Poster with two men hugging 'too racy' for Brisbane

Brisbane's gay community is up in arms over a two man recreation of one of cinema's most iconic images being deemed too racy for the city's bus stops.

Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr's passionate beach embrace in the 1953 film From Here to Eternity has been parodied by two men in a publicity poster for the Brisbane Queer Film Festival, which kicks of at the Powerhouse on March 28.

Poster promoting Brisbane Queer Film Festival banned by council as 'too racy'

On Thursday however, Brisbane City Council's lifestyle chairman Krista Adams deemed the promotional image "too confronting" and banned it, pending a review by the Advertising Standards Board.

Far from being a decision fuelled by homophobia, Brisbane Powerhouse artistic director Kris Stewart said, it was the highly sexualised nature of the image causing the council concern.

"We got word from Krista there were reservations about one of the three images we had planned," he said.

"My sense was it is a very sexualised image and the decision would have been the same whether it was two men or a man and a woman."

Mr Stewart said the current council had been more supportive of the gay community than any of its predecessors, both financially and with the public support of queer events and activities by Lord Mayor Graham Quirk and other members of the traditionally conservative LNP council.

"I get why the response is so strong and I understand the history but in this case, given the reactions of council in the past and what they have approved and supported, they need to be given a little bit of rope," he said.

"They approved six other images, so they are not saying, 'We don't want images of gay culture', they are saying, 'We don't want overly sexualised images in public spaces'.

"I know, come next week, there will be three banners around the city, each of which is going to show a queer couple in love recreating some of the most iconic movies in history."

Michael James, who in 2011, was at the centre of a similar furore over the Rip and Roll sexual health campaign, said he was dismayed at reading Cr Adams' rejection of the image.

He said the public backlash that greeted the removal of an advertising image of he and his partner embracing, which resulted in it being reinstated, showed the widespread community support for same sex couples.

He said upon hearing the decision to ban the festival poster, he immediately thought the city had suddenly returned to less enlightened days.

"I think when they say it is too confronting they are talking about homosexuality," he said.

"It is not a confronting image portrayed by heterosexual couples, the only thing confronting is it being gay people."

Mr James echoed Mr Stewart's praise for the council over its supportive and inclusive efforts towards the city's queer population

"Council as a whole has been supportive, they funded Brisbane Pride Festival for $21000 over three years," he said.

"But this decision makes me feel if I were walking down the street and gave my husband a kiss, that would be too confronting.

"We are reaching that point where gay men and women are accepted.

"They are allowed to love and be sexy.

"All areas of the gay lifestyle play into the mainstream now."

Brisbane opposition councillor Steve Griffiths described the decision as "political correctness gone mad".

“Cr Adams is setting a dangerous precedent by appointing herself the advertising moral censor of Brisbane," he said.

“If the Lord Mayor wants Brisbane to be a, 'New world City,' he needs to step in and make it clear that Brisbane is an accepting and open minded place.

"He can do that by letting the Queer Film Festival hang the poster in acceptable locations throughout the city.”