Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar when talking about Strange Way of Life, his new short film and the first western in his filmography.

To celebrate Pride Month, the newly branded Max (formerly HBO Max) is celebrating LGBTQ+ stories centered around queer joy, love, community and authentic storytelling under their initiative titled, “Human by Orientation”. The initiative not only celebrates and amplifies queer voices and stories through year-round programming, but also creates cultural moments including exclusive music performances, comedy specials and custom video series featuring queer creators.

The modern television landscape is populated with many LGBTQI+ characters; including in such stalwartly popular shows as Ted Lasso, Elite, Heartstopper, Yellowjackets, House of the Dragon, FBI: Most Wanted, The Walking Dead: World Beyond and Loki. And while shows such as Will & Grace, Glee and Pose were groundbreaking in their inclusion and representation, a look back on the history of television, especially its sitcoms, shows a plethora of characters who in today’s world would be recognized as gay, but in television’s early days, were hidden in their sexuality.

The Arab films that participated in the 76th Cannes Film Festival varied in both themes and genres. They had a strong and remarkable presence throughout the competition and other programs of the festival.

Angela Lee is the Director of Artist Development at Film Independent, a non-profit that aims to foster inclusion and innovation in the world of visual storytelling. Lee not only is a successful producer in her own right, but she also leads some of the most forward and relevant fiction and non-fiction storytelling labs and programs in the USA.

It happened by sheer coincidence. As Johnny Depp was walking up the steps at the Palais des Festivals in Cannes on the night of May 16, truckloads of Nick Wallis’ book “Depp v Heard” were being shipped, unpacked and put in the windows at the stores in the United Kingdom.