Jog the world's first gay gby team changed my life. So I ma a film about | Film | The Guardian

Contents:

• STEELERS: HOW ANTI-GAY ROW SPIRED GBY FILM
• STEELERS: THE WORLD'S FIRST GAY RUGBY CLUB
• HOW AMAZON PRIME’S GAY GBY DOCUMENTARY STEELERS PLETELY FLIPS THE DISURSE OF MASTREAM LGBTQ+ STORI
• INCREDIBLE DOCUMENTARY ABOUT WORLD’S FIRST GAY AND CLIVE GBY CLUB IS G TO AMAZON PRIME
• ‘STEELERS’: DOCUMENTARY ABOUT WORLD’S FIRST GAY GBY CLUB PREMIER @ LONDON LGBTQ+  FILM FTIVAL
• JOG THE WORLD'S FIRST GAY GBY TEAM CHANGED MY LIFE. SO I MA A FILM ABOUT
• NEW FILM G TO AMAZON PRIME SHOWS HOW THE WORLD’S FIRST GAY GBY CLUB SAVED LIV AND SMASHED STEREOTYP
• NEW ‘STEELERS’ DOCUMENTARY PROFIL BARRIER-BREAKG GAY BRISH GBY CLUB

STEELERS: HOW ANTI-GAY ROW SPIRED GBY FILM

We follow the journey of 3 characters the club: the lbian ach fightg misogyny, even the gay worl... We follow the journey of 3 characters the club: the lbian ach fightg misogyny, even the gay world.

STEELERS: THE WORLD'S FIRST GAY RUGBY CLUB

BunjanMay 19, 2021Contribute to this pageSuggt an ed or add missg ntentWhat is the English language plot outle for Steelers: The World's First Gay Rugby Club (2020)? Niamh LewisMar 1, 2021, 09:52 AM ETWhen Eammon Ashton-Atkson, an Atralian televisn reporter, cid to film his gby club as they went to the biannual Bgham Cup 2018, he uld never have imaged the posive reactn a documentary about would receive.The film Steelers is about London-based Kgs Cross Steelers, the world's first gay gby club and one of over 60 such sis world-wi.

HOW AMAZON PRIME’S GAY GBY DOCUMENTARY STEELERS PLETELY FLIPS THE DISURSE OF MASTREAM LGBTQ+ STORI

Although the stori the film are related to the stggl of g out, prsn, and a history of bullyg for beg gay, they're are told a way which wir dienc n empathise wh."It's a story about a gay gby club, but 's also a story about human stggle, and people g sport and their sense of muny to help each other, which is universal," Ashton-Atkson told ESPN."I've never done this before [ma a documentary], I jt knew there was a good story there to be told, but I didn't really expect such a great reactn and I was surprised that alli the straight muny really nnect wh the film."The film, released late 2020 Atralia, also highlights the challeng women the gby world face, through the team's then-director of gby Nic Evans. The former Wal ternatnal explas the tratn of beg unrtimated and overlooked her achg bee she is a woman achg a men's team."She's got a certifite for the hight achg level, and sce she left the Steelers she's been nsistently overlooked and not even shortlisted [for jobs] than men who are ls qualified and ls experienced than her, which is heart-breakg and disgtg," Ashton-Atkson says.Though beg gay 2021 wtern society is often unremarkable today, you don't have to go back very far to fd trmatic stori.

We've gone om havg the horrible experienc which had left so many big srs to now jt beg like, 'Well everythg is ok so you should jt get on wh and be grateful,'" he explas."That whiplash is what ed me the prsn bee I grew up always beg bullied everyday relentlsly, and that meant I stggled to form iendships and didn't know how."I beme very sular and cut off om my fay and so all those thgs took a long time to repair to the pot where I jo the club and for me that was the fal healg I gus I need om all those experienc."But, if 's easier to e out now, then why do we need gay gby clubs?"People say, 'Shouldn't you jt play for a straight team?' And I gus that's the whole pot of the film," he says."If I wanted to play at a straight club, I would have to qutn is safe to e out?

INCREDIBLE DOCUMENTARY ABOUT WORLD’S FIRST GAY AND CLIVE GBY CLUB IS G TO AMAZON PRIME

Will thgs be said behd my back?"That's a thought that do go through your md, and while 's generally a posive there are still pockets of homophobia."Steelers club chairman Matt Webb go even further, tellg ESPN: "I thk that still ti to the need for people to e together the same muny who have shared lived experienc.

Then, 2019, Atralia's Israel Fol spouted his famo anti-gay ments on Instagram, sayg "hell awas" gay people.Ashton-Atkson opened the drawer and started the ed aga om scratch, and turned to the unnventnal documentary has bee. Not jt some flippant throwaway ment, so y you might be good at throwg and kickg a ball but that don't give you the right to validate people for who they are."Wh beg gay, you don't thk that I grew up sperately wantg to change my sexualy, like, wishg the gay away? They were dubbed the tabloids as 'Harlequeens,' there was homophobic ments, and a fear over ntractg HIV and AIDS.

‘STEELERS’: DOCUMENTARY ABOUT WORLD’S FIRST GAY GBY CLUB PREMIER @ LONDON LGBTQ+  FILM FTIVAL

A 'what happens if they start bleedg on the pch?' attu."For those of who grew up when wasn't ok to be gay, jt really before the ter was mon, there was huge stigma. You had Margaret Thatcher's Sectn 28 [a law brought the UK by a Conservative ernment om 1988-2003 to the "prohib the promotn of homosexualy"], misnceptns about the HIV vis," Ashton-Atkson explas."For those guys who were settg up that team 1995, they were real trailblazers bee they were gog out to different teams Essex week--week out smashg down stereotyp one game of gby at a time and om what I heard, the men Essex, they had never met an openly gay man before, let alone an openly gay sportsman."For them to jt pretty much realise, 'Hey, we're pretty much the same as you'.

JOG THE WORLD'S FIRST GAY GBY TEAM CHANGED MY LIFE. SO I MA A FILM ABOUT

However, "There are still issu wh homophobia and homophobic language beg ed on the pch."And one of the thgs we've been workg on wh Harlequs and Monash Universy is that a lot of that isn't actually homophobia, 's the culture of clubs, the challeng of languag not beg followed through."People g the same words bee they want to look big and imprsive, or prove their masculy.

Joy, celebratn, acceptance – Steelers has a place for everyone (Picture: Amazon Prime)The Kg’s Cross Steelers may not be a team on your radar, whether you’re gay or straight, but few clubs will have ma que the impact of the self-ma gby teamed found a north London pub 25 years ago.

NEW FILM G TO AMAZON PRIME SHOWS HOW THE WORLD’S FIRST GAY GBY CLUB SAVED LIV AND SMASHED STEREOTYP

The film follows the Steelers as they make the biannual pilgrimage to the Bgham World Cup where, 25 years after the Steelers was formed, a further 60 clubs worldwi followed s lead, and now every two years they e together and battle out – savagely – the biggt gay gby tournament the world. As turned out, he soon found a new fay – a team of gay men om all walks of LGBTQ+ life wh a shared love, passn, and talent for the sport which many gay men have otherwise been exclud om.

The Kgs Cross Steelers attempt to w the gay gby world cup (Picture: Kgs Cross Steeelrs)‘I was lookg around the club and I realised wasn’t jt me who had felt this impact, was every sgle player. I was tryg to work out what was about gay gby that was so special and a benef for all the queer people – mental health benefs om sport and beg able to form a relatnship away om dgs and alhol as well as reclaimg that place on the sportg pch where we’re told we don’t belong.

So often, when gay people are seen on screen, our stori are tragic – ath, disease, margalisatn, abe.

NEW ‘STEELERS’ DOCUMENTARY PROFIL BARRIER-BREAKG GAY BRISH GBY CLUB

Simon is a player who me out as gay his early 30s and Steelers talks ankly about his prsn after sperately supprsg his sexualy, clgg on to hope that wouldn’t matter.

He was more than a gay man, and uld clg onto the rt of him bee surely that would be enough and life, at the very least, would be bearable. Simon didn’t e out until his early 30s and his urage is celebrated Steelers (Picture: Kgs Cross Steelers)Eventually, he told his fay and iends he was gay but was jilted when he told a bt iend, who was straight, he was love wh him. If they ronate, not only wh gay viewers but all sexuali and genrs, and if people n see hope and see you belong to somethg then the story has much more of an impact than beg a niche gay film.

A msage perhaps particularly applible to gay men. A documentary followg the world’s first gay and clive gby club – the Kg’s Cross Steelers –is headg to Amazon Prime Vio.