"Pousse Café is a stunner. Director Susan Winter makes an astonishing debut in this uncompromising film about a father’s relationship with his gay son as they bond. Pousse Café is a labor of love and stands out for its highly literate dialogue, richly shot sequences and carefully wrought symbolism."
– Erik Meers, POZ Magazine
THE FILM
Pousse Café (poos-cafe) is the independent arthouse feature of filmmaker Susan Winter. Inspiration for the film came in a dream and her Florida childhood with post-WWII, working parents, who celebrated the nightly “cocktail hour”. The film is also Winter’s homage to the Old Hollywood movies she watched with her mother, where cocktails are symbols of a generation’s idea of sophistication and achieving the American Dream (Dinner At Eight, The Sky’s The Limit, The Thin Man, The Philadelphia Story).
Pousse Café’s soundtrack underscores the theme of love, loss and the history of cocktails, from Cole Porter’s “I Get A Kick Out Of You” to Esquivel’s Latin lounge. The music, the sexy cocktail tableaus and surreal, tropical Florida setting are the dramatic backdrop of this modern interpretation of a classic American film genre.
Winter collaborated on the script with lead actors, Dominic Hamilton-Little and Anthony F. Hamilton. Her film was a festival favorite (including Seattle International Film Festival, LA Outfest, SXSW), winning Best Picture at Victoria Film Festival. This re-discovered gem explores a father-son relationship during a fraught period in the LGBTQ+ zeitgeist, as well as celebrating the resurgence of a piece of true Americana: the cocktail.
BIOS
SUSAN WINTER, DIRECTOR, WRITER, PRODUCER
Winter is writer and co-creator of The Hive, a dramatic series set in Santa Fe, in development, with ShadowCatcher Entertainment (Executive Producer of 2019 National Film Registry inductee, Smoke Signals). Winter began in Music, Textile and Fine Arts, shifting to graduate studies with experimental film pioneer, Will Hindle. Her early 16mm shorts won multiple festival awards, screening at Sinking Creek, The Ann Arbor Film Festival National Tour, among others. She directed the stage performance of Dominic Hamilton-Little’s one-man show, Fey Ways, at The Court Theater in conjunction with Pousse Café screenings at L.A. Outfest. Other projects include: Herculine, based on the life of a 19th C. French intersex, and autobiographical dark comedy, Lessons From Orange Town, set in Central Florida during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Link to ShadowCatcher/The Hive
Winter is writer and co-creator of The Hive, a dramatic series set in Santa Fe, in development, with ShadowCatcher Entertainment (Executive Producer of 2019 National Film Registry inductee, Smoke Signals). Winter began in Music, Textile and Fine Arts, shifting to graduate studies with experimental film pioneer, Will Hindle. Her early 16mm shorts won multiple festival awards, screening at Sinking Creek, The Ann Arbor Film Festival National Tour, among others. She directed the stage performance of Dominic Hamilton-Little’s one-man show, Fey Ways, at The Court Theater in conjunction with Pousse Café screenings at L.A. Outfest. Other projects include: Herculine, based on the life of a 19th C. French intersex, and autobiographical dark comedy, Lessons From Orange Town, set in Central Florida during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Link to ShadowCatcher/The Hive
DOMINIC HAMILTON-LITTLE, "GERALD", CO-WRITER
British-American actor, writer, Dominic began in theater. He was a contributing editor for POZ magazine and the beloved, long-time columnist of the Chicago-based Fey Weys: Diatribe and Reminiscence for Outlines (now, Windy City Times). Recast as a one-man show, he performed Fey Weys in Chicago, Seattle, at New York’s P.S. 122 and L.A.’s Court Theater. Dominic’s original voice brought sharp humor and pathos to describing living with HIV in the age of AIDS. He regularly hosted LGBTQ+ events and AIDS benefits across the country, including for the Illinois Federation for Human Rights.
Photo: Tony Martin
Photo: Tony Martin
British-American actor, writer, Dominic began in theater. He was a contributing editor for POZ magazine and the beloved, long-time columnist of the Chicago-based Fey Weys: Diatribe and Reminiscence for Outlines (now, Windy City Times). Recast as a one-man show, he performed Fey Weys in Chicago, Seattle, at New York’s P.S. 122 and L.A.’s Court Theater. Dominic’s original voice brought sharp humor and pathos to describing living with HIV in the age of AIDS. He regularly hosted LGBTQ+ events and AIDS benefits across the country, including for the Illinois Federation for Human Rights.
ANTHONY F. HAMILTON, "REX", CO-WRITER
Anthony’s early years were in British theatre. He worked as an international voice talent before becoming a screen actor in the U.S. His feature film acting credits include Contact, Shadow Conspiracy, Clear and Present Danger, Hoffa and the voice of “Totem” for the interactive version of Jumanji. Real father and son, Anthony and Dominic relished working on Pousse Café, their sole project together. Both writers, they collaborated on the film script with Winter.
With early years in British theatre, Anthony worked as an international voice talent for many years before becoming a screen actor in the U. S. His feature film acting credits include Contact, Shadow Conspiracy, Clear and Present Danger, Hoffa, and the voice of “Totem” for the interactive version of Jumanji. Real father and son, Anthony and Dominic relished working on Pousse Café, their sole project together. Both writers, Anthony and Dominic collaborated on the film script with Winter.
BEATRIX OST, "CLAIRE"
A Renaissance Woman, Beatrix’s creative career includes artist, designer, author, actress and filmmaker. She is considered by New York Times “one of the city’s most elegant fusions of art and fashion.” Her dynamic paintings and sculptures are internationally exhibited. Her books include the autobiographical My Father’s House and More Than Everything, as well as The Philosopher’s Style, a collection of her previously unpublished short stories, interviews and original images.
A Renaissance Woman, Beatrix’s creative career includes artist, designer, author, actress and filmmaker. She is considered by New York Times “one of the city’s most elegant fusions of art and fashion.” Her dynamic paintings and sculptures are internationally exhibited. Her books include the autobiographical My Father’s House and More Than Everything, as well as The Philosopher’s Style, a collection of her previously unpublished short stories, interviews and original images.
www.BeatrixOst.com
Instagram Beatrix Ost
ERICH ROLAND, CINEMATOGRAPHER
Erich’s long career includes over a hundred film credits. He has worked on award winning documentaries including RGB, The Price of Free, Inside Bill’s Brain, Decoding Bill Gates, He Named Me Malala, Testimony (on permanent exhibition at the National Holocaust Museum), as well as major feature films including Murder At 1600, Clara’s Heart, Guarding Tess, Rich In Love, Her Alibi, Driving Miss Daisy, and Meteor Man.
Erich’s long career includes over a hundred film credits. He has worked on award winning documentaries including RGB, The Price of Free, Inside Bill’s Brain, Decoding Bill Gates, He Named Me Malala, Waiting for Superman, Testimony (on permanent exhibition at the National Holocaust Museum), as well as major feature films including Murder At 1600, Clara’s Heart, Guarding Tess, Rich In Love, Her Alibi, Driving Miss Daisy, and Meteor Man.
IN LOVING MEMORY
AND GRATITUDE
ANTHONY F. HAMILTON
AND
DOMINIC HAMILTON-LITTLE