Feature Films
L’air de la mer me rend libre (You promised me the sea)
Thursday Oct 17 | 8:30 PM
Cheers to the bride and groom? Saïd, a young man of Maghrebi origin, lives in Rennes with his parents and works in the family butcher’s shop. Hidden from his relatives, he maintains a relationship with Vincent. But his parents’ alarm bells have been ringing for a long time. They pretend to be unaware of his preference for men and secretly plan an arranged marriage with Hadjira, an equally “problematic” daughter who not only has a complicated relationship behind her, but also legal problems. After the wedding, Saïd continues to enjoy his dates as an “Arab stallion”, while his wife looks for a way to make the marriage work and still remain faithful to herself. Can the two overcome the hypocrisy and lies that dominate their lives together?
UNICORNS
Friday Oct 18 | 6:00 PM
Directed by: Sally El Hosaini & James Krishna Floyd
On the way home after a party that ended in a fight, Aysha explains to Luke the love triangle that triggered the argument. It sounds complicated, Luke says, but Aysha replies that it’s actually quite simple: “Everyone just wants what they can’t have.” At this point, they both already know what they want to a certain extent. They just have to allow themselves to get it. UNICORNS traces their journey to self-acceptance with empathy, curiosity and a refreshing disregard for limiting labels.
“Initial misunderstandings are quickly overcome and their road trip through England develops into a passionate romance. The story is inspired by the true story of Asifa Lahore, Britain’s first Muslim drag queen.” [queer.de]
WHAT A FEELING
Friday Oct 18 | 8:30 PM
Craftswoman Fa (Proschat Madani) takes care of more than just the kitchen installations for her customers. She is an part of the furniture in a lesbian bar. Marie Theres (Caroline Peters) leads a completely different life. Her wedding day, which doesn’t go as expected, throws the well-to-do doctor completely off track. When Marie Theres is then almost run over by the self-confident Fa, she has had enough. Marie Theres is also full when she is brought home by Fa after a long night. She remembers nothing – did they or didn’t they? And how does this fit into a life that plays on all the clichés of a wealthy hetero family? Her life plan becomes increasingly unstable and conversations with friends and her daughter confront Marie Theres with completely new questions.
Days of Happiness
Saturday Oct 19 | 3:00 PM
A lesbian conductor – that immediately brings to mind “Tar”. However, Sophie Desmarais as Emma could hardly be more different from Cate Blanchett in her role as Lydia. Instead of exercising control, she has to free herself from the control of others. Emma, the new star of Quebec’s classical music scene, leads an orchestra. However, the real power lies with the artistic director, financial backers and the agent – her father. The more Emma tries to make her own decisions, the more obvious her father’s emotional abuse becomes. Emma is also confronted with the challenges of balancing closeness and distance in her relationship with cellist Naëlle.
Days of Happiness deals openly with realistic conflicts that many people can identify with.
SEBASTIAN
Saturday Oct 19 | 8:30 PM
Directed by: Mikko Mäkelä
We follow Max, a 25-year-old freelance editor and budding novelist who seems to be well on his way to success in London’s cultural spheres. But at night he finds a different kind of intoxication as a sex worker under the pseudonym Sebastian – he tends to meet older men via the platform Dreamy Guys. Max uses his experiences as Sebastian to develop short stories, and the long-awaited debut novel finally seems to be within reach. As Max increasingly struggles to maintain control of his finely balanced double life, he has to ask himself whether Sebastian is just a writer’s tool in his quest for the ultimate sense of authenticity – or whether being a writer has become just a pretext.
A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge
Saturday Oct 19 | 23:00 Uhr
Cooperation with HARD:LINE film festival
„The gayest slasher movie ever made.“
Five years have passed since Freddy Krueger disappeared howling into hell. But now someone in Elm Street is once again being haunted night after night by terrifying visions of the deadly dream demon. And if Freddy’s messed-up soul managed to take possession of the young body, he would return from the world of the dead to plunge the entire city into bloody chaos. After the incredible success of Nightmare on Elm Street, horror fans clamored for more. So the devilish Freddy reappeared alive and kicking – and how! The movie features some of the most shocking special effects ever splashed across the screen. Even in the opening scene – still without his Freddy face – Robert Englund can really scare you.
GOTTESKINDER (IN GOOD FAITH)
Sunday Oct 20 | 3:00 PM
Winning film Max Ophüls Prize: Youth Jury Prize 2024 | PREVIEW (The film will not be released in cinemas until 2025.)
Teenagers Hannah and Timothy grow up in a strict evangelical free church family. At first glance, the father seems caring. However, the perfect façade begins to crumble when Timothy feels attracted to his schoolmate Jonas. “I’m scum”, he writes on a piece of paper at home and slaps himself in the face. He fights his feelings with all his might and signs up for a conversion seminar. But Jonas also takes part in this seminar …
Hannah also cannot and does not want to live out her sexuality freely, but places herself entirely at the service of the church. She tries to proselytize the cool boy next door, Max, who confronts the two siblings ruthlessly but lovingly with his world.
Director Frauke Lodders’ award-winning feature film debut is convincing.
Neirud
Sunday Oct 20 | 6:00 PM
Brazil 2023 | 72 min | Original with English subtitles | Directed by: Fernanda Faya
“NEIRUD illuminates a lifelong dedication to nonconformist living and an urgent affirmation of its existence.” [Fernanda Faya]
Aunt Neirud, tall and strong, was always present at family gatherings. Who was this woman who was so close to the director’s family? Fantastic stories from her father’s childhood inspired Fernanda Faya to make a documentary. As she comes across more and more traces of Neirud during her research, a whole universe gradually becomes apparent: women wrestling in the circus, a women’s troupe led by her grandmother and myths about “gorilla women”. One of the most important facets of Brazilian circus history, for which there is no documentation in official archives and collections. The forgotten life stories of these women are examples of a life outside of socially restricted notions of gender roles – and of the erasure of lesbian stories.
Úsvit (We have never been modern)
Friday Oct 18 | 8:30 PM
Cooperation with Transit Filmfest
The year is 1937 and in the middle of Svit, a small town at the foot of the High Tatras, lies a synthetic fiber factory whose young director Alois Haupt pursues a modern approach. The main character of the film, however, is his wife Helena. The aspiring doctor is about to give birth, but her determined view of her family’s rosy future is clouded by the discovery of the corpse of an intersex baby in the factory yard. The Czechoslovakian secret service agents are quick to finish their investigation, too quick in Helena’s eyes. Equipped with the necessary medical knowledge and a good nose, she therefore begins to investigate herself. This historical drama is inspired by true stories of intersex people in the 1930s.
AMAL
Monday Oct 21 | 8:30 PM
When Mounia, a student of Moroccan origin, finds the courage to live her homosexuality, she is subjected to relentless harassment. Teacher Amal, a practicing Muslim like most of the students, counters the open homophobia and cultivates tolerance and freedom of expression in the classroom – even if it puts her in danger. Not all colleagues and certainly not all families support her teaching methods – with dramatic consequences for everyone.
Belgian-Moroccan actress Lubna Azabal delivers an outstanding performance as a strong and determined woman who nevertheless slowly threatens to break down. Her eyes tremble and burn with love and despair. Her desire for a tolerant and open society is palpable.
PRETTY RED DRESS
Tuesday Oct 22 | 8:30 PM
Travis has just been released from prison and it quickly becomes clear that everything has changed. His girlfriend Candice is auditioning for a musical and daughter Kenisha has a few problems. When Travis buys Candice her dream dress, the family’s problems only get worse. Secrets and unspoken desires threaten to become public, forcing Travis to ask himself who he is and how he wants to be perceived. The dynamics within the family, external influences from culture and community, the web of secrecy, shame, frustration and desire that develops around the red dress for all involved are sensitively illuminated. London is the backdrop for this warm-hearted and often funny piece of contemporary life, which is accompanied by Tina Turner’s hits.
IN BED
Wednesday Oct 23 | 6:00 PM
Guy and his best friend Joy are enjoying the Pride Parade until a fatal shooting destroys their happiness. With Dan in shock, they seek shelter in Guy’s apartment. Guy turns to party drugs to keep the party going and get closer to Dan. A 24-hour trip full of excesses begins, during which Guy is confronted with his inner demons and reality. Israeli documentary filmmaker Nitzan Gilady uses the film to address the rampage at the Pride Parade in Tel Aviv in 2009.
IN BED shows homosexual expression in drug intoxication, where fears are numbed and friendships are neglected. The real reasons for consumption become blurred with the emotional world until everything spirals out of control. Sex becomes interchangeable in the Grindr/party maelstrom and has to be spiced up with drugs, revealing the pitfalls of this way of life.