A true military brat, Lewis Tice was born in Saigon, to a mother of Chinese- Vietnamese descent and an English- Irish father. Though the family traveled quite a bit, he spent most of his formative years in San Francisco. Having transferred to Philadelphia four years ago, he now works for TLA Video doing public relations and marketing and as a programmer: Tice was one of the people responsible for choosing the films for the upcoming Philadelphia International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival (July 12-24).

PGN: So did you go to school for film work?
LT: I’ve always been involved in the arts, but I went to Saint Mary’s College of California [outside of San Francisco] to study to become a Christian brother. I majored in drama and English and was planning on teaching. I decided the call to brotherhood wasn’t for me.

PGN: What’s the most rewarding thing about your work?
LT: I enjoy when I get to go out and promote films to grassroots organizations. A lot of our films have political or social aspects to them that can really touch and educate people. Some of the films are multi-level for marketing with diverse characters and ethnic groups that they’d appeal to, so I get to go to different community groups nationally and sometimes internationally to promote the films. I’m always amazed at how much enthusiasm and willingness people have to get the word out about certain films.

PGN: Any hobbies?
LT: I love to write. I’m a staff writer on “A Bear’s Life” magazine and do film reviews. I also do a lot of personal writing, journals and things. I try to have fun with my writing and I’m working on a treatment for a gay horror film, but it’s coming along very slowly.

PGN: Tell me about coming out.
LT: I came out when I was 16. I think it was easy for my family because we lived in a city that was so liberating and diverse. At the time I came out, the Castro Clone look was in and I really didn’t fit in with that. I was a chunky kid and being mixed it was hard to fit in. The bear community really took me under their wings. They didn’t care what I looked like or who I was. I was their cub.

PGN: What’s your most unusual possession?
LT: I have a sterling-silver figure of Miffy, a Japanese cartoon character kind of like Hello Kitty but she’s a rabbit. It sits on my living-room shelf and sticks out like a sore thumb, but I love it.

PGN: Favorite toy?
LT: My Underdog doll.

PGN: What’s the farthest you’ve traveled?
LT: Gosh, between my father being in the military and traveling for the film festival, I’ve been from Hong Kong to Thailand, London, Germany, all over the place. I’ve been pretty lucky.

PGN: Brush with fame?
LT: When I was working at Sundance one year, we were promoting the movie “The Singing Detective” and I had to escort Robert Downey Jr. down the red carpet. He was acting a little loopy and kept yelling my name. I had to basically hold him up and help guide him down the carpet. Unbeknownst to me, “Court TV” was there that day and doing reviews on the red carpet. They caught footage of us, with him being silly and naughty, and they aired it on a special called “Celebrity Crimes.” It was a half-hour segment on Robert Downey Jr.’s descent into drugs and crime and things. They show that segment all the time on different programs to the point that I’ve been recognized in airports.

PGN: An early sign that you were gay?
LT: When we were living in Singapore and I was about 5 or 6 years old, my father let me go to a public bathroom by myself for the first time. I kept looking over at the other guys at the urinals and couldn’t stop staring, I was so amazed by what I saw. I was fascinated.

PGN: Do you speak any other languages?
LT: I do; I speak Cantonese and I can understand Spanish pretty well. My listening skills in Spanish are better, but I can speak quite a few phrases as well.

PGN: Any siblings?
LT: I have an adopted sister. Right before we moved out of Saigon, the family next door to us asked my parents to take their daughter to San Francisco with us. The war was breaking out and they wanted her to be safe, so we adopted her. My mother took her back a few years ago and her birth parents had passed, but she was able to pay her respects.

PGN: If you weren’t in the film industry, what profession would you pursue?
LT: I’ve always wanted to be a chef. I love to feed people. I love to see them nourished and enjoying themselves. I still dream about it.

PGN: Any superstitious rituals?
LT: When I’m on a plane and it’s at the initial stage at take-off where the plane is vibrating and about to lift, I always say an internal “I love you” to all the people in my life.

PGN: Something that made you cry?
LT: I’ve been dating this guy for about a month and recently we went to San Francisco. It was his first time there and the night before the parade we went to the Pink Saturday celebration and he kept telling me how overwhelmed he was by everything and how amazing it was being there. I was really touched to share this first-time experience.

PGN: Worst clothing disaster?
LT: Oh! In the ’80s, I tried to look like the lead singer from Duran Duran. I had the Sun-In dyed hair and clip-on earrings and the shirts with the shoulder pads with the Jetson-type designs and big baggy white pants that I would roll up. Not a good look.

PGN: Favorite line from a movie?
LT: That I can remember? There’s a line from John Waters’ “Female Trouble” where one of the characters, Taffy, says, “I wouldn’t suck your lousy dick if I was suffocating and there was oxygen in your balls!”

PGN: Hidden talent?
LT: I don’t know if I’m any good, but most people don’t know that I paint.

PGN: Name a song that you’re embarrassed to admit you like.
LT: That Paris Hilton song, “Stars are Blind.” When she went to jail, I quickly deleted it from my iTunes.

PGN: Would you ever serve in the military?
LT: I’ve thought about it. My father was a Master Sergeant and he encouraged me to go into one of the artistic divisions, like working with their Playhouse or television station. I really like the water, so I thought about the Navy at one point, it had its appeal. I grew up around it.

PGN: What would we find on your bedside table right now?
LT: It’s a book called “Hero” — I can’t remember the author’s name, but it’s about a gay teenage superhero. He’s a basketball player and he’s starting to realize that he has these superpowers.

PGN: Something your friends would be surprised to find out?
LT: That I’m incredibly vulnerable.

To suggest a community member for “Family Portraits,” write to: Family Portraits, 505 S. Fourth St., Philadelphia, PA 19147 or portraits05@aol.com.