Fresh gay tales on the horizon

Popular Australian web series The Horizon will soon return to YouTube for a second season, which will surely please the fans who helped the first batch of episodes clock up more than 1.5 million views combined.

The show’s huge hit count was no doubt helped by the healthy smattering of sex and nudity, and series creator Boaz Stark said the second season was just as frank in its depiction of gay life.

“The language our characters use is much more colourful than on conventional TV. The drama is edgier and a there’s a lot of gay passion,” he told the Star Observer.

“Given my background is commercial TV drama, writing The Horizon has been deliciously liberating. But I’ve stopped short of being gratuitous or pornographic – the story always comes first.”

The first season of The Horizon opened with Jake, an 18-year-old innocent from Bega, who came to the big smoke to meet 28-year-old AJ after several months of chatting on the phone and online. Once in the city, Jake struck up an unlikely friendship with drag queen Wilma Bumhurt and found himself thrust headfirst into big city gay life.

“In The Horizon II, themes of love, trust and monogamy are further explored with truth and heart. And Wilma Bumhurt has proven so popular with audiences she has her own story. Expect tears and laughter,” Stark teased.

Stark admitted The Horizon was more than a little autobiographical, with the young AJ’s naive search for love in the cutthroat gay scene based on his own young fumblings.

“I was wide-eyed and trusting when I stepped onto the gay scene, with a traditional view on how relationships should work. My first love cheated on me and broke my heart. I’d say many guys have had that kind of experience.

“But the scene has changed so much, with easy internet hook-ups and access to images and information about sex generally. I think it’s harder for guys into monogamy to meet genuinely like-minded partners. Sex seems so much more disposable nowadays,” he said.

With season two ready to start production, Stark’s holding a fundraising drive to help deliver a higher production standard this time around. Fans of The Horizon can head to Sydney’s Paddo RSL on September 15 for a camp trivia night, with tickets $20 each and including a little free wine to get the party started. Email [email protected] to register your interest. There’s also a Pozible crowd-funding campaign running until September 4.

“We’re already being funded by the wonderfully supportive ACON, but we’re hoping to raise an extra $20,000 so please show your support – it’s worth it to put honest, fun, edgy gay stories in screen.”

INFO: To donate, visit pozible.com/thehorizon. Watch The Horizon here.