Moderately Queer Programming at an Established LGBTQ Film Festival: A Case Study of BFI Flare: London LGBT Film Festival

Many LGBTQ film festivals have transformed from bottom-up, community-driven events into established, profitable organizations. For some, this change has implied downplaying their activist agenda in favor of a celebratory and homonormative approach. This article demonstrates how BFI Flare: London LGBT Film Festival, a long-running European LGBTQ film festival, has dealt with the turn to homonormativity. Reporting on a qualitative study on the role of programmers and the actual program during BFI Flare's 30th edition, this article argues that BFI Flare employs programming strategies that are moderately queer. These strategies are used to produce a festival that is both politically engaging and commercially viable, curating a program that is considered as inclusive as possible, attractive to large and heterogeneous audiences, and as striking a balance between celebrating LGBTQ (film) culture and engendering social and political change.