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As conversations around identity, belonging and inclusion become increasingly polarized, a new initiative is creating space for queer communities to tell their own stories — in their own voices. 

Supported by funding from the City of Edmonton’s initiative, the Intersectional Voices Queer Film Project is bringing together community participants, students and faculty members to collaboratively create a series of short films exploring queer intersectionality, resilience and community connection. The films will screen in Ģ����ý and Edmonton this fall. 

The project, which is being led through Social Work’s Edmonton campus, grew out of a Pride-related event organized nearly two years ago by faculty members , PhD, and , BSW’04, MSW’10, a Registered Clinical Social Worker. The pair had worked with students to host a screening of Flashback, a documentary about a historic Edmonton queer bar, followed by a panel discussion with the filmmaker. 

“What became really obvious was how hungry people were for these kinds of conversations and spaces,” says Osborne. “Students, faculty and community members showed up from across Alberta and across the country. There was this real excitement around storytelling and connection.”   

The success of that event sparked a larger idea: What if queer communities could not only gather around films, but also create them?

The result is a community-driven film series focused on stories often overlooked within mainstream queer representation. Planned films include explorations of drag performers with disabilities, queer street workers, Filipino queer sexuality, and the experiences of transgender youth. Each short film will run between five and 10 minutes. The films will be screened in community spaces and be followed by panel discussions.   

For Zulla, the medium of film offers something uniquely powerful. 

“Film is such a rich platform,” says Zulla. “It’s multilayered and multisensory. People connect emotionally to stories in ways they sometimes can’t through research papers or formal presentations. It creates space for people to really understand lived experience.”   

Central to the project is the idea of intersectionality, recognizing that queer experiences are shaped not only by sexuality or gender identity, but also by race, disability, migration, class, culture and other lived realities. 

“Queerness is much bigger and broader than the narrow stories we often see represented,” says Osborne. “When people think of queer representation, they often think of a very specific kind of story. What we’re trying to do is create space for people with intersectional identities to tell their own stories in their own ways.”   

Creating spaces to thrive  

That approach also reflects the project’s community-development philosophy. Rather than faculty members directing the films themselves, organizers are intentionally positioning community participants as creators and decision makers. 

“We really wanted to avoid a top-down approach,” says Zulla. “Community members know their communities and their own experiences. They know the stories that need to be told and how they want to tell them.” 

For Osborne, a clinical social worker who has long worked with queer youth in mental health settings, the project also reflects a commitment to creating safer and more affirming spaces for students and communities. 

“One of the things I learned very early in my career was that queer youth weren’t struggling because of who they were,” Osborne says. “They were struggling because of how they were treated. So, projects like this become about building community, connection and spaces where people feel embraced rather than othered.”   

While the films will explore difficult and complex realities, organizers say they were equally intentional about centring joy, creativity, resilience and thriving. 

“We didn’t want this to become only about trauma,” Osborne says. “These are also stories about strength, celebration, humour, survival and community.”   

Adds Zulla: “We really need to take direction from community, (for people) to tell us, this is what queer experience is … and then create spaces for not only them to survive, but to thrive.” 

A project needed now, more than ever  

Zulla says, with many supports for marginalized communities under ongoing financial and other pressures, grassroots and community-centred initiatives such as this film series become even more important. 

“When spaces that support belonging begin disappearing, communities feel that loss deeply,” says Zulla. “This project is one small way of helping create spaces where people can still gather, create and be visible.”   

Adds Osborne: “We’re in an environment right now where queerness is often being politicized and weaponized. Projects like this matter because they remind people that they are not alone, and that community still exists.” 

Strong response from community 

Although filming is still in its early stages, both organizers say the response from students and community members has already exceeded expectations. 

“What excites me most is the process,” says Osborne. “Seeing people connect, collaborate, get excited and start imagining what’s possible, that’s the real success of the project.”   

The two organizers hope the films will continue to live on beyond their initial screenings, becoming teaching tools, conversation starters and catalysts for future community storytelling projects. 

“We’re not trying to create a polished Hollywood product,” says Zulla. “We’re trying to create space for stories, for dialogue and for people to see themselves reflected.