The first ever lesbian and gay film festival in Lanzarote was held in the capital city Arrecife (19 -20 Jan).

Organisers Javier & Racquel who have promoted LGBT film festivals in Madrid, Fuerteventura and Tenerife, pulled off a fantastic first for the Island. The turn-out and support from the local LGBT community was incredible, with full houses and standing-room only on both nights.

Local sponsors included the only gay bar on the island, Black and White, whose owner Douglas and Spanish boyfriend Javier had no problems understanding German language short ‘My Little Boy’, which surprised audiences with a mix of Spanish and English subtitles.

Enthusiastic local supporters included local television & radio station Lancelot and Lancelot hotel, along with the Cabildo de Lanzarote. Lánzate, the collective of lesbians, gays and transsexuals of Lanzarote were in turn enthusiastic sponsors and staunch supporters, their volunteers helping with information about the films.

Ava, President of Lánzate, told us that she was ‘very excited for the LGBT people of Lanzarote about the first Cine Gay y Lésbico de Lanzarote’ we very much agreed. The venue was the César Manrique-approved Cine Brunuel CIC, El Almacén C/ José Betancort, 33 Arrecife, an intimate cinema in the centre of the city and with a reasonably priced bar - always a good thing - along with the smell of fresh coffee and friendly,helpful staff.

Saturday`s two short films were ‘El Patio de mi Casa’ and ‘Gallos’ followed by the feature ‘Finn`s Girl’.

‘El Patio de mi Casa’ was a hilarious peek at behind-closed-doors lesbian love in a traditional Spanish style. ‘Gallos’ compared the mating rituals of bulls with those of gay men. Main feature ‘Finn`s Girl’ was a Canadian story of lesbian love, a mother’s pain over a deceased lover, and the care for her daughter, set amidst the conflict of an abortion clinic under attack from pro life organisations...

Sunday served up the Thai film ‘Sheng Xia Guang Nian’ as the main contender preceded by short films ‘Trángulos’ and ‘My Little Boy’.

‘My Little Boy’ served as a poignant reminder of the ethnic cleansing and homophobia of Nazi Germany, viewed from the perspective of German photographer, Erich, who amongst his many clients enjoyed a love affair with a Nazi officer. Spanish comedy ‘Triángulos’ lifted the spirits, bringing us back to modern-day Spain where a single woman finds herself feeling broody while her two best friends try, unsuccessfully, to conceive. Spanish humour needs no subtitles. High-school students, Jonathan, Shane and Carrie, experience the perks and pitfalls of love in ‘Sheng Xia Guang Nian’, director Leste Chen's sensitive tale of friendship and yearning set in a seaside town in southern Taiwan

The Lanzarote gay guide, now known locally as La guía gay de Lanzarote, or to my mum as Simon & Ric, were taken aback by the warm reception we received from the sponsors and the LGBT people & friends of Lanzarote. After the festival we met up with the sponsors in the Star`s Bar pub, on the 17th floor of the Arrecife Gran Hotel, the tallest building on the island with panoramic views over the city and Atlantic Ocean. This was the perfect setting to relax and chat about LGBT Lanzarote. It was great to meet and chat informally with the names and faces behind the various emails and websites, and for us to offer our support for current and future LGBT events on the island.

We received some great feedback for the site www.lanzarotegayguide.com and some very kind offers of help in translating into Spanish. Both Ric and I are very thankful, it’s a big site with over 150 pages and are grateful for any help we can get translating the guide in to EU languages.

Looking forward to another wonderful Festival del Sol de Lanzarote 2009!

Simon y Ric