It’s been an exciting couple of weeks for film news. TIFF has reaffirmed their commitment to #ShareHerJourney, Ontario theatres are (finally) opening, and today Inside Out announced a delicious summer film series.

Rev your engine: The Inside Out x RBC Drive-In Tour will take place at drive-in theatres across Ontario throughout July and August. 

“We are so excited to be launching The Inside Out x RBC Drive-In Summer Tour in Toronto and select locations across Ontario, with some gems from the digital festival, and the Toronto  premiere of SWAN SONG,” says Executive Director Lauren Howes. “We have missed seeing our Inside Out friends and family, and it will be so wonderful to meet you all from a distance at the drive-ins!”

Two screenings taking place at the Ontario Place Drive-In will include special pre-show musical performances showcasing First Up By RBCxMusic artists Tafari Anthony (July 24), and TÖME (July 25). We look forward to swinging our hips before reclining our seats. 

See full lineup of Inside Out’s 2021 summer film series, and start organizing your fully vaxxed carpool. 

ONTARIO PLACE DRIVE-IN (TORONTO)

Address: Ontario Place 955 Lake Shore Blvd West, Toronto
Doors Open: 7PM
Program Start: 8PM

July 23
FANNY: THE RIGHT TO ROCK (in co-presentation with Hot Docs)
Directed by: Bobbi Jo Hart
Fanny: The Right to Rock tells the story of one of the best bands—Filipina-American and LBGTQ+ bandmates included—that you have likely never heard.

July 24 
SWAN SONG
Directed by: Todd Stephens 
An aging hairdresser escapes his nursing home and embarks on an odyssey across his small town to style a dead woman’s hair for her funeral, rediscovering his sparkle along the way.

*Preceded by short film: I AM GAY
Directed by: Ajahnis Charley
After working abroad for five years, filmmaker Ajahnis Charley returns home to Oshawa, Ontario, in the age of quarantine.

*Includes pre-show musical performance by Tafari Anthony

July 25
SUMMERTIME
Directed by: Carlos López Estrada
Inspired by a showcase featuring diverse high school performers, Carlos López Estrada collaborates with young poets, many of whom are LGBTQ, to develop their work into an inspiring narrative and love letter to the youth of Los Angeles.
 
*Preceded by short film: NOOR & LAYLA
Directed by: Fawzia Mirza
Noor and Layla are breaking up. It’s the end of the road for these two Muslim women…or is it just the beginning? Five life-changing moments in their relationship are marked by the Muslim call to prayer.

*Includes pre-show musical performance by TÖME

MUSTANG DRIVE-IN (LONDON)

Address: 2551 Wilton Grove Rd, London, ON N6N 1M7
Doors Open: 7PM
Program Start: 8PM

July 28
DOUBLE FEATURE: SWEETHEART & BEYTO
 
SWEETHEART
Directed by Marley Morrison
As sun-soaked as one can get at a caravan park in Dorset, Sweetheart follows A.J. as she attempts to balance an embarrassing family vacation with the terrifying adventure of first love.
 
BEYTO
Directed by Gitta Gsell
Adapted from a novel by Swiss-Kurdish writer Yusuf Yesilöz, Beyto, which won the Prix du Public audience award at Switzerland’s Solothurn Film Festival, wrestles with the tension between cultures, and between a family’s sense of honour and a person’s need to be true to themselves.
 
*Preceded by short film: NOOR & LAYLA
Directed by: Fawzia Mirza
Noor and Layla are breaking up. It’s the end of the road for these two Muslim women…or is it just the beginning? Five life-changing moments in their relationship are marked by the Muslim call to prayer.

TORONTO OUTDOOR PICTURE SHOW (TORONTO)

Address: “Walled Fort” of Fort York National Historic Site – entry at west gates of 100 Garrison Road
Doors Open: 7:00PM
Program Start: Sundown
*This is an outdoor screening, not a drive-in

August 20
CHUTNEY POPCORN
Directed by: Nisha Ganatra
As a struggling artist and Honda-riding out-lesbian, Reena (Nisha Ganatra) feels she has nothing on her older married do-perfect sister Sarita (Sakina Jaffrey) – except her ovaries, that is. When Sarita and her husband discover that they cannot have children, Reena offers to serve as a surrogate mother. All that stands in the way is convincing her sister, mother, friends, and commitment-phobic girlfriend, Lisa (Jill Hennessey,) to go along with it.

*Preceded by short film: NOOR & LAYLA
Directed by: Fawzia Mirza
Noor and Layla are breaking up. It’s the end of the road for these two Muslim women…or is it just the beginning? Five life-changing moments in their relationship are marked by the Muslim call to prayer.
 
MUSTANG DRIVE-IN PICTON (PRINCE EDWARD COUNTY)

Address: 1521 Prince Edward County Rd 1, Bloomfield, ON K0K 1G0
Doors Open: 7PM
Program Start: 8PM

August 24
DOUBLE FEATURE: SWEETHEART & BEYTO
 
SWEETHEART
Directed by Marley Morrison
As sun-soaked as one can get at a caravan park in Dorset, Sweetheart follows A.J. as she attempts to balance an embarrassing family vacation with the terrifying adventure of first love.
 
BEYTO
Directed by Gitta Gsell
Adapted from a novel by Swiss-Kurdish writer Yusuf Yesilöz, Beyto, which won the Prix du Public audience award at Switzerland’s Solothurn Film Festival, wrestles with the tension between cultures, and between a family’s sense of honour and a person’s need to be true to themselves.
 
*Preceded by short film: PITOC E ICINAKOSIAN
Directed by: Gerry Ottawa, Jos-Onimskiw Ottawa-Dubé
Gerry and their big brother Jos show us that there is more to being different than bullying, discrimination, and harassment.

THE DRIVE-IN EXPERIENCE OTTAWA WEST (OTTAWA)

Address: RBC Festival Field – Wesley Clover Parks, 401 Corkstown Road, Nepean, ON K2H 8G2
Doors Open: 7PM
Program Start: 8PM

August 27
FANNY: THE RIGHT TO ROCK (in co-presentation with Hot Docs)
Directed by: Bobbi Jo Hart
Fanny: The Right to Rock tells the story of one of the best bands—Filipina-American and LBGTQ+ bandmates included—that you have likely never heard.

*Preceded by short film: I AM GAY
Directed by: Ajahnis Charley
After working abroad for five years, filmmaker Ajahnis Charley returns home to Oshawa, Ontario, in the age of quarantine.
 
August 28
BEYTO
Directed by Gitta Gsell
Adapted from a novel by Swiss-Kurdish writer Yusuf Yesilöz, Beyto, which won the Prix du Public audience award at Switzerland’s Solothurn Film Festival, wrestles with the tension between cultures, and between a family’s sense of honour and a person’s need to be true to themselves.
 
*Preceded by short film: PITOC E ICINAKOSIAN
Directed by: Gerry Ottawa, Jos-Onimskiw Ottawa-Dubé
Gerry and their big brother Jos show us that there is more to being different than bullying, discrimination, and harassment.

Individual tickets to the series are on sale now at insideout.ca.