Queer Nation

A fascinating and intimate exploration of the daily lives and struggles of 7 LGBT families in 7 different European countries: The Netherlands, Spain, Italy, France, Greece, Switzerland and in Catalonia. Although separated by borders, they are all united in their struggle to have LGBT family rights recognized. The differences between countries are highlighted, from having full equality in some, to a total lack of rights in others: we are exploring those different laws and irregularities, realizing how the children of LGBT families are being made vulnerable across Europe.

What is the heteronorm? What is the cultural canon and how is it related to this heteronorm?

Ewa Hołuszko is a remarkable figure. In the 1980s she bore the male name of Marek Hołuszko, an active Solidarity movement activist. After 1989 she could not fully enjoy the regained freedom as the place of communism was taken by another enemy, more difficult to defeat, intolerance and exclusion. Gender change made her realize how far away Polish society is from full freedom. Nevertheless, she still believes that it is possible to live in a different Poland, free from stigmatization, persecution and prejudice against others.

Victor and Fernando are hairstylists in Mexicali. They are the go-to professionals for the city's socialites. To their customers, they were a lovely couple until they decided to legally marry. Losing the support of people and friends an confronting a blacklash of criticism, through their fight they woke up members of Mexiciali's society to fight homophobia and inequality.

A documentary about montreal architect Roger D'astous, who battled all his life to create a nordic architecture. Starchitect in the 60s, this Frank L. Wright student then fell from grace before rising again at the dawn of the century.

The journey of eight characters of different ages, regions, life trajectories and religions – and behind them, stories of overcoming difficulties, prejudice and self-acceptance, passing through themes transversal to the letters that form the acronym LGBTQIA+ – that culminate in the celebration of being able to be who you are and in the exaltation of these voices.

A filmmaker captures her wife’s journey of high-risk pregnancy, birth, and early motherhood in this short documentary. Consequently, she discovers her own fear and insecurity surrounding the adventures of parenthood — all while completing the adoption process for her non-biological son, as required by heteronormative North Carolina state law.

An unnamed passer-by is forced to trace a circular route inside an abandoned tram station, facing loss and time. The broken walls act as a channel, transmitting fragmentary, blurred and analogical memories. 

The story of the iconic singer's fascinating six-decade career in both music and Black and LGBTQ activism.

Fragments 83 rediscovers—and repurposes—Richard Millen 1983 experimental film If You Can’t Be with the One You Love, shot in Brooklyn and the West Village in the early days of the AIDS epidemic. The resulting documentary explores the hunt for sex/love, the joy of making cinema, and the inexorable passage of time.

An account of the life and work of the charismatic Spanish writer Terenci Moix (1942-2003).

The journey of a gay African refugee seeking asylum in Germany.

In the 50s and 60s, deep in the American countryside at the foot of the Catskills, a small wooden house with a barn behind it was home to the first clandestine network of cross-dressers. Diane and Kate are now 80 years old. At the time, they were men and part of this secret organization. Today, they relate this forgotten but essential chapter of the early days of trans-identity. It is a story full of noise and fury, rich in extraordinary characters, including the famous Susanna, who had the courage to create this refuge that came to be known as Casa Susanna.

THE PEARL is a cinematic and intimate portrait of four transgender women who come out in their senior years. Set in logging towns in the Pacific Northwest, the visceral, observational story explores what it means to leave behind presenting as a man.

When Melody was a young child, 20+ years away from coming out as transgender, she developed an obsession with movies. One of her biggest hobbies was acting out her favorite VHS tapes, FBI warnings and trailers included, in front of her parents' camcorder. Mom and dad realized this was an easy way to keep their child busy. Thus, the camera became a sort of babysitter, resulting in dozens of tapes featuring Melody performing in front of the (usually stationary) camera.

Loving someone of the same gender is frowned upon in Sami communities. Sparrooabbán (Me and my little sister) shows what it’s like to be a minority within a minority. Suvi describes how her little sister Kaisa wishes to be accepted as she is. Like her sister, Kaisa is a Sami, but also in a relationship with a woman, and she also works as a deacon. There are obviously more constricting communities in the film than only one.

A collection film of additional footage from Paris is Burning

EQUALITY U is a feature-length documentary following 34 young activists on the Soulforce Equality Ride. At some stops they're welcomed with open arms, at others they're arrested for trespassing or for simply attempting to open up a dialog. At every stop though, they're connecting with young people who've often never met an openly gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender person who is comfortable with who they are. Written by Dave O'Brien

Keenly aware that his niece is going through a particularly rough time at home, Uncle James teaches Ava Dee how to use the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera. As an experiment, he tells her to shoot whatever she wants and he'll edit it into a film.

The 3rd installment in James A. Burkhalter's QUEER ROOTS trilogy: After years of his mother begging him to do it, James decides to finally review and erase 10 years' worth of phone messages. It tells the story of James' "roaring twenties," constructed solely through the voices of friends, family, and lovers.