It’s no secret that movies feed the travel industry, inspiring people to book trips to faraway lands; Hollywood titles are even promoted by various tourism boards in their brochures. Take the 2001 Amélie, which sent travellers to Paris, seeking a romantic Montmartre. Or Skyfall and other James Bond films, which caused tourism to soar wherever any scenes have been filmed.
Gay films are a different animal, however. Operating in a smaller arena, they don’t drive mass tourism but certainly make people curious about places they might not know well. Australia’s The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, with its wide commercial release, and Israel’s The Bubble, a hit in metropolitan regions and the film festival circuit, are two cases. Gay films can also teach viewers about the LGBT rights struggle, with a city, country or wider cultural milieu the backdrop.