Ben Whishaw’s ‘Good Boy,’ Johnny Sibilly’s ‘Great Canyon’ to Open Vancouver Queer Film Fest (Exclusive)

The Vancouver Queer Film Festival has unveiled its first wave of titles, including opening films like Ben Whishaw’s Good Boy and Hacks actor Johnny Sibilly’s Great Canyon.

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The VQFF will kick off with Closer, an anthology of shorts led by Good Boy , the directorial debut from Mainstream co-writer Tom Stuart, the co-writer of Gia Coppola’s Venice-opener Mainstream.

Skyfall actor Whishaw stars as a desperate man attempting to rob a bank, only to be thwarted by his overly supportive mother ( Crown actor Marion Bailey) and an unexpected encounter with his family doctor.

Good Boy is executive produced by Emma Thompson and Coppola. Also playing on opening night is Ella May Sahlman’s romantic comedy Great Canyon , a live-action and animated hybrid that bowed at Sundance. Sibilly stars as a gay man who navigates a whirlwind of anxieties and insecurities on a first date.

Sibilly is best known in the role as Wilson in the Max comedy Hacks. His other credits include Pose, Station 19 and his role as Noah Hernandez in the Queer as Folk series.

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The VQFF will close with the Canadian premiere of Layla, the feature debut for British-Iraqi director Amrou Al-Kadhi. The drama, which debuted in competition in Sundance, is set in the east London queer scene and centers on an up-and-coming Palestinian drag queen, played by Bilal Hasna, lighting up local clubs.

The fest is also giving a world premiere to the Vancouver black queer web series Novelette Is Trying , from writer-director Giselle Miller. The upcoming OutTV series follows a queer anti-social black woman who has to confront her lack of purpose in life after she takes in a roommate.

The Vancouver Queer Film Festival is set to run Sept. 11 to 22 in Vancouver.

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