“I imagine it gets uncomfortable, sitting that long with a stick up your ass.” Megan Bloomfield is living the all-American high school dream: she’s a cheerleader, popular, dating the football star, and in church every Sunday… But something doesn’t quite fit the picture. She’s a vegetarian, listens to Melissa Etheridge, and when she kisses her boyfriend, her thoughts keep drifting suspiciously often to her fellow cheerleaders. For her parents and everyone around her, the conclusion is obvious: Megan must be a lesbian. So she’s shipped off to the “rehabilitation” camp True Directions an absurdly exaggerated institution devoted to “sexual reorientation.” Between dress codes, group therapy, and forced conformity, we follow Megan on a journey of new friendships, first love, and finally, finding herself. Despite poor reviews and a limited release, “But I’m a Cheerleader” created by a queer director has become an iconic representation of queer women and still enjoys a fiercely loyal fanbase today.

Loan of the film print with kind support of Filmarchiv Austria.

Here is a very successful music video from HfG history. Rotated on VIVA, MTV, etc. According to the professors' verdict (see trailer), the industry is being fought with its own weapons. Consumer criticism as a Trojan horse with a six-pack – but it works surprisingly well... How do you make someone realize that what they are watching is bullshit? According to the verdict of our panel of experts (see trailer) in the film review, we are witnessing social criticism in which the industry is being beaten with its own weapons. Or perhaps this production was successful because it shows what we all want to see when we watch MTV. Spookily contrasting claims – as always, the truth probably lies somewhere in the middle.

Print from the collection of Kino im Blauen Salon (HfG KA)