AYOR
Director: Tom Bakker | The Netherlands | 2021 | 12 Minutes | UK Premiere
During the national commemoration of Remembrance Day in 1970 in Amsterdam, two men try to make a statement against gay discrimination. The film cuts back and forth between the moments before and after the incident, in which their doubt, fear and firm belief becomes clear.
Cast: Lars Brinkman, Angelo Schuurmans, Hein van der Heijden, Thor Braun, Leandro Ceder
Writer: Tom Bakker | Producer: Rogier Kramer | Director of Photography: Jeroen Kiers | Editor: Michiel Boesveldt | Music: Bas Bouma, Arjan de Wit
Baba
Director: Sam Arbor, Adam Ali | United Kingdom | 2021 | 18 Minutes | International Premiere
Rejected by his family and oppressed by his country for his queerness, Libyan teenager Britannia gets an interview at the British Embassy, a gateway to his dream of stepping foot on Manchester’s Canal Street. But an unexpected discovery forces him to question where his dreams truly lie.
Cast: Adam Ali, Colette Dalal Tchantcho, Elysia Kozinos, Ali Gadema
Writer: Sam Arbor, Adam Ali | Producer: Hannah Stevenson, Susan Simnett | Director of Photography: Michael Filocamo | Editor: Izabella Curry | Music: Thomas Ross Fitzsimons
Better
Director: Michael J Ferns | United Kingdom | 2019 | 15 Minutes
Jamie is a young mum whose son Max shows early signs of questioning his gender identity. Max is bullied at school and, fearing for her son’s future, Jamie finds herself faced with an almost impossible personal and ethical decision. Should she “fix” her son in order to protect him?
Cast: Lucy Heath, Lisa Stevenson, Endy Mckay, Micah Gordon
Writer: Lucy Heath | Producer: Kirsty Dua | Director of Photography: Alistair Little | Editor: Anthony Le | Music: Alexander Wells
Chocolate Milk
Director: Latisha Di Venuto | United States of America | 2021 | 10 Minutes | International Premiere
Tisha challenges her parents to drink chocolate milk every day for a year, hoping to bring them closer together. Inspired by the director’s upbringing, Chocolate Milk is an intimate look at how a young black girl processes the sting of being othered by her peers for her non-traditional family.
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Cast: Billie Rae, Caroline Duncan, Jenn Colella
Writer: Latisha Di Venuto | Producer: Emory Parker, Natalia Bougadellis | Director of Photography: Natalia Bougadellis | Editor: Emory Parker | Music: Benja, The Watershed
Frankie
Director: James Kautz | United States of America | 2020 | 11 Minutes | International Premiere
Frankie, days after coming out as a non-binary trans person, crashes their ex-partner’s men-only Twelve Step meeting, determined to be heard… no matter the cost. A story about the need to be seen on one’s own terms, Frankie is a raw and timely tale of the universal struggle for acceptance.
Cast: Morgan O’Sullivan, McCaleb Burnett, Richard Masur, Bhavesh Patel, Matthew Lawler
Writer: James Kautz | Producer: Morgan O’Sullivan, Jenna Grossano, Jesse R. Tendler | Director of Photography: Tommy Agriodimas | Editor: Donna Madrigal | Music: Alexander Sage Oyen
I Am Love
Director: Guilherme Pedra | United States of America / Brazil | 2021 | 16 Minutes | International Premiere
As he struggles to finish an original composition and aches for inspiration, a young and self-doubting New York musician develops feelings for two other artists of different genders and he ponders if it is possible to love more than one person at the same time.
Cast: Dylan Soal, Isaac Nevrla, Ana Moioli
Writer: Guilherme Pedra | Producer: Guilherme Pedra, Drew Brown | Director of Photography: Xuezi Zhang | Editor: Guilherme Pedra, Ehud Sopher | Music: Juan Dussán
Imperfectly Complete
Director: Bruce Chiu | United States of America / Myanmar | 2021 | 14 Minutes | European Premiere
Lucy has been taking care of Owen, a blind guitarist she has admired for years. When Owen is about to get his vision back, Lucy faces the struggle of whether to reveal her true identity to Owen, since the nightmare of her past still haunts her.
Cast: Chrissy Aung, Zaw Myo Htet, Priscilla Bawicia, Udi Sampat
Writer: Bruce Chiu | Producer: Chrissy Aung, Victor Tsao | Director of Photography: Nathan Votran | Editor: Kelsy Lua | Music: Justin Zheng
Split Sole
Director: Barnaby Boulton | United Kingdom | 2020 | 13 Minutes
Two young men defy the expectations of their friends, family, and the society around them by secretly breaking into an empty London theatre at night. Unable to put how they feel into words, they express their love for each other through the medium of dance.
Cast: Taz Skylar, Daniel Larkai, Michelle Greenidge
Writer: Barnaby Boulton | Producer: Sara Sehdev, James Cummings | Director of Photography: Matthew Lewis | Editor: Alex Fountain | Music: Will Jones
The Cost of Living
Director: Alice Trueman | United Kingdom | 2021 | 13 Minutes
Lily, a neurotic fitness-freak, has a brush with Death and comes face-to-face with her worst fear. But Death appears to Lily as a femme fatale and Lily finds herself unexpectedly giddy with desire. The force she has tried to distance herself from now appears in the doorway of every room…
Cast: Lily Loveless, Genesis Lynea
Writer: Alice Trueman | Producer: Katie Hodgkin, Alex Hurle | Director of Photography: Lorena Pages | Editor: Alice Trueman | Music: Kerry Leatham
The Night Manifesto
Director: Arthur Lacomblez | France | 2020 | 8 Minutes | UK Premiere
The Night Manifesto is a four-part experimental short film exploring the intimate significance of partying. A celebration of rave culture and nightlife, it’s an ode to all those whose only means of survival is to dance through the night, their eyes closed, in the ecstasy that techno music provides.
Cast: Klaus Wiekind, Habibitch Gorgeous Gucci, Gigi Palmer, Jane King, Arnaud Deprez
Writer: Arthur Lacomblez | Producer: Xavier Plèche, Marie Carrot, Francois Xavier Le Reste, Gilles Sasson | Director of Photography: David Moermann | Editor: Flavie Doubesky | Music: Jack Bartman
Voguing with Beethoven
Director: Emilie Norenberg | Norway | 2020 | 5 Minutes
Director Emilie Norenberg was approached by the Norwegian Chamber Orchestra to create a visual piece introducing Beethoven’s music to a new generation of listeners. Shot on 16mm film on the suburban streets of Oslo, high culture meets subculture in a film profiling a young man’s journey to embracing his identity.
Cast: Karim Mahmoud
Writer: Emilie Norenberg | Producer: Lise Schelvan | Director of Photography: Andreas Johannessen | Editor: Tormod Berge | Music: The Norwegian Chamber Orchestra
