Q Cinema, the LGBTQ+ film festival that went dark during the pandemic, is coming back to Fort Worth this November after a four-year absence. The 2026 edition runs November 13 through 15 at Amphibian Stage in the Near Southside, with three feature films that have screened at notable festivals such as Cannes and Toronto.
The revival is being organized by Trinity Pride Fort Worth, which is taking over stewardship of a festival that has served the city's LGBTQ+ community for nearly three decades, according to CultureMap Fort Worth. Trinity Pride president Roger Calderon said the festival's return would “honor what came before” and offer “a place to see our lives and stories reflected on screen,” per the same report. Calderon added that Trinity Pride now has the privilege of stewarding the festival.
Q Cinema's comeback also marks a major anniversary: the festival was founded in 1996 by journalist Todd Camp as a casual discussion group, according to Q Cinema's Instagram account. Camp, who spent 18 years as a writer at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, served as artistic director for 14 years. The gathering reportedly began in a living room discussion group in Southside Fort Worth before Camp and Shawn Moore developed it into a full festival format in 1999, per CultureMap's reporting, and it went on to provide year-round programming and an annual festival across Fort Worth for more than two decades.
A Legacy That Drew Leslie Jordan and John Waters
Before going dormant during the COVID-19 pandemic, Q Cinema hosted notable cultural figures in Fort Worth, including actor Leslie Jordan and filmmaker John Waters, according to KERA. Camp went on to establish YesterQueer, Tarrant County's LGBTQ+ history project, in 2020, documenting and displaying local queer history through community exhibits, the station reports. He has since exhibited historical Q Cinema artifacts at Trinity Pride Fest.
Trinity Pride arrives as steward with considerable organizational muscle. The group produced the largest Pride celebration in Fort Worth's history in 2026, drawing more than 12,500 attendees, according to Trinity Pride Fort Worth. Trinity Pride Fest also gives the organization a built-in audience as it takes on a three-decade-old film festival.
Three Days, Three Festival-Circuit Films
The 2026 lineup transforms Amphibian Stage's 100-seat house into a digital cinema for three days of documentary films, short films, retrospective showcases and regional Texas films, per CultureMap's reporting. The schedule also includes filmmaker conversations, panel discussions and community gatherings built around the screenings.
Opening night belongs to Bookends, screening Friday, November 13 at 7 p.m. Written by and starring Noam Ash, alongside F. Murray Abraham, Caroline Aaron and Charlie Barnett, the comedy-drama is directed by Mike Doyle and explores intergenerational relationships and early-stage dementia inside a Jewish retirement facility. The film world-premiered at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival in February 2026, where it won the festival's Stand Up Award, according to Wikipedia.
Saturday, November 14 brings Clarissa, directed by Arie and Chuko Esiri and starring Sophie Okonedo and David Oyelowo, screening at 7 p.m. The 35mm film reimagines Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway in contemporary Lagos, Nigeria. It premiered at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival's Directors' Fortnight and screened at the New York Film Festival ahead of a scheduled December 2026 U.S. theatrical release by Neon, according to Film at Lincoln Center.
The festival closes Sunday, November 15 at 7 p.m. with Jaripeo, a hybrid documentary directed by Efraín Mojica and Rebecca Zweig that journeys into Michoacán's rodeo culture. The film examines a hidden queer subculture within traditional Mexican rodeos and had its world premiere in the NEXT section of the 2026 Sundance Film Festival before screening at the Berlin International Film Festival.
Amphibian Stage and Q Cinema's Fall Return
Amphibian Stage sits at 120 S. Main St. in Fort Worth. The venue itself has deep local theatrical roots, having been founded by Texas Christian University graduates, including playwright Kathleen Culebro, per Arts and Culture Texas Magazine.
Festival-goers can purchase all-access passes starting October 22, the same day Q Cinema plans to announce its complete schedule and remaining film selections, per CultureMap. Individual screening tickets go on sale November 2 at trinitypridefw.org.
