Homosexuality in the Media:
What’s Changed?

Throughout the 20th century, with the expansion of mass media, the figure of the homosexual underwent major transformations. Gradually, changes in society's attitudes towards these people were incorporated and/or encouraged by the mainstream media.

In movies and on TV, we see characters – previously stigmatized as villains or ridiculed in comedies – taking on broader and more significant roles in front of the general public. In the printed media, publications that were overly specific and generally marked by strong pornographic content were replaced by editorials that focused more on political, cultural and behavioral issues. Newspapers and magazines began to publish articles in which homosexuals were included in a class of individuals with great purchasing power. This recognition revealed to society men and women who were far from the freak stereotype: people who lived, worked, studied and had relationships like anyone else and who, in addition, had the potential to move a huge consumer market. Concomitantly with this new understanding, the mainstream media began to devote more space to articles with a more social content, in which a series of homosexual rights were more openly demanded. These are just factual findings, but how and why did these changes occur? What is the meaning of this transformation?

The event “Homosexuality in the Media: What’s Changed? presented a panel of these transformations to the audience at CAIXA Cultural. In July 2008, from the 8th to the 20th (in Rio de Janeiro) and from the 15th to the 20th (in São Paulo), we showed films and TV programs, and a series of debates, with the intention of shedding some light on a topic that is still so controversial for the general public.

Debates - Rio de Janeiro:

The growing exposure of the homosexual character

Moderator: Eduardo Peret

Debaters: Ricardo Linhares, Sofia Zanforlin and Gilberto Gavronski

Behavior and consumption

Moderator: Jorge Caê Rodrigues

Debaters: Adriana Nunan, Jean Willys, Wilton Garcia and Ulisses Zamboni

Homosexuality in the printed media

Moderator: João Ximenes Braga

Debaters: Luiz Garcia, Rodrigo de Araújo and Ivan Martins

The representation of homosexuals in cinema

Moderator: Denilson Lopes

Debaters: Antonio Moreno, José Gatti and Luiz Carlos Lacerda

Debates - São Paulo:

The representation of homosexuals in cinema

Moderator: Marcus Mello

Debaters: Guilherme de Almeida Prado, Christian Peterman and José Eduardo Belmonte

The growing exposure of the homosexual character

Moderator: Duda Leite

Debaters: José Celso Martinez Corrêa, Dionísio Neto and Eduardo Peret

Homosexuality in the printed media

Moderator: Vange Leonel

Debaters: Rodrigo de Araújo, André Fischer and Valmir Junior

Behavior and consumption

Moderator: Paulo Roberto Jr.

Debaters: João Silvério Trevisan, Jorge Caê Rodrigues and André Godoi

Films:

• A Gaiola das Loucas, de Mike Nichols

• Aimeé e Jaguar, de Max Farberböck

• A lei do desejo, de Pedro Almodóvar

• Antes do anoitecer, de Julian Schnabel

• Banquete de casamento, de Ang Lee

• Filadélfia, de Jonathan Demme

• Garotos de programa, de Gus Van Sant

• Madame Satã, de Karim Ainouz

• Minha adorável lavanderia, de Stephen Frears

• O paciente Zero, de John Greyson

• O segredo de Brokeback Mountain, de Ang Lee

• Paixão selvagem, de Serge Gainsbourg

• Plata quemada, de Marcelo Piñeyro

• Priscila – a Rainha do Deserto, de Stephan Elliott

• Satyricon, de Frederico Fellini

• Teorema, de Pier Paolo Pasolini

• Traídos pelo desejo, de Neil Jordan

• Tudo sobre minha mãe, de Pedro Almodóvar

Special Programming:

Curta Cinema Special Program

• Acorda, Roberta MarquesAlguma coisa assim, Esmir Filho

• Diário aberto de R., Caetano Gotardo

• Paola, Eduardo Chaves de Oliveira

• Sexo e claustro, Claudia

• Também sou teu povo, Franklin Lacerda e Orlando Pereira (14 min)

Mix Brazil Special Program

• 69 – Praça da Luz, Carolina Markowicz e Joana

• Bárbara, Carlos Gradim

• Doce e salgado, Chico Lacerda

• Furs for Adonis, Dácio Pinheiro e David Pollak

• Janela, Gustavo Duarte

• Joy Stick Joy, Rufião Xplastics

• Meu cão me ensina a viver, Filipe Moura

• Pipas, Dado Amaral

• Tá, Felipe Sholl

• A vida ao lado, Gustavo Galvão

Special Programs - Series

1. Queer as Folk Will and Grace

2. Sex and the city 

3. The L Word 

4. Desperate Housewives  Dawson’s Creek

5. Queer Eye for the Straight Guy