[3] As the festival's program schedule featured racy titles, was held at the government-funded Glenbow Museum, and received $4000[4] from the Canada Council for the Arts, it sparked an outcry from both citizens of Calgary and Albertan politicians.
[8][6] Originally a collaboration between the Calgary Society of Independent Filmmakers (CSIF) and the Gay & Lesbian Community Services Association (later known as Calgary Outlink),[9][10] the first Fairy Tales International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival was founded by Calgarian LGBT activists and CSIF volunteers and employees Trevor Alberts, Kelly Langgard, and Kevin Allen.
[11] The two-day[16] festival caused significant controversy, largely due to the inclusion of Sandi Somers' erotic lesbian film Gens de Phoque (1994).
[13] It was subject to a number of bomb threats[17] and many festival-goers wore masks or paper bags to avoid being publicly outed by photojournalists waiting outside of the theatre.
[18] Despite being a part of CSIF, the Fairy Tales Film Festival experienced financial difficulty for the first several years of production.
[21][24] The program involves members of the organization presenting workshops, showing films, and facilitating discussion to inform the public about LGBT topics.