RADIANCE: Queer Joy Screening & Performances

To experience unapologetic joy in the face of constant adversity is powerful. Coming together as a community, when others tell you that you don’t belong, can be life-changing.

Queer joy is important.

EMMEDIA Gallery & Production Society is thrilled to present Radiance: Queer Joy Screening and Performances on Friday, September 4, as part of Calgary Culture Days.

The first event kicks off at the Heather Edwards Theatre at Contemporary Calgary. We will present a selection of 4 short films created in Alberta, curated by Justin Larioza, highlighting the creativity and resilience of our queer communities. See yourself represented on the big screen in narratives about celebration, optimism and diverse queer experiences.

Event Schedule 

• 6:30PM: Event Start and Land Acknowledgement
• 6:35PM: Screening of 4 Short Films 
• 7:15PM: Intermission
• 7:30PM: 3 Performances
• 8PM: End

About the Artists

 

Justin Larioza

Justin is a Calgary-based filmmaker and dancer whose creative path began in 2017. Evolving from Breakdancing and Waacking, to Vogue Femme, he discovered his artistic home in Ballroom culture. By 2020 his path expanded into film school, where he found his love for directing, writing, and producing. As one of the co-founding members of The Kiki House of Galore (Est. 2022), and an active leader with VogueYYC, he plays a key role in developing the city’s growing ballroom scene. His short films and independent projects have been featured across local venues, and he aims to continue developing as a writer, director, dancer and a community leader.

Mara Liao Esnard

Mara, born in Cuba, is a dancer, educator, and choreographer passionate about sharing the art of movement. A graduate of the National Ballet School of Havana, she began her career teaching and performing with Sol Dance Company. Since 2015, she has built a vibrant path in Calgary’s arts community, collaborating in festivals, performances, and collective projects. Since 2020, Mara has been part of Decidedly Jazz Danceworks, where she continues to explore jazz as both an artistic and human language. Her multicultural heritage—Asian, African, and Hispanic—deeply informs her artistry, bringing richness, diversity, and authenticity to her work and teaching.

Herlinda Dalayoan

Herlinda Dalayoan is an emerging media artist creating works around cultural identity through analogue and digital lens-based mediums, performance, and installation. Born in Winnipeg, MB, and currently based in Calgary, AB, Dalayoan is a second-generation Filipino-Canadian whose work investigates identity through the ambiguous space between cultures. Dalayoan previously attended the University of Manitoba School of Art and is now continuing her B.F.A. at Alberta University of the Arts, majoring in Media Arts with a concentration in Time-Based Art. Dalayoan has exhibited work in group exhibitions across Winnipeg, including AceArt Inc. and PLATFORM Centre for Photographic & Digital Arts. She has also screened films at the WNDX Film Festival, Winnipeg Underground Film Festival (WUFF), and SALA Film Festival.

Proudly supported by Calgary Culture Days, City of Calgary, Calgary Arts Development, Alberta Foundation for the Arts, and Canada Council for the Arts.