Jenni Olson is one of the big names of queer cinema history. Her Homo Promo series has been documenting the changing face of homosexual representation in cinema through trailers for over a decade, she is a renowned film historian and also a filmmaker, with producing credits and a feature - The Joy of Life - that was released last year. Amazingly brainy and knowledgeable, yet accessible and cool, Olson talks about her work right here, right now.

What’s your favourite trailer in Homo Promo?
Oooh! That’s so hard. My three year-old daughter’s concept of favourite doesn’t limit her to a single choice. She has innumerable favourites which is as it should be, I think. So, I would have to say: The Children’s Hour and The Killing of Sister George because they are absolutely brilliantly crafted on all levels of editing and sound design and they are like short masterworks in themselves. And also the trailer for Some of My Best Friends Are for being a completely over-the-top example of high-concept marketing. You see only a tracking shot down the length of a gay bar as a rolling text proclaims that they must refrain from showing scenes from the film because it is so shocking.

What is it about trailers that appeals to you so much?
I really do feel that they are an art form in themselves. Of course there are hundreds of tedious and unimaginative ones, and I suppose we would say the same of cinema in general. But the good ones can be so exciting and such compact glimpses of not only the film that is being promoted but the studio itself and who they think they are selling the film to. Of course this is most interesting in the case of films about any identity-based group. I have other trailer collections that look at many of these groups. For example: Afro Promo which was just released on DVD in the US looks at Black representation, and Trailers Schmailers looks at the history of Jewish representation. It really is a rich area of study.

Of course the other amazing and directly related art form are the movie posters for these films. Along with the trailers in Homo Promo I have also collected and studied the original posters and ad campaigns for LGBT films over the years. In 2004 Chronicle Books published my overview, The Queer Movie Poster Book, which is a lovely companion piece to Homo Promo and features more than 150 original movie posters with my brief commentaries on each.

You’re one of the world’s leading experts on LGBT films, what recent trends within the genre are interesting you the most right now?
Well, of course the phenomenon of Brokeback Mountain has been the most exciting thing in many years. Honestly I can’t think of a more exciting moment in the history of queer representation in the mainstream media. Well, maybe a few come close like Ellen’s coming out and the Oscar wins for Tom Hanks in Philadelphia and Hilary Swank in Boys Don’t Cry. There is much discussion now about whether the Academy is somehow homophobic in having not given Brokeback the Best Picture nod. I have to say that I’m not actually all that interested in that particular conversation and am so much more interested in the massive, massive impact the film has had on the culture at large. I daresay practically the entire population in the US has heard of the film, and very likely participated in some form of discussion about it whether they have seen it or not. To prompt this level of discussion and visibility for gay issues is, of course, one of the most exciting things about gay cinema. But I have to say that the most exciting and interesting thing to me of late is transgender representation on screen. And I was most disappointed that Transamerica didn’t take home the Best Actress Oscar for Felicity Huffman. But enough about the Oscars.

Tell us about your film The Joy of Life
I could go on and on about it but will try to be brief. The Joy of Life is an experimental landscape film that combines urban landscapes with a poetic voiceover about the history of the Golden Gate Bridge as a suicide landmark, and the story of a butch dyke in San Francisco searching for love and self-discovery. My friend Harriet "Harry" Dodge gives a spectacular voiceover performance, if I do say so myself, and the stories are punctuated by Lawrence Ferlinghettis beautiful reading of his ode to San Francisco, The Changing Light and bookended by opening and closing credits music from legendary 50s icon Weldon Kees, who had jumped off the Bridge in 1955.

The film was partly inspired by the death of my friend Mark Finch who was my co-director at the San Francisco International Lesbian and Gay Film Festival in the early 90s. Mark was also of course one of the founders of the London Lesbian and Gay Festival and worked at the BFI for many years.

The Joy of Life has had a tremendous reception everywhere that it’s played. It is a challenging film. More than an hour of very static urban landscapes with quiet soundtrack and voiceover. So, let’s just say the film’s commercial prospects are limited. But it premiered at Sundance in 2005 and has won several awards since then and continues to provoke very strong reactions from audiences. I’m very proud of it and excited for it to be released on DVD this summer in the US (and maybe someday in the UK but don’t hold your breath). I am particularly proud of it as a really bold butch story and have had such passionate responses from other butch dykes who are just so grateful and happy the film is out there.

Who’s your favourite butch character in a film? And your least favourite?
Absolutely the best butch portrayals ever put to celluloid would be Val (Harry Dodge) and Shy (Silas Howard) in By Hook or By Crook which is just such an important and amazing movie on so many levels. I was a consulting producer on the project and saw the film take shape over the years and was just so impressed and inspired with the final film. On the theme of having more than one favorite I would also have to cite Sande Zeig’s film, The Girl. The film is not everyone’s cup of tea but I love it’s melodrama and stylisation and it has one of the hottest butch protagonists of all time.

Least favorite is hard to say. This is not cinema but TV: in the first season I really hated Shane on The L Word. I just remember thinking, "You’re joking, right?" But I think the producers have really evolved the characters, well, inasmuch as a soap opera can evolve, and Shane has really grown on me.

What’s next for you?
I’m in development on a few film projects which will take years to fund and be incredibly non-commercial but heartfelt and passionate. I’m on a mission to create smart, innovative films that incorporate a butch voice and perspective. There’s something that seems so reductive and passé in talking about butch identity in this simplistic way, and yet, there really are so few butch role representations on screen and over the years it has been so important to me personally to see those images.

What else do you want to say?
Thanks so much for the opportunity to talk about my work. It was an absolute pleasure. And of course I want to point people to my various websites too.

Butch.org
Queer Movie Posters
The Joy of Life