Jdocs/Graham Kolbeins
Born
Graham Kolbeins

(1987-10-23) October 23, 1987 (age 36)
Occupation(s)Filmmaker, Writer
Known forRad Queers, The House of Gay Art

Graham Kolbeins is a Canadian filmmaker, writer, and fashion designer.

Background

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Kolbeins' documentary films have focused on themes of LGBTQ art and activism, including the web series ​Rad Queers[1][2][3] and the documentary short film ​The House of Gay Art​.[4][5] As co-founder and creative director of the brand MASSIVE GOODS[6][7] Kolbeins and collaborator ​Anne Ishii​ worked with Japanese artists including gay manga artist ​Gengoroh Tagame​ and feminist artist Rokudenashiko​ to produce English translations of their work as well as fashion collections for brands including ​Opening Ceremony[8] and ​Mishka.[9]

Works

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Films

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The ​Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission ​named Kolbeins a recipient of their Creative Artists Exchange Fellowship in 2016[10], and he subsequently spent five months filming a feature documentary about sexuality and gender identity in Japan titled ​Queer Japan.[11][12] Currently in post-production, the film features a variety of artists, activists, dancers, drag queens, and everyday persons.[13] The cast includes ​Gengoroh Tagame​, drag queen and artist Vivienne Sato, transgender politician ​Aya Kamikawa, and photographer​ Leslie Kee.[13] Kolbeins’ short-form work includes ​Rad Queer​s, a series of documentary profiles on artists and activists; as well as collaborations with artist ​Rafa Esparza[14], musician ​Dorian Wood[15], writer Beau Rice[16], and the magazine​ New American Paintings​. He also created a found footage experimental short ​Food Horror​ which explored stigma towards eating embedded with the teen television drama ​Pretty Little Liars. [17][18]

Books

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Along with ​Chip Kidd​ and ​Anne Ishii​, Kolbeins is the co-editor of two books on Japanese gay art: The Passion of Gengoroh Tagame​​[19][20][21] and​ Fantagraphics​’​ anthology, ​Massive: Gay Erotic Manga and the Men Who Make It​[22][23][24], which was nominated for an Eisner​ award in 2015.[25] The team also collaborated on ​Koyama Press’ English-language edition of ​What Is Obscenity?​[26][27], a graphic memoir by the artist Rokudenashiko chronicling her arrest on obscenity charges for making 3D printed vagina art, which was nominated for a Los Angeles Times Book Award[28]

References

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  1. ^ Thibault, Simon (September 14, 2012). "Rad Queers inspire and delight". Daily Xtra. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  2. ^ Kolbeins, Graham (February 5, 2014). "Rad Queers: Edie Fake". The Comics Journal. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  3. ^ Mixner, David (January 20, 2013). "VIDEO: Payasos L.A. Is An Organization of Latino Gay Men Giving Back To the Community!". DavidMixner.com. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  4. ^ "MASSIVE – Documents Japan's Historic House Of Gay Art (Watch)". LGBT Update. February 28, 2015. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  5. ^ "Massive's pilgrimage to The House Of Gay Art". Last Gasp. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  6. ^ Rondinelli, David (March 5, 2015). "EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH MASSIVE CREATIVE DIRECTOR GRAHAM KOLBEINS". Geeks OUT. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  7. ^ "About". MASSIVE Goods. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  8. ^ Trebay, Guy (June 23, 2014). "Opening Ceremony Turns to Manga Comic Artist for Gay Pride Week". The New York Times. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  9. ^ @Mishka_LA (May 11, 2015). "This Friday from 7-10 PM Gengoroh Tagame will b here showing his artwork & doing an in-store book signing! Come hang!" (Tweet). Retrieved June 11, 2017 – via Twitter. {{Cite tweet}}: Missing or empty |number= (help)
  10. ^ "JUSFC Meet Our Grantees Series: Graham Kolbeins – Writer, Designer, Film Maker". Japan-United States Friendship Commission. December 16, 2016. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  11. ^ Nichols, James Michael (February 20, 2016). "Get An Intimate Look At Queer Life In Japan". Huffington Post. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  12. ^ Aoki, Deb (March 7, 2016). "Interview: "Queer Japan" Filmmaker Graham Kolbeins". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  13. ^ a b ""Queer Japan" Post-Production". GoFundMe. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  14. ^ "Rafa Esparza". grahamkolbeins.com. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  15. ^ "Dorian Wood". grahamkolbeins.com. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  16. ^ Kay, Jean (February 25, 2015). "An interview with Beau Rice". AQNB. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  17. ^ Stewart, Dodai (June 10, 2013). "Are You Going to Eat That? Pretty Little Liars Has Food Issues". Jezebel. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  18. ^ Gray, Emma (June 11, 2013). "'Pretty Little Liars' Food Horror Video Reveals The Show's Eating Issues". Huffington Post. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  19. ^ Thorne, James (April 30, 2013). "The Passion of Gengoroh Tagame​". Cool Hunting. Retrieved June 11, 2017. {{cite web}}: zero width space character in |title= at position 31 (help)
  20. ^ Greenwell, Garth (December 8, 2013). "Gengoroh Tagame's 'The Passion Of Gengoroh Tagame: Master Of Gay Erotic Manga': Book Review". Tower Road. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  21. ^ Cardamone, Tom (November 30, 2013). "'The Passion of Gengoroh Tagame: Master of Gay Erotic Manga' by Gengoroh Tagame". Lambda Literary Foundation. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  22. ^ Nichols, James (February 2, 2015). "'Massive: Gay Erotic Manga And The Men Who Make It,' Chronicles Gay Japanese Manga". Huffington Post. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  23. ^ Cardamone, Tom (January 13, 2015). "'Massive: Gay Erotic Manga and the Men Who Make It' Edited by Graham Kolbeins, Anne Ishii, and Chip Kidd". Lambda Literary Foundation. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  24. ^ Cummins, Chris (February 2, 2015). "Massive: An Interview With Comics Historian Graham Kolbeins". Den of Geek!. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  25. ^ Asselin, Janelle (April 22, 2015). "2015 EISNER AWARD NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED". ComicsAlliance. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  26. ^ Saba, Oliver (May 13, 2016). "What Is Obscenity? seeks to liberate the vagina through art activism". The A.V. Club. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  27. ^ Kirby, Robert (April 28, 2016). "What Is Obscenity? The Story of a Good for Nothing Artist and Her Pussy". The Comics Journal. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  28. ^ Schaub, Michael (February 22, 2017). "L.A. Times Book Prize finalists include Zadie Smith and Rep. John Lewis; Thomas McGuane will be honored". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 11, 2017.


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Category:Film directors from Vancouver Category:Writers from Vancouver Category:LGBT directors