QFest St. Louis Presents the St. Louis Premiere of TOM OF FINLAND March 7th at The Tivoli

The 11th Annual QFest St. Louis, presented by Cinema St. Louis, is proud to host the local premiere of Finnish biopic TOM OF FINLAND at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 7, at the Tivoli Theatre. The event will serve as an early kickoff for the 2018 QFest St. Louis, which will be held April 4-8 at .ZACK. QFest’s full schedule will be announced at the “Tom of Finland” screening, which is sponsored by Cheap TRX.

The film is a  moving and often inspiring tale that spans several decades in the life of the internationally renowned artist Touko Laaksonen, most commonly known as Tom of Finland. His proudly erotic drawings shaped the fantasies of a generation of gay men, influencing art and fashion before crossing over into the wider cultural consciousness.

Dome Karukoski’s stirring biopic follows Laaksonen’s life from the difficulties of World War II and the repressive Finnish society of the 1950s through his struggle to get his work published in California, where he and his art were finally embraced amid the sexual revolution of the 1970s. Tom’s story is one of love, courage, and perseverance, mirroring the gay-liberation movement for which his leather-clad studs served as a defiant emblem.

The critics love TOM OF FINLAND

Gary Goldstein of The Los Angeles Times says:

“TOM OF FINLAND entertainingly recounts an intriguing and vital chapter of 20th-century gay history with style and deference.”

Matthew Anderson at CineVue claims:

“Artistic expression as means of self-determination and liberation from oppression is explored to poignant effect in TOM OF FINLAND”

and André Hereford at Metro Weekly declares:

“More delicately, TOM OF FINLAND brings to life the desire that lit the artist’s genius, until he’d filled the entire world with leather gods and muscle studs.”

The Tivoli Theatre is located at 6350 Delmar Blvd. in the U. City Loop. Tickets are $13 each or $10 for students and Cinema St. Louis members with valid and current IDs. Tickets are on sale now at the Tivoli or on Landmark Theater’s ticketing site: landmarktheatres.com/Booking/tivoli-theatre/5783651.

The 2018 QFest St. Louis begins on Wednesday, April 4, and runs through Sunday, April 8. All screenings will be held at .ZACK,. 3224 Locust St. in Grand Center. Advance sales will be available through MetroTix. The schedule of screenings, events, trailers, and full descriptions of the films will appear on the festival website at cinemastlouis.org/qfest. The official QFest St. Louis page on Facebook is facebook.com/QFestSTL.

QFest St. Louis, a presentation of Cinema St. Louis, is sponsored by Jeffrey T. Fort, AARP in St. Louis, Whitaker Foundation, Regional Arts Commission, Missouri Arts Council, Arts & Education Council, Coffee Cartel, Dekkoo, Just John Nightclub, Dennis Gorg Trust, Mark Utterback, and Michael Reiser.

Check back here at We Are Movie Geeks for more coverage of QFest St. Louis