Jenni Olson (born October 6, 1962) is a writer, archivist, historian, consultant, and non-fiction filmmaker based in Berkeley, California. She co-founded the pioneering LGBT website

PlanetOut.com PlanetOut, Inc. is an online media company or entertainment company exclusively targeting the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) demographic. Originally founded as an early internet-based media company by Tom Reilly in 1995, it operat ...

. Her two feature-length essay films — ''

The Joy of Life ''The Joy of Life'' is a 2005 experimental landscape documentary film by filmmaker Jenni Olson about the history of suicide at the Golden Gate Bridge, and the adventures of a butch lesbian in San Francisco, California. Following its January 2005 ...

(2005)'' and ''

The Royal Road ''The Royal Road'' is a 2015 documentary film directed by Jenni Olson. The film premiered in the New Frontier section of the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. In the film's voiceover, Olson reflects on her butch identity and experiences of unrequited ...

(2015)'' — premiered at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...

. Her work as an experimental filmmaker and her expansive personal collection of LGBTQ film prints and memorabilia were acquired in April 2020 by the

Harvard Film Archive The Harvard Film Archive (HFA) is a film archive and cinema located in the Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Dedicated to the collection, preservation and exhibition of film, the HFA houses a c ...

, and her reflection on the last 30 years of LGBT film history, in ''The Oxford Handbook of Queer Cinema'', is forthcoming from

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

in 2021. In 2020, she was named to the

Out Magazine ''Out'' is an American LGBTQ news, fashion, entertainment, and lifestyle magazine, with the highest circulation of any LGBTQ monthly publication in the United States. It presents itself in an editorial manner similar to '' Details'', ''Esquire' ...

Out 100 list. In 2021, she was recognized with the prestigious Special

TEDDY Award The Teddy Award is an international film award for films with LGBT topics, presented by an independent jury as an official award of the Berlin International Film Festival (the Berlinale). In the most part, the jury consists of organisers of gay ...

at the

Berlin Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...

. She also campaigned to have a barrier erected on the Golden Gate Bridge to prevent suicides.

Biography

Olson was born and raised in

Falcon Heights, Minnesota Falcon Heights is a suburb of Saint Paul and a city in Ramsey County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 5,321 at the 2010 census. It became a village in 1949 and a city in 1973. Falcon Heights is the home of the University of Minn ...

and was educated at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

where she earned her degree in Film Studies. In 1986, while still a student, Olson co-founded the Minneapolis/St.Paul Lesbian, Gay, Bi & Transgender Film Festival, initially under the name Lavender Images. Olson was inspired in this move by

Vito Russo Vito Russo (July 11, 1946 – November 7, 1990) was an American LGBT activist, film historian, and author. He is best remembered as the author of the book '' The Celluloid Closet'' (1981, revised edition 1987), described in ''The New York Tim ...

's book, ''

The Celluloid Closet ''The Celluloid Closet'' is a 1995 American documentary film directed and written by Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman. The film is based on Vito Russo's 1981 book ''The Celluloid Closet: Homosexuality in the Movies'', and on lecture and film clip ...

''. In 1992, Olson was hired by the company Frameline and moved to San Francisco to work as guest curator on the

San Francisco International Lesbian and Gay Film Festival The Frameline Film Festival (aka San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival) (formerly San Francisco International LGBT Film Festival; San Francisco International Lesbian and Gay Film Festival) began as a storefront event in 1976. The first ...

, before being appointed co-director alongside

Mark Finch Mark Finch (21 October 1961 – 14 January 1995) was an English promoter of LGBT cinema. Having founded and expanded several international film festivals he created the first LGBT film market for distributors, sales agents, and independent film p ...

. After three years, Olson left this position to co-found the website PlanetOut.com. Olson worked as director of entertainment and e-commerce for the site, as well fulfilling the same roles for

Gay.com Gay.com was a chat, personals, and social networking website catering to the LGBT community. The site was a digital brand of Here Media Inc. In addition to community features, the site featured LGBT-related news and features. As of September ...

. She created the PopcornQ section of the PlanetOut.com website, basing the section on her book ''The Ultimate Guide to Lesbian & Gay Film and Video.'' In 1997, Olson attended the Sundance Festival and arranged, along with

Outfest Outfest is an LGBTQ-oriented nonprofit that produces two film festivals, operates a movie streaming platform, and runs educational services for filmmakers in Los Angeles. Outfest is one of the key partners, alongside the Frameline Film Festival ...

executive director

Morgan Rumpf Morgan may refer to: People and fictional characters * Morgan (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Morgan le Fay, a powerful witch in Arthurian legend * Morgan (surname), a surname of Welsh origin * Morgan (singer) ...

, a small brunch aimed at fellow queer attendees. The event has happened annually since then being co-presented by PlanetOut.com and Outfest until 2005. Since the demise of PlanetOut, it is now presented solely by Outfest. The sponsors described it in 2005 as "the premiere gay and lesbian industry event during Sundance". By March 2005, Olson was named Director of E-Commerce & Consumer Marketing for

Wolfe Video Wolfe Video is the oldest and largest exclusive producer and distributor of LGBT films in North America. Founded in 1985 in New Almaden by Kathy Wolfe, the company began as a consumer mail order distribution company for lesbian VHS videos but ha ...

/Wolfe Releasing. In 2021, she was recognized with the Special

at the

— for her service to the

LGBTQ ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is ...

film community. Olson is currently co-director of The Bressan Project, devoted to restoring and re-releasing the films of pioneering gay filmmaker

Arthur J. Bressan Jr. Arthur J. Bressan Jr. (May 27, 1943 - July 29, 1987) was an American director, writer, producer, documentarian and gay pornographer, best known for pioneering independent queer cinema in the United States during the 1970s and 1980s. He wrote and di ...

Her work as a film historian includes the

Lambda Literary Award Lambda Literary Awards, also known as the "Lammys", are awarded yearly by Lambda Literary to recognize the crucial role LGBTQ writers play in shaping the world. The Lammys celebrate the very best in LGBTQ literature.The awards were instituted i ...

-nominated ''The Queer Movie Poster Book'' and her many vintage movie trailer presentations (''Homo Promo'', ''Afro Promo'', etc.). Jenni's film criticism has appeared in numerous publications including

Filmmaker Magazine ''Filmmaker'' is a quarterly publication magazine covering issues relating to independent film. The magazine was founded in 1992 by Karol Martesko-Fenster, Scott Macaulay and Holly Willis. The magazine is now published by the IFP (Independent F ...

, The Advocate, and the

San Francisco Bay Guardian The ''San Francisco Bay Guardian'' was a free alternative newspaper published weekly in San Francisco, California. It was founded in 1966 by Bruce B. Brugmann and his wife, Jean Dibble. The paper was shut down on October 14, 2014. It was relaun ...

and she is currently a film columnist for

Logo TV Logo TV (often shortened to Logo, and stylized as Logo.) is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Media Networks, a division of Paramount Global. Launched in 2005, Logo was originally dedicated to lifestyle and entertainment progra ...

's NewNowNext. In July 2021, Olson also joined

GLAAD GLAAD (), an acronym of Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, is an American non-governmental media monitoring organization originally founded as a protest against defamatory coverage of gay and lesbian demographics and their portrayals ...

to lead their Social Media Safety Program.

Career

Olson initially compiled trailers into documentary features, showing ''Homo Promo'', her compilation of vintage gay movie trailers at the Amsterdam Gay & Lesbian Film Festival in 1991, and her work in this area has been recognised as instructional in teaching students contextualisation. She continued compiling trailers throughout the 1990s, with her last such compilation released being ''Bride of Trailer Camp'', released in 2001 (others in the series include: "Trailer Camp", "Neo Homo Promo", "Afro Promo", "Trailers Schmailers"). During this period Olson also wrote ''Ultimate Guide to Lesbian & Gay Film and Video'' (1996). The book was based on Olson's BA thesis. Her next book was ''The Queer Movie Poster Book'' ( Chronicle Books, 2005). This book was suggested in 1991 by

Stuart Marshall Stuart may refer to: Names * Stuart (name), a given name and surname (and list of people with the name) Automobile *Stuart (automobile) Places Australia Generally *Stuart Highway, connecting South Australia and the Northern Territory Northe ...

, who recommended Olson pitch the idea to London's

Gay Men's Press Gay Men's Press was a publisher of books based in London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1979, the imprint was run until 2000 by its founders, then until 2006 by Millivres Prowler. Overview Launched in 1979 by Aubrey Walter, David Fernbach, and Rich ...

. Although the book was turned down by both them and

Serpent's Tail Serpent's Tail is London-based independent publishing firm founded in 1986 by Pete Ayrton. It specialises in publishing work in translation, particularly European crime fiction. In January 2007, it was bought by a British publisher Profile Book ...

, to whom the idea was pitched as a follow up to her previous book, Olson was eventually commissioned to write the book in 2002 (published in 2005, it went on to be a

Lambda Literary Awards Lambda Literary Awards, also known as the "Lammys", are awarded yearly by Lambda Literary to recognize the crucial role LGBTQ writers play in shaping the world. The Lammys celebrate the very best in LGBTQ literature.The awards were instituted i ...

nominee). Olson based the work in part on her own collection of such material, which she has subsequently donated to San Francisco’s

GLBT Historical Society The GLBT Historical Society (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Historical Society) (formerly Gay and Lesbian Historical Society of Northern California; San Francisco Bay Area Gay and Lesbian Historical Society) maintains an extensive collection ...

. Her collection was exhibited at the San Francisco Public Library in 2004, with Olson delivering an accompanying lecture. In 2005, Olson released ''

'', her debut feature, which won Best Outstanding Artistic Achievement at the 2005

and at the 2005 Newfest received Best U.S. Narrative Screenplay, and has been favorably reviewed in a number of publications. It garnered Olson the Marlon Riggs Award by the

San Francisco Film Critics Circle The San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle (SFBAFCC), formerly known as San Francisco Film Critics Circle, was founded in 2002 as an organization of film journalists and critics from San Francisco, California based publications. Included in it ...

in 2005. Working on the film led Olson to pen an open letter to the ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. de ...

'' on the matter of the

Golden Gate Bridge The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. The structure links the U.S. city of San Francisco, California—the northern tip of the San Francisco Pen ...

's position as the top suicide landmark in the world. Her former colleague, Mark Finch, had jumped from the bridge on January 14, 1995, and Olson used this event to inform her own film. Her letter was published on the tenth anniversary of Finch's death and supported the

Psychiatric Foundation of Northern California Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of mental disorders. These include various maladaptations related to mood, behaviour, cognition, and perceptions. See glossary of psychiatry. Initial psych ...

's launching of a campaign for a barrier to be installed on the bridge. Olson also distributed her film to the bridge's board of directors, noting "several of the bridge directors told me they appreciated seeing the film and found it illuminating", and in March 2005, the board voted to explore the installation of a barrier to prevent jumping. Olson's 2009 short film, ''575 Castro St.'' was shot on the empty Castro Camera store set of the Academy Award-winning drama ''

Milk Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digestion, digest solid food. Immune factors and immune ...

''. In 2015, Olson's film, ''

'' premiered at the 2015

. In 2019, Olson directed a short film, ''In nomine Patris''. She is currently in development on an

experimental film Experimental film or avant-garde cinema is a mode of filmmaking that rigorously re-evaluates cinematic conventions and explores non-narrative forms or alternatives to traditional narratives or methods of working. Many experimental films, parti ...

, ''The Quiet World''.

Bibliography

* ''Dagger: On Butch Women'' (1995), (contributor)

Cleis Press Cleis Press is an American independent publisher of books in the areas of sexuality, erotica, feminism, gay and lesbian studies, gender studies, fiction, and human rights. The press was founded in 1980 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It later moved to ...

, * ''Cookin’ with Honey'' (1996), (contributor)

, * ''Lesbian Words: State of the Art'' (1996), (contributor) Richard Kasak Books, * ''Images in the Dark: An Encyclopedia of Lesbian and Gay Film'' (1996), (contributor) Plume, * ''The Ultimate Guide to Lesbian & Gay Film and Video'' (1996), (editor)

, * ''The Queer Movie Poster Book'' (2004), (author) Chronicle Books, * ''The Queer Encyclopedia of the Visual Arts'' (2006), (contributor)

Filmography

* ''Levi’s 501s Commercial'' (1991), experimental video * ''Sometimes'' (1994), experimental video * ''Blow-Up'' (1997), experimental video * ''Blue Diary'' (1998) * ''Meep Meep!'' (2000), experimental video * ''

By Hook or by Crook "By hook or by crook" is an English phrase meaning " by any means necessary", suggesting that any means possible should be taken to accomplish a goal. The phrase was first recorded in the Middle English ''Controversial Tracts'' of John Wyclif in ...

'' (2001), consulting producer * ''Sing Along San Francisco'' (2002), producer * ''Matzo Maidels'' (2003) * ''

'' (2005) * ''575 Castro St.'' (2009) * ''

'' (2015) * ''AWOL'' (2016), consulting producer * ''The Freedom to Marry'' (2016), producer * ''In nomine Patris'' (2019) * ''A Worm in the Heart'' (2020), consulting producer * '' Disclosure: Trans Lives on Screen'' (2020), consulting producer * '' Equal'' (2020), archival producer * ''No Straight Lines: The Rise of Queer Comics'' (2021), consulting producer

Awards and nominations

References

External links

*
Olson's personal website

Olson's journalism archive and website profile

Official site for ''The Joy of Life''

Official site for ''575 Castro St.''

Official site for ''The Royal Road''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Olson, Jenni 1962 births Living people American documentary filmmakers American experimental filmmakers American women screenwriters Lesbian artists American lesbian writers LGBT film directors American LGBT screenwriters American women documentary filmmakers Women experimental filmmakers LGBT people from Minnesota Film directors from Minnesota Screenwriters from Minnesota People from Falcon Heights, Minnesota University of Minnesota alumni MacDowell Colony fellows 21st-century American women