No Longer Silent Presents DIFFERENT FROM THE OTHERS June 4 at Saturn at 7pm

No Longer Silent

No Longer Silent is an opportunity to highlight significant and historic silent films with live accompaniment from local music talent to create a one of a kind experience. Performances are followed by panel discussions from local organizations giving audiences an opportunity to discuss and reflect on the ideas and concepts presented.

Different from the Others 

A landmark film almost lost to history, Different from the Others (1919) is widely considered the first feature-length film aimed at a specifically gay audience made all the more significant for its humanistic depiction of gay men and its explicit plea for the end of their social and legal persecution. Soon-to-be screen legend Conrad Veidt plays Paul Koerner, a celebrated concert violinist who lives under constant fear of blackmail and imprisonment because of Germany’s antigay law, Article 175. When his relationship with a new protégé raises suspicions, all of Koerner’s fears become real. The Archive’s restoration is based on an earlier restoration by the Munich Filmmuseum with some new additions including intertitles derived from a German synopsis, censorship records and other sources that bridge missing scenes, including a lecture by a “sexologist” who argues, on the basis of biological fact, for the equality and acceptance of homosexuality. Though film still only exists as a fragment, Different from the Others remains a compelling artifact from a fleeting progressive moment in German and cinema history. - Description from the UCLA Film and Television Archives.

Domesticatrix (Doe-Mess-Tick-Aye-Tricks) is a solo Industrial project born from Birmingham, Alabama’s DIY scene. Beginning with live shows in the winter of 2022, Domesticatrix finds the sweet spot between Industrial, Gabber, Digital Hardcore, Electroclash, and Power Electronics, with a tantalizing mix of FM Synthesis, hard hitting EBM-beats, and screeching feedback through Francine’s homemade collar microphone that she uses for vocals. 

With the release of “Play >” in April of 2023 on Pittsburgh’s own Cleaner Tapes, Domesticatrix has increased her fervor with the released of “Beyond The Empty Promise of Survival” in October of 2023, a split with BLESSENED (FKA Kosugi), that was released via Rip Requests. She just released “living hyperreal: off the soundboard” in April 2024, a raw document of her April 2024 East Coast Tour, recorded live in Cincinnati and Pittsburgh. B.O.R.N. Domesticatrix, a split with Birmingham’s own crust-rockers B.O.R.N. releases summer 2024 on Open Palm Tapes.

Panelists:

Invisible Histories-

 Joshua Burford is the Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director of Invisible Histories. Invisible Histories is a regional non-profit focused on the preservation, access, and research of the diverse Queer and Trans history of the American South. Josh is an award-winning historian, archivist, and educator with over 20 years of experience creating stronger communities for Queer and Transgender people across the U.S. He is perhaps best known for his work to preserve and make accessible the Queer history of the American South through the development of archival collections and oral histories.

Maigen Sullivan is the co-founder and Co-Executive Director of Invisible Histories, a nonprofit locating, researching, and creating educational content around LGBTQ history in the Deep South. Maigen has been in this role since 2018 and has previously worked or taught at several institutions including The University of Alabama, University of Alabama at Birmingham, and University at Buffalo. She has over 15 years of experience in education, social justice, diversity & inclusion, and research. Maigen earned her BA in History and her MA in Women’s Studies from The University of Alabama (UA). She earned her Doctorate in Educational Studies of Diverse Populations from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). Maigen was named a 2020 National Association of Multicultural Education (NAME) Emerging Scholar. She was recognized by the Society of American Archivists Innovator of the Year award in 2020 and the Marvin Yeoman Whiting Award given by the Society of Alabama Archivists in 2021. 

Josh Bruce is the Director of New Initiatives at the Magic City Research Institute at BAO (Birmingham Aids Outreach)

With 11 years of experience working with infectious diseases (including HIV, hepatitis C, STIs, HPV, COVID-19, and mpox), Josh began his career with BAO managing all aspects of HIV/STI and hepatitis C testing while working closely with newly diagnosed individuals needing medical care for treatment. His research efforts focus on LGBTQ+ health and communicable diseases with the definitive goal of improving health outcomes for marginalized communities. Josh holds an MPH from UAB and has worked on a number of collaborative projects with other institutions such as Columbia University, the University of Pittsburgh, HIV Prevention Trials Network, CDC, and the NIH.