“I was reading the queer story online and was trying to educate myself on a few things when I came across an article about it,” she says Blue jeans Director Georgia Oakley and remembered the first time she became aware of British law, which would eventually become the subject of her first film.
“I really couldn’t believe this was law until 2003. I left school in 2006 so this was in effect most of the time I went to school. Immediately certain things in my life started to work.”
Oakley speaks of Section 28. The notoriously controversial Local Government Act amendment, enacted by the Thatcher government in May 1988, declared that local authorities in England and Wales would not “deliberately encourage homosexuality” or “encourage instruction in a maintained school of the USA” could promote “acceptance of homosexuality as a feigned family relationship”.
No one was ever prosecuted under Section 28, which remained in effect for 15 years until it was abolished in November 2003, but the hostile environment it fostered had a profound impact on LGBTQ+ students, teachers and the broader culture that lived underneath.
This is the really tricky backdrop to Oakley’s impressive debut. Set in Tyneside in the late 80’s, it stars Rosy McEwen as Jean, a secret gym teacher whose existence is suddenly threatened when one of her teenage students shows up at the local gay bar where she, her friend Viv (Kerrie Hayes) and her friends are staying hang out in the queer community.
Ahead of the film’s UK release, we spoke to its director and leading actor about the inspiration behind the film and its relevance to today’s queer audience.
Photo: height
I have never come across anything that specifically examines the impact of Section 28 on teachers – only the impact it has had on children and students. What made you decide to approach the topic from this perspective?
Georgia Oakley: “When I found out about Section 28, I immediately thought about what it must have been like for a teacher back then. I know I had queer teachers at my school and there was no discussion about it and it was interesting for me to put myself in their shoes. At the same time, I’ve always wanted it to be a film that’s a conversation between these two generations, questioning not only the life of a teacher at the time, but also how it affected the careers of their students.
“This is something that’s very close to my heart because I feel like I’m in the queer community, no matter how long you stay in the closet, you can join this community and feel liberated by it, but then you might be a little disturbed by it the power struggles between the different generations. There are people in my own family who haven’t been outside for a very long time, and it was easy as a young person to look at their actions and wonder why they hadn’t acted differently. As I got older I started thinking a lot about why this could have happened. That was in my head too.’
It feels like over the past three or four years interest in this period of queer history has really grown, particularly as a result of the similar legal battles trans people face today.
Oakley: Absolutely. We secured our first round of funding for the film in 2018, when it was the 30th anniversary of Section 28, and just months after we started working on it, it was back in the news. I remember having conversations with people and they would say things like, “Well, the issue in schools is now the trans issue,” and I thought the same thing would happen again. And with everything that’s currently in the press [with the Gender Recognition Act] it’s on everyone’s lips again.”
Rosy McEwen: “Also, Florida’s Don’t Say Gay law is basically identical to Article 28. This makes it illegal for children to speak about sexual orientation in elementary schools on the other side of the world. It’s exactly the same, so it’s still very common.’
Photo: height
Why did you shoot the film in Tyneside?
Oakley: “A combination of factors. The research phase of the film spanned four years of interviews with people, including women, who were directly affected as lesbian physical education teachers at the time. We spoke to as many people as possible and then began collecting a handful of first-hand accounts from women who had gone through the same struggle as Jean. The people whose stories we focused on all lived in northern cities.
“I really wanted to really get to know the place so I could work the narrative around the geography and, apart from living in Newcastle and knowing the city, I felt the geography worked for the story. Most of the women we spoke to had created some kind of physical barrier between the school they worked at and the place they wanted to call home — and that’s what the film does.”
You said you wanted it to feel like a movie that was being made at the time, rather than just look like the ’80s. Why this?
Oakley: “That’s partly personal taste. In general, I tend more towards timeless classics than contemporary things. I didn’t want to do something where you can freeze every shot and know exactly what year it was from a haircut, a pair of shoes, or a TV. I wanted to make a film that felt more timeless and less about the 80s. I wanted to take this dialogue up to that point to highlight that these microaggressions, these feelings, these family dynamics are still happening.
The energy of these women was remembered me to take my ego out of the room
The film is full of real clips from radio shows and news programs from back in the day. Is there specific historical material that you discovered that influenced how you told this story?
McEwen: “Georgia in particular introduced me to two women who had lived a life similar to Jean’s in the sense that they were netball teachers. Catherine Lee worked in Liverpool and Sarah Squires worked in London. I’ve had really long, deep conversations with both of them, and a lot of their stories mirrored Jean’s experiences.’
Oakley: “The structure was heavily influenced by the stories Catherine told us: in her journal she mentioned meeting a student and how it felt when the student confronted her the next day. We already had that in the story, but we were able to talk at length with Catherine about what it was like. I was fascinated by the fact that someone could regret their behavior or actions or choices so deeply. Because they weren’t really in control and didn’t really understand what was happening.
“Sarah, the other gym teacher, talked a lot about how internalized homophobia wasn’t something people talked about because they didn’t know it existed. She shared a lot about how this paranoia and internalized homophobia affected her relationships. That was a huge inspiration for the character of Jean’s friend Viv.”
McEwen: “They also came to the set with us and both are extras in the film. Her impact and energy reminded me as an actress to take my ego out of the room and just try to tell the story as authentically as possible. That was a real privilege.”
In UK cinemas from February 9th. Read Time Out’s review here.
