Countdown to ShanghaiPRIDE 2016, June 17-26

Shanghai, June 1, 2016—The final countdown to Shanghai’s eighth annual Pride festival is underway, with 10 days of cultural, social and educational events slated for June 17-26. Pride8 will feature the theme “生为平常 I Am Me” – an “affirmation that everyone should hold, regardless of gender, sexuality or other forms of identity,” says ShanghaiPRIDE Director Raymond Phang. “Having witnessed dynamic movements over the past year, this year’s ShanghaiPRIDE hopes to revisit the fundamentals of being who we are and staying true to ourselves.”

The Pride8 multimedia theme campaign launched earlier this month features a series of visuals highlighting members of the LGBTQ community and their diverse identities, produced in collaboration with Wunderman Shanghai. In addition, a three-minute ShanghaiPRIDE 2016 video further exploring this year’s theme will be released one week before the festival, with teasers posted every Tuesday and Friday on ShanghaiPRIDE’s online platforms. The video will feature big names in the Chinese LGBTQ community, including acclaimed sociologist Li Yinhe; independent film director Fan Popo; promoters of same-sex marriage Sun Wenlin and his  partner Hu Mingliang; and more.

To further regional outreach, ShanghaiPRIDE will host two high-profile events this year. On June 25, PFLAG China’s annual conference will bring together 500 LGBTQ individuals and their families to celebrate familial support and acceptance. On June 26, the third annual Asia LGBT Milestone Awards & Business Diversity Forum (ALMA) – honoring the work of NGOs across the Asia-Pacific – will make its Mainland China debut. Organized by ELEMENT Magazine, ALMA 2016 will comprise a Diversity & Inclusion Business Forum sponsored by IBM, co-organized by WorkForLGBT and held at the Grand Kempinski Hotel Shanghai, as well as a Milestone Awards Night held at The Pearl.

The queer film component of ShanghaiPRIDE is back for its second year on June 17-26, with a focus on gender. ShanghaiPRIDE Film Festival (ShPFF) will host film screenings and panel discussions exploring transgender, non-binary, agender and queer female identities, culminating in a Queer Film Conference Day on June 25 where both aspiring and established filmmakers can meet industry professionals, network and discuss queer cinema. ShPFF will also announce the winning entry from its short film competition, which will go on to compete at the UK’s Iris Prize Festival for a £30,000 top award. More information on ShPFF – supported by Gold Sponsor Rela – can be found in the digital program to be released on June 10.

Beginning in May, ShanghaiPRIDE Theater Festival (ShPTF) will host Chinese- and English-language productions exploring themes of I Am Me. Fudan University’s gender research organization Zhihe Society kicks off the pre-Pride performances with the original production Who the Hell on May 29 and Script Reading on June 3, followed by all-female theater troupe Muju Group’s musical Seasons of Love on June 16-19. Well-known Shanghai production company Urban Aphrodite will present an adaptation of cult classic Psycho Beach Party on June 23-25. Two improv shows – Zmack Family: I Am Me on June 17 and The Improvisers’ Big Big World on June 24-25 – round out the Pride week theater offerings, with a performance commissioned by Ibsen International and produced by ErGao Dance Company’s Disco-Teca slated for July.

The iconic Pride Run and Pink BBQ are back on June 18 with Nike sponsoring the Pride Run which starts at various locations and ending at The Langham, Shanghai, Xintiandi where runners will be treated to a delicious BBQ buffet. Proceeds from the run will go to LGBTQ community organization Tongyu. Pride8 also hosts several of the year’s biggest queer parties, including the Opening Party on June 18 (sponsored by Rainbow Rabbit), Ladies Party on June 23 and Closing Party on June 25 (sponsored by IMTOY). Expect sizzling performances, prize giveaways, drink deals and more.

Also returning this year are the ShanghaiPRIDE Art & Photo Exhibition (open June 17 through July 3), highlighting the work of queer artists; a Queer Talks Panel Discussion on June 19, tackling hot-button topics that affect the LGBTQ community; queer Trivia Night on June 22 and a pan-China LGBTQ Groups Open Day hosting NGOs from around the country at Andaz Xintiandi, Shanghai, on June 25.

As always, ShanghaiPRIDE attendees can show their support by purchasing festival merchandise, including Pride8-themed apparel featuring the winning image from the t-shirt design competition.

ShanghaiPRIDE is a non-profit, volunteer-run event supported by the aforementioned sponsors, in addition to this year’s Gold Sponsor, The Dow Chemical Company. Money raised from last year’s festival was donated to the Snow Lotus Lesbian Association, Shanghai Qing’ai Health Center and Beijing LGBT Center, and proceeds from this year’s festival will support other worthy organizations working to advance LGBTQ causes in the country.

Further Pride8 event details and locations will be released closer to the festival date. Pre-register for certain events and get the latest updates at shpride.com, or follow ShanghaiPRIDE’s social media channels, including WeChat (Shanghai-PRIDE), Weibo (weibo.com/shanghaipride), Facebook (facebook.com/ShanghaiPride) and Instagram (@Shanghaipride).

Contact
Email: shanghaipride@gmail.com
Website: shpride.com

~ 生为平常 I Am Me ~