International Womens Festival - Girls in Wonderland Gay Days

In March Planet London started a new 'featured theme of the month'. For obvious reasons March was 'Marriage Equality' and we ran a number of interviews and articles on this subject as well as publishing some informative; yet interesting blog pieces.

April has arrived; and our latest featured theme of the month is 'International Women's Festivals'.

This is the fourth in a series of features and interviews on international lesbian festivals.

This is a review of Girls in Wonderland Gay Days (Orlando, Florida)

  

Enjoy!

Looking for sun, women, music, hook-ups and fun all centred around a fabulous holiday? Look no further: Florida is the place to go. Whether it's June or September- you'll find the most fantastic women's festivals happening in the Sunshine State. The best part is, they've been around for almost 20 years and never fail if you're looking for the perfect gay vacation.

June 5th-9th 2014 Girls In Wonderland Gay Days - Orlando, Florida

Every first weekend of June, lesbians and gay men pack up their flip flops, red t-shirts and sun screen and head for Orlando, Florida for "Gay Days'. A long standing tradition that happens when over 15,000 gays flood Mickey Mouse's neighbourhood for sun, fun & parties. Ladies have their share of options, thanks to Alison Burgos, Pandora events and their "Girls In Wonderland" long weekend. 

Loud, bumping & humping hotel pool parties with kick-ass DJ's, Happy Hour & Cocktail parties, live music at House of Blues, major dance parties, VIP events, and top notch comedy nights make for a non-stop thrill ride of ladies, dancing, music & laughs all within Disney Village and usually with some form of bus transport, if not within walking distance. 

A massive LGBT Expo at the main host hotel is great for a wander through with tons of free goodies, stalls, vendors & product displays. The pillage to DisneyWorld itself happens on Saturday afternoon, when everyone dons their red shirts and heads for the Magic Kingdom. Never sanctioned or acknowledged by Disney, and yet the day creates a most spectacular sea of red throughout the magnificent park and is a sight to be hold.

Some past guests include The L Word stars Leisha Hailey and Pam Grier to The Real L Word personalities Whitney Mixter, Tracy Ryerson and Rose Garcia, reality stars The Kardashians, Dani Campbell and Rachel Robinson, mega music stars Missy Elliott, Janet Jackson and Pitbull, they have all partied with Pandora.

Top name performers also include a wide range of talent including funny girls, Suzanne Westenhoeffer, Julie Goldman and Dana Goldberg, singing sirens and rockers, Uh Huh Her, Hunter Valentine, Betty, Sophie B Hawkins, Melissa Ferrick, Goddess & She, Halcyon and The State Of.. along with the hottest girls DJs like DJ/Producer Tracy Young, Alyson Calagna, and Lisa Pittman from Miami, LA and NYC. 

With so much to do, it's best to research web sites ahead of time and look for hotel & ticket packages that offer the best deals for your stay & entertainment choices.

The website starts shaping up in April with celebrity appearances, entertainment line-up and event announcements. 

Review by Denise Warner-Gregory
Listen to Denise on My Lesbian Radio

Find your Pride!

How you can help make Pride in London 2014 the best yet

1) Get Marching! There's no other experience like walking in a group as part of the parade and waving to the thousands of Londoners that come out to support the Parade. There's music, there's dancing, there's antics and a great buzz. And if you're lucky, no rain!

Parade registration for groups closes on 18th May.
Details: http://prideinlondon.org/get-involved/parade-registration/

If you are an individual, there are lots of groups marching, and they all need bodies - so ask your sports team, social group or charity if you can volunteer. If you would like to march with us, get in touch ASAP!! You'll get a free t-shirt and maybe some goodies too, as well as a guaranteed fun day.

OR you could take parade involvement to the next level, and volunteer to steward the event, along with hundreds of other LGBT community members. It's a fantastic way to make friends - through the training and social events - and be involved on the day without the pressure of marching with a group. Find out more here. 

2) However, the Parade can't happen at all without some investment from the community. Following the success of last year, Pride in London have set up a crowdfunder to help cover the cost of the parade - things like barriers and security don't come cheap. http://prideinlondon.org/get-involved/fund-parade/

Just £2 can make a big difference, if we all get behind this! 

3) There's more to Pride in London than the Parade. Did you know the organisers are also curating a festival of community-organised events. We want that to be incredibly diverse - building on the success of last year. Planet London are keen to make sure there's plenty of events for women, and that women know about the events to attend.  

We will be promoting the events on the My Pocket Planet App exclusive events calendar - so you'll know what's on and where at your fingertips!

More details here http://prideinlondon.org/get-involved/festival-events/

4) #PROUDWomenUK launched on 15 April. PROUDWOMEN is the non-profit partnership between Elysion Events & Pride In London (Community Interest Company CIC); on a mission to increase the representation, inclusion and visibility of women at Pride. Here's a link to their Facebook - please 'like' and 'share' their page; attend their events - the first one of which is the PROUDWOMEN Challenge Quiz; lend your support; be involved. 

Join the #ProudWomenUK quiz night - bring a team to a heat and if you can make it into the finals. Heats are taking place on Wednesdays throughout April & May with celebrity guest hosts - Zoe Lyons is the first! For full details about how to enter a team, visit their Facebook page.

Planet London are keen to hear from you if you have any ideas about how to raise funds towards activities for us in Pride, and from any women interested in running or supporting fundraising events - get in touch via mail@planet-london.com

By Katie

PLANET LONDON JOINS PRIDE IN LONDON AS COMMUNITY MEDIA PARTNER FOR 2014

Pride in London 2013 was a huge success and it was delivered by amazing volunteers from across the LGBT+ community alongside fabulous straight allies.

Pride’s organisers want 2014 to be an even bigger success. That’s why Pride is partnering with community groups across the capital.

Planet London is delighted to announce that we will be working in partnership with Pride in London in 2014 as an official community media partner. This means we will be bringing all the latest news about Pride direct to the lesbian, bi and queer (LBQ) women's community.

All the updates will be published in the features section of the Planet London website which feeds directly into our comprehensive app 'My Pocket Planet'.

The full events programme will be made available on an exclusive events calendar within the app throughout the Pride festival week and on the parade day.

Katie Bennett-Hall, Co-Founder of Planet London, said "We are very pleased to be working with Pride in London to help ensure as many women know about, and attend the whole festival of events as well as the parade day. Pride in London attracts over a million people each year and we want to encourage as many women as possible to be part of that celebration. This year's theme 'Freedom to...' Offers women many opportunities and possibilities to express themselves and their personality - come and join us and be Out and Proud."

Naomi Bennett-Hall, Co-Founder of Planet London said “we are also supporting the volunteer recruitment so that as many women as possible can get involved and be part of Pride in London in a big way! Through our extensive knowledge of the LBQ community and links with event organisers, we are in a unique position to connect the dots and help create an amazing experience for any woman who wants to participate in making 2014’s Pride the best yet.”

Alison Hand, Director of Pride in London said: “Partnering with Planet London and similar organisations is so important because we want to reach out to every part of the LGBT+ community and ensure that everyone has the chance to be part of the great celebration and campaigning opportunity that is Pride in London.”

International Womens Festivals - WomenFest

In March Planet London started a new 'featured theme of the month'. For obvious reasons March was 'Marriage Equality' and we ran a number of interviews and articles on this subject as well as publishing some informative; yet interesting blog pieces.

April has arrived; and our latest featured theme of the month is 'International Women's Festivals'.

This is the third in a series of features and interviews on international lesbian festivals.

This is a review of WomenFest (Key West, Florida).

  

Enjoy!

Looking for sun, women, music, hook-ups and fun all centred around a fabulous holiday? Look no further: Florida is the place to go. Whether it's June or September- you'll find the most fantastic women's festivals happening in the Sunshine State. The best part is, they've been around for almost 20 years and never fail if you're looking for the perfect gay vacation.

September 4th-7th 2014 WomenFest 2014- Key West, Florida

In the U.S., Labor Day (the first Monday of September) is a holiday that signifies a celebration of "the American Labor Movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of workers", which I didn't even know until I just now Googled it, because to me, it meant a day off and time for a big bash to say good-bye to summer. Whatever the significance, grab your shortest shorts, a swimsuit, a snorkel, and sunglasses and head to the southern most point of Florida for WomenFest in Key West, Florida. 

With it's laid-back Jimmy Buffet-Margaritaville appeal, this 4 day event has everything you could possibly want in a holiday, with the added bonus of lesbians everywhere! The list is of things to do is nearly endless: jet-skiiing, sunset catamaran cruises, art workshops (a women-only Nude painting class?! Yes!), DJ driven pool parties, golfing, live music, comedy night, cinema night, karaoke nights, dance parties at Aqua Night Club, drag shows, yoga classes, a bunch of different contests, including the SHE Magazine's Beach Blanket Butch & Babe Poolside contest, the annual Pearl's Itsy Bitsy Bikini Contest, volleyball, water sports, snorkelling, dolphin-watching, parasailing, kayaking, island trolley tours from The Gay Trolley Co., dinner dances, afternoon pool side tea party dances, evening Happy Hours and outdoor patio cocktail parties are all part of an event line-up that leaves nothing out. 

It's a 4 mile-wide island, jam-packed with lesbians, so you won't need to worry about transport because you can rent electric mini cars, mopeds, bicycles, hitch a ride with a babe on scooter or just walk to the nearest party. Plenty of amazing food places, miles of sandy beaches, the legendary Duval Street, shops that never stop, and frozen drinks to keep you cool in the intense heat. Great entertainment includes past guests: musician/singer Jennifer Corday, the completely interactive band Sister Funk, The Voice contestant Bev McClellan, hot moves & music from NY's own Lori Michaels & The Girls, comedy has included Dana Goldberg, Suzanne Westenhoefer, Julie Goldman, Wendy Carlisle, Christine O'Leary, and Susie Comet. 

Always adding new faces, new music, DJ's, bands & singers, keep your eye on the events section of the website as they start announcing the 2014 line-up in June/July. Airline deals, hotel packages and host hotel info can be found at www.womenfest.com  

Review by Denise Warner-Gregory
Listen to Denise on My Lesbian Radio
 

International Women's Festivals - interview with Cindy Edwards, Festival Director of L Fest, L Fest Del Mar and L Festive



In March Planet London started a new 'featured theme of the month'. For obvious reasons March was 'Marriage Equality' and we ran a number of interviews and articles on this subject as well as publishing some informative; yet interesting blog pieces.

 

April has arrived; and our latest featured theme of the month is 'International Women's Festivals'.

 

This is the second in a series of interviews with women who work on these festivals.

 

This interview is with Cindy Edwards, Director of lesbian festivals L Fest (UK) and L Fest Del Mar (Spain) along with fringe festival L Festive (UK).

 

This video features some outtakes at the end because we lost Cindy part way through the recording; and well a girl's got to keep herself amused!

 

Enjoy!



International Womens Festivals - interview with Robin Schwartz about Aqua Girl Festival



In March Planet London started a new 'featured theme of the month'. For obvious reasons March was 'Marriage Equality' and we ran a number of interviews and articles on this subject as well as publishing some informative; yet interesting blog pieces.

 

April has arrived; and our latest featured theme of the month is 'International Women's Festivals'.

 

This is the first in a series of interviews with women who work on these festivals.

 

This interview is with Robin Schwartz, Director of the Aqua Girl Foundation which is funded by Aqua Girl Festival (Miami Beach, US).

 

Aqua Girl takes place 14-18 May 2014 in Miami Beach

  

Enjoy!

 

Queer Film-making DIY - now you can!

Love queer film? Want to make a queer film? 

If you answered ‘yes’ to any of the above then this workshop is for you!

Our two day, DIY film-making workshop will provide you with the basic skills, contacts and support necessary to make a short film. You don’t need a gazillion-pound camera, just something that shoots film – a phone, small camera, camcorder, computer…and if you don’t have any of these things, you can still turn up. The emphasis is on sharing, teamwork and making the best of the resources we do have.

On the Saturday you’ll have the chance to meet with experts in directing, acting, script-writing, sound, editing and camera work in a series of small, informal workshops. The emphasis will be on skill sharing and discussion so you’re very welcome to share your own knowledge and experience with the group. By the end of the day we’ll hopefully have the seeds/plans for some queer short films.

On the Sunday we’ll go out into the city and shoot. Often invisible or absent in urban space, queers have been increasingly using film as a way to re/claim the cities in which they live. We’ll divide into groups and go to the spaces we love or feel need to be queered. At the end of the day we’ll meet somewhere like Retro Bar for a debrief and refreshments.

As an added motivation to sit down and edit that film, we’ll be screening what we make at this year’s Wotever DIY Film Festival, 30th Aug-2nd Sep. Excitingly, we’ll be having some screenings at the beautiful Cinema Museum as well as the RVT, so this is a great opportunity to show your work in a fantastic setting.

In order to make this workshop as accessible as possible, we have three price bands: £10, £15 and £20.

http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/wwoff-workshop-tickets-10852557291

We’ve tried to keep costs as low as we can while still being able to reimburse our experts for their expenses, so please do pay what you can afford. Any additional funds will go towards the Wotever DIY Film Festival.

Saturday’s workshop will be held at the RVT so you are welcome to bring your own lunch and refreshments. The main area of the RVT is wheelchair accessible but unfortunately the toilets are not, so we are looking for a nearby, accessible toilet in the area. If you have any other requirements, please get in touch and we’ll do our utmost to accommodate you. 

For more information please go to https://www.facebook.com/events/511950935584176/

Or contact woteverfilm@gmail.com

@WoteverFilmFest

www.facebook.com/WoteverFilmFestival