Before there was mainstream gay pornography, there was Fred Halsted and his daring approach to the genre. In L.A. Plays Itself, tracking shots of the gritty landscape of L.A. and the pastoral parkland of Malibu Canyon play backdrop to rough scenes of S&M. Yet Halsted's aesthetic approach to cinematography, narrative, and editing has earned the film a place in experimental film history, and as such it holds the distinction of being the only gay porn film in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York. The screening will be followed by a discussion with Halsted scholar William E. Jones.

Part of More Than Just Queer: Luminaries Past and Present