Queer Frame Archive

A Brief History: 1933 - 1969

The Beginning

The Hays Code was a censorship and guideline body that regulated films created by major studios in the USA. In order to be allowed to be distributed, films must have attained a certificate from this (non-governmental) board to prove that they adhered to its strict censorship and regulations. This led big studio films to either remove any mention of "immoral" characters like queer people, attempt to hide their identity, or even portray them as the villains worthy of punishment.

The Rise of Independent and Underground Cinema

Independent filmmakers, who did not attain or seek wide distribution, did not have to get Hays Code approval. This allowed them greater freedom to film and portray queer characters in whatever way they wanted.

Also, as technology evolved and improved, cameras became lighter and cheaper, allowing more people to buy equipment for personal filmmaking needs. Kenneth Anger took advantage and made Fireworks, an intimate and personal exploration of his own kinks and fetishes. And groups of filmmaking crews, like Andy Warhol's "The Factory," sprang up. 

As the 1960s came around, queer communities themselves became the distribution audiences for these films, creating an insular cinematic environment. The Gay Girls Riding Club took advantage of local gay bars to screen their films, like What Really Happened to Baby Jane. Queer people made the films, starred in them, distributed them, and watched them.

This was a unique period in queer cinema history where novel independence combined with profound self-expression meant for other queer people created incredibly influential cinema. Kenneth Anger's Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome, from 1954, was even referenced over 50 years later in Lady Gaga's "Alejandro" music video.

Films

1940s

Fireworks (1947)

Of Blood, of Pleasure and of Death (1948)

The Dead Ones (1948)

Christmas USA (1949)

1950s

Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome (1954)

Narcissus (1958)

1960s

Always on Sunday (1962)

No Exit (1962)

The Roman Springs on Mrs. Stone (1963)

What Really Happened to Baby Jane (1963)

Scorpio Rising (1963)

Flaming Creatures (1963)

Christmas on Earth (Cocks and Cunts (1963)

Normal Love (1963)

My Hustler (1965)

Harlot (1965)

Chelsea Girls (1966)

Lupe (1966)

More Milk, Yvette (1966)

Hedy (1966)

The Secret of Wendel Samson (1966)

Spy on the Fly (1967)

The Illiac Passion (1967)

Orgia (1967)

Behind Every Good Man (1967)

Seeds (1968)

The Queen (1968)

Flesh (1968)

Vixen! (1968)

Chastity (1969)