Join the Woodstock Film Festival & Queerly Inc. to celebrate the visionary artistry and radical legacy of James Bidgood.

This documentary is an intimate portrait of a complex but brilliant man who, despite his many challenges, left behind his incredible technicolor artistry and a legacy that will continue to shine brightly.

The evening concludes with a Q&A with Filmmaker Bart Everly, moderated by Jonathan Van Meter, veteran journalist and writer.

ABOUT THE FILM:

Director Bart Everly approached James Bidgood about a project on gay outsider artists. The more he learned about Jim, the more fascinated he became about the man whose work he had long admired. 

VELVET VISION follows Jim’s efforts as he prepares to shoot his first photograph after a forty-year hiatus, while also exploring his past as a window dresser, drag artist, and costume designer. Jim’s struggles tell a universal story: an outsider pursuing artistic goals to overcome societal ostracism. The fantasy life he creates is a way to stay connected to reality as he navigates the fine line between genius and insanity.

ABOUT THE FILMMAKER:

As a photographer, Everly has worked for magazines such as Interview, Details, Splash, Rolling Stone, New York Sunday Times Magazine, Esquire, Spin, and Vanity Fair. He has also worked as a contributing freelance writer for Detour and Interview, and for over eight years was a regular contributor to London’s top pop culture and style magazine, The Face. As a filmmaker, his award winning feature documentary LET'S GET FRANK, follows former US Representative Barney Frank (D-MA) through Bill Clinton's impeachment.