Butch Jamie

The film follows the story of Jamie, a struggling butch lesbian actress who gets cast as a man in a film. The main plot is a romantic comedy between Jamie's male alter-ego, "Male Jamie," and Jill, a heterosexual woman on set. The film's subplots include Jamie's bisexual roommate Lola and her cat actor Howard, Lola's abrasive butch German girlfriend Andi, and Jamie's gay Asian friend David.[1][3]

• Michelle Ehlen as Jamie
• Olivia Nix as Lola
• Tiffany Anne Carrin as Jill
• David Au as David
• Andrea Andrei as Andi
• Joe McDaniel as Dan
• Mary Lynch as Francine
• Nathan Edmondson as Glen

Butch Jamie utilizes deadpan humor through slapstick, irony, and satire. The film incorporates elements of slapstick physical comedy along with the irony of Jamie entering into a "heterosexual" relationship with an unknowing woman. As a satire, the film pokes fun at gender roles, social assumptions, stereotypes, and the politics of relationships.[4][5][6]

In addition to gender roles and stereotypes, the film also satirizes the movie industry.[5] This is reflected not only through Jamie's adventures, but also through Howard, the cat actor who Jamie has projected her competitive drive onto.[4] Howard's owner, Lola, takes the cat's career very seriously, complete with professional head shots and a demo reel.

While it's common to see comedies where men pose as women, female to male comedies are much less prominent. While the film is said to be a lesbian version of Tootsie,[5][7][8] the fact that it highlights a butch actress marks it as unique. Jamie's stereotypical butch masculinity, sarcasm, and cockiness are rarely seen in such prominence in female actors on-screen. Unlike Dustin Hoffman in Tootsie, Jamie's career problems are not the result of a character flaw, but from a flaw in the way women are chosen to be represented.

Writer/director/actor Michelle Ehlen is developing a sequel called Heterosexual Jill. While Butch Jamie is a satire on gender, Ehlen proposes to have the sequel be a satire on sexuality.[6][9]

• 2007: Grand Jury Award for "Outstanding Actress in a Feature Film" to Michelle Ehlen at LA Outfest
• 2007: Jury Award for "Best Female Feature" at Long Island Gay and Lesbian Film Festival
• 2007: Jury Award for "Best Dramatic Feature" at Chicago Gay and Lesbian International Film Festival
• 2008: Special mention at Barcelona International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival

• Butch Jamie Official Site
• Butch Jamie on the Internet Movie Database
• Production Company
• Blog Site