Tayler Allwood: Mount Lilydale Mercy College student’s petition to show queer film supported by Kit Connor

A popular actor is backing a student from Melbourne’s outer east, as she fights her private Catholic school’s decision not to show her queer film.

Tayler Allwood has started a petition calling for her Queer film to be screened at Mount Lilydale Mercy College. Picture: change.org/The Age

A Lilydale student has won support from a star actor as she fights her private Catholic school’s decision not to show her queer film.

Tayler Allwood, a Year 12 media student at Mount Lilydale Mercy College, was shattered when she was told her short film, Loving Graham, would not be shown in its entirety at the school’s upcoming visual arts exhibition because it “goes against the teachings of the Catholic Church”.

The film also won’t be shown at a Mock Oscars Awards Night, and won’t be uploaded to the school’s visual arts website.

The film is about a teenage girl exploring the fears, joys, and dynamic journey of her identity, specifically, coming to terms with her sexuality.

It finishes with a kiss shared between the main character and her female love interest.

Tayler has started a petition calling on her school to change its mind and screen the film, with the link shared on actor Kit Connor’s Instagram stories on Tuesday.

The English actor, who stars in hit Netflix show Heartstopper, about two teenage boys who fall for each other, has 4.4 million followers on Instagram.

Tayler’s petition has now been signed by more than 15,000 people.

Actor Kit Connor shared Tayler Allwood's petition on Instagram.

Tayler said she was close to tears when she was told her film, which she began working on last October, wouldn’t be shown.

“I think it’s very contradicting because they’re showing other films that have other themes that go against Catholic values, like violence and other mythologies and things like that,” she said.

“They say they welcome everybody and they don’t discriminate but here we are.

“My key message (to the principal) would be I don’t want to be treated special or different, I just want to be included with my classmates,’ she said.

“I’ve been doing media for two years and I want my work to be shown alongside my classmates and I don’t want this kind of discrimination to happen to anybody.

“The reason I made this film is because I wanted to show positive queer media which I personally don’t see a lot of.”

Tayler said she passed on her petition to a friend in the UK who is good mates with Kit Connor, and he then forwarded it onto him.

“I woke up this morning (Tuesday) and Kit had re-posted the link,” she said.

“It’s just amazing – it’s definitely reached a lot of people.”

Kit Connor and Joe Locke star in Heartstopper. Picture: Netflix

Animal Justice Party MP Andy Meddick said the school’s decision was outrageous and raised the issue in parliament, asking the Education Minister whether the school’s actions were in breach of Victoria’s anti-discrimination laws.

“You can have your views on religious schools and private education but the moment you take public funding, in the form of taxpayer funds, then I think you throw away your right to wholly and soley maintain a teaching that is within the faith of that particular ordination –

you have to allow for the broader society,” he said.

“We live in an inclusive society, one where the majority of people live in harmony with the LGBTIQA+ community. They are just purely and simply us — part of us all. As such, the majority of taxpayers feel that when their taxes go to education that education should include all students and not be discriminatory.”

Animal Justice Party MP Andy Meddick is supporting Tayler’s fight. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Paul Jeffers

Mount Lilydale Mercy College principal Philip Morison said the film depicts relationship scenes that were not aligned with its values as a Catholic school.

“Furthermore, we will not show a film that we believe would be inappropriate to certain members of the audience,” he said.

Mr Morison said while the guidelines for the media studies film in question were made clear, it was permitted to proceed by the teacher due to the particular passion of the student for the project.

“The teacher was clear that the film may not be promoted publicly by the school,” Mr Morison said.

“However, the film will be submitted for VCE assessment purposes, top screens and the College awards.”

Mr Morison said that Mount Lilydale Mercy College strived to be a community where the dignity and uniqueness of every student is respected and nurtured with sensitivity and compassion, including in relation to sexual orientation.

“In all our College programs that deal with relationships, we provide a judgment-free safe environment where opinions are valued and the dignity of the individual is maintained at all times,” he said.

Tayler’s parents Paul and Belinda were disappointed with the school’s decision.

Belinda said since the issue became public, a lot of people had been questioning why they had chosen to send Tayler to the Catholic school.

“Nobody knows what their child’s path is,” she said.

“And you choose your child’s school for a number of reasons – does it fit your budget, is it close to home, and its reputation.

“Up to this point we have been super happy with the school but they have made a poor choice.”

She said she was disappointed the school had “pulled the rug out” from Tayler three weeks before the end of Year 12, after she had put her heart and soul into making the movie, including writing her own score and filming in regional Victoria.