CONTINENTAL

"If there's ever a documentary that made me wish I had a time machine…" - Indiewire

It was a setting styled for Roman nobility, established in a city surging with energy, which nurtured the mind and the body within its walls. In the steam, sex was constant and without consequences; on the stage, high-profile entertainers sang the night away. From 1968 to 1974, The Continental Baths were the centre of gay nightlife in Manhattan.

After Small Town Gay Bar and Bear Nation, filmmaker Malcolm Ingram explores the notorious venue that sparked a revolution and cemented its place in legend. Engaging anecdotes and rare archival footage celebrate the history and legacy of the bathhouse - from its evocation of the cultural zeitgeist of the time under eccentric owner (and now Sydney-based) Steve Ostrow, to its role in launching the careers of Bette Milder and her then piano player Barry Manilow.

Steve Ostrow is a guest of the festival.

D/P Malcolm Ingram TD HD Cam/2013