Cause+Effect

Jenni Olson has been programming, researching, collecting, creating, and writing about lesbian, gay, bi and transgender (LGBT) film since 1986 and is one of the world’s leading experts on LGBT cinema history.

In 1995, Jenni was one of the co-founders of PlanetOut.com, where she established the massive queer movie resource and database, PopcornQ and launched the first showcase for LGBT streaming media, the PlanetOut Online Cinema as well as founding the PlanetOut Short Movie Awards. She is also very proud to be co-founder of the Queer Brunch at Sundance; the annual LGBT event she created in 1998 has grown to become the largest queer party at the Sundance Film Festival.

As a film collector and archivist Jenni’s historical movie trailer programs (including the ever-popular: Homo Promo which is now available on DVD) have been shown at film festivals around the world, as have her many short films and videos (Sometimes, Meep! Meep!, Blue Diary, Matzo Maidels, Blow Up, Sing Along San Francisco). Her debut feature film, The Joy of Life world premiered at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival and went on to play a pivotal role in renewing debate about the need for a suicide barrier on the Golden Gate Bridge, as well as garnering praise from critics and audiences around the globe for its unique storytelling style.

In addition to her two decades of curatorial experience (including stints at the Minneapolis/St. Paul and San Francisco LGBT Film Festivals) Jenni has written extensively about LGBT film for such publications as The Advocate, Curve Magazine, Filmmaker Magazine, indieWIRE.com, PlanetOut.com and the San Francisco Bay Guardian. Her wildly entertaining coffee table tome, The Queer Movie Poster Book was a 2005 Lambda Literary Award nominee. Jenni continues to advise and assist filmmakers on a variety of projects as well as spearheading such continuing LGBT filmmaker resources as the WolfeQueerFestDirectory, the LGBT Film & Video Professionals Resource List and the PQProfessionals Yahoo Group.

Jenni has done extensive work as a film programmer and public speaker, as well as serving on numerous film festival juries, grants panels and screening committees. She is also a founding member of the advisory board for Outfest’s Legacy Project for LGBT film preservation. She can be seen in several documentary films offering her perspectives on LGBT cinema history, most notably two documentaries on which she served as associate producer: Jodie: An Icon (a 1996 British Channel 4 exploration of Jodie Foster as an icon for lesbians) and more recently the IFC documentary, Fabulous! The Story of Queer Cinema.

Jenni’s most recent short film, 575 Castro St. premiered at Sundance 2009 and should be coming soon to a film festival near you — it can also be seen online at FilmInFocus.com. She is currently in development on a new feature called, The Royal Road: or Get Me Guinevere Turner.

In 2007 Jenni was honored as “one of the Top Ten Amazing Women in Showbiz” by Power Up, the Los Angeles-based organization for gay women in the entertainment industry. In 2005 she received the Outfest Award for Outstanding Artistic Achievement, the NewFest Award for Best U.S. Screenplay and a commendation from the City and County of San Francisco in recognition of her groundbreaking experimental documentary, The Joy of Life. More recently Jenni earned a spot (number 74 to be exact) on the TopHotButches.com list of the Top 100 Butches of 2009!

Jenni continues to champion LGBT cinema on a daily basis in her role as director of e-commerce at WolfeVideo.com. She lives in San Francisco with her partner, Julie and their two daughters, Hazel and Sylvie.

Current Press Opportunities

(Suitable for arts & entertainment press, film industry press, women’s interest, LGBT press)

“As a trailblazing queer media historian, activist and online pioneer Jenni has been a longtime champion of LGBT film and filmmakers around the world. With her vast expertise on gay and lesbian film history and contemporary LGBT media images she offers a unique perspective on how far we’ve come in terms of LGBT images on the big screen, the small screen, and the computer screen.”

Contact Information

Cause+Effect
888.829.0004 [main]
866.843.6697 [fax]
JenniOlson@cause-pr.com