Gay TV recap: On the Lot

Fox's new, much-maligned reality competition On the Lot -- which whittles down aspiring filmmakers to one big winner of a deal with Dreamworks -- had a few gay elements last night. Some were good, some were bad, and some were just kind of bizarre.

First, contestant Trevor screened a short about a man waiting for a blind date who imagines all the different kinds of women that might appear. Not exactly inspired to begin with -- and the execution was downright ugly, from the production design to the acting and cheap stereotypes that filled the piece. Of course, one of the last imagined dates was -- gasp -- a gay guy! And not just any gay guy -- a lisping, leering, scarf-wearing priss. Yes, we get that these are supposed to be a straight man's fears played out here -- but what's so threatening about a sissy with an ascot? As judge Carrie Fisher noted, a guy showing up certainly wouldn't be the worst thing that could happen. Go, Leia!

Then contestant Adam presented Dough: The Musical, a goofy parody of musicals about a lovelorn baker and an opportunist. Nothing gay about it, but it was kind of funny that the campiest entry in the competition thus far came from a straight guy (although the gay filmmakers are totally MIA on this show, so it's all relative, I guess).

But the last piece, Shalini's Living Out Loud: A Comic Journey, was the most interesting from a gay viz perspective. A short documentary about gay Indian comic Vidur Kapur, the piece felt a bit slight (but really -- how much of a person's life can you fit into a 3-minute movie?) but was much more grounded than the other films (Shalini comes from a human rights background, so it's not surprising that her concern is the human condition, and not cheap jokes or flashy production).

My only complaint was that it unfortunately didn't get across that Kapur was actually funny -- and he really is, but this piece felt like it was more about his makeup and outfits than his craft or his humor. But regardless, it was a bold choice in a competition filled with derivative films, and was executed with a sophistication that's been missing from the contest thus far.

Somewhat surprisingly (seeing as how nothing blew up in the piece), Transformers director Michael Bay picked Shalini's film as his favorite for the week, and the other filmmakers in the competition also picked hers as the fave. Atta girl!

After the break check out one of the many clips of Kapur available on YouTube. The bit about the Kama Sutra is pretty great.