Giving Thanks: Q Allan Brocka

In the same way that gay characters have gained prominence in an abundance of television shows they have also gained exposure in animated television comedies. This is why the person we’re giving thanks to this week is Q Allan Brocka.

There have been a selection of gay and lesbian themed shows around the world in recent times and gay characters have gained prominence in a wide variety of television series – just look at British soaps. But one genre that has increased over the last 10 years is the animated comedy show. Initially we had The Simpsons and then South Park, and then along came Seth MacFarlane with a whole host of animated shows in the shape of Family Guy, American Dad and The Cleveland Show. But there has only been one gay-centric animated comedy, and that was thanks to Brocka.

Originally born in Guam, Brocka developed a love of film at a young age before moving to America. While growing up in States he gained a Masters in film from the California Institute of Arts.

After this he directed a queer public access television show for a number of years, and then in 1999 his animated short Rick & Steve: The Happiest Gay Couple In The World made its debut, when he submitted it to Spike and Mike’s Sick and Twisted Festival of Animation. It went on to win several awards at a number of different film festivals.

Nearly ten years later in 2007, an animated series based on the short debuted on the Logo cable network in the US and ran for two seasons. The show itself was original as it focused on a group of gay characters in an animated world. Gay characters had been used in animation before, but it was mainly for extra comic effect. This was the first time an animated comedy show centred on gay characters.

Brocka has also contributed to a number of LGBT live-action films during his career, such as the romantic comedy Eating Out and the drama Boy Culture, both of which he wrote and directed. Those films did extremely well on the festival circuits and won a number of awards. Eating Out spawned a number of sequels, including Eating Out: Drama Camp and Eating Out: The Open Weekend, which Brocka co-wrote and directed in 2011.

As well as his work for the screen, Brocka contributes a column to the gay magazine, The Advocate. It’s easy to see that over his career Brocka has dedicated himself and much of his work to proving that sexuality is an important subject that should be depicted more on both film and television, and that gay people deserve entertainment specifically made for them.

It’s a shame that his animated gay-themed comedy didn’t run longer, but then again Family Guy got cancelled before it came back, so perhaps there’s still hope.