Lesbiennes, quelle histoire ? (2023)

Serving in Secret: Love, Country, and Don't Ask, Don't Tell

Tracing the U.S. military's long history of discrimination against the gay community and one couple's personal journey for acceptance.

The History of the Carabiner

Through a creative blend of mixed-media and charismatic narration balancing humor, sass and historical gravity, discover the queer history of the carabiner in this latest WaterBear Original, directed by Gianna Mazzeo and made in partnership with Nikon. Follow the carabiner’s story, from its humble 1911 climbing roots (thanks, Otto "Rambo" Herzog), to empowering butch mechanics and postal workers in the 60s, becoming a potent signal of identity and attraction in the 80’s (think Tinder, but with hardware) and as a TikTok fashion sensation today.

Ahead of the Curve

With a fist full of credit cards, a lucky run at the horse track, and a title that called to mind a certain French film star, Franco Stevens launched the best-selling lesbian lifestyle magazine ever published, connecting her community in an unprecedented way. AHEAD OF THE CURVE is a new feature documentary about the extraordinary woman who started Curve magazine, and by doing so helped accelerate the political and social evolution of the nation.

Stolen House

"Stolen House" is a documentary short film that follows the migration story of Mark, a Russian photographer, and Katya, a Ukrainian artist, to Argentina. Through narrations, staged scenes, and archival material, fragments of their lives, feelings, and motivations are explored.

Cured

Mentally ill. Deviant. Diseased. And in need of a cure. These were among the terms psychiatrists used to describe gay women and men in the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s. And as long as they were “sick”, progress toward equality was impossible. This documentary chronicles the battle waged by a small group of activists who declared war against a formidable institution – and won a crucial victory in the modern movement for LGBTQIA+ equality.

Sex and Revolution

In the early ‘70s, in Argentina, a group of homosexuals decided to confront the status quo. With testimonies from its survivors as its denouncement source, Sex and Revolution brings back the voices of those who thought in order to be recognized as political actors in a society that wasn’t prepared for them.

My Name Is Violeta

Violeta leads a normal life in a well-off family, with loving parents, surrounded by everything the heart of an eleven-year-old girl might wish for. But she hasn’t always been the pretty girl she is today; she was born a boy. At age 6, she baffled her parents (the famous adult movie stars Nacho Vidal and Franceska Jaimes) when she told them she wanted to be called and dress as a girl. After the initial shock, they decided to give her all their support on the long and tough road that will lead to her becoming a woman someday. Violeta faces many challenges, medical (such as deciding whether or not to take hormone-blockers to stop the development of masculine features as soon as puberty kicks in) and legal (obtaining an ID card with her new name and gender). Later, she may consider getting a sex reassignment procedure, or the possibility of becoming a mother through adoption.

The Times of Harvey Milk

Harvey Milk was an outspoken human rights activist and one of the first openly gay U.S. politicians elected to public office; even after his assassination in 1978, he continues to inspire disenfranchised people around the world.

Verbotene Liebe - Queere Opfer der NS-Diktatur

Sexual minorities were oppressed, imprisoned and murdered by the Nazis. Paragraph 175 criminalized homosexual men during the Nazi era - but the Nazis also discriminated against lesbians and trans people. They should be excluded from the national community. More than 50,000 queer people have been proven to have been persecuted. The documentary highlights three poignant fates in the context of Nazi terror: Elli Smula was persecuted as a lesbian, Liddy Bacroff was harassed by the authorities as a "transvestite" and Rudolf Brazda was imprisoned in the Buchenwald concentration camp because of his homosexuality. In order to tell their stories, the actor Jannik Schümann and the activists Julia Monro and Kerstin Thost go looking for clues in archives and talk to historians. You will learn how some people managed to live out their identity and assert themselves as queer people during the Nazi era despite the most adverse circumstances.

Siamo qui

Activists of the LGBTQ+ association Rain Arcigay Caserta come back living in a property given to them in concession, confiscated from the Camorra in Castel Volturno. The goal is to reconnect with the local inhabitants and propose a new idea of ​​sharing and regenerating the park.

Polonia: ¿Zona libre de LGTBI?

Is Poland a homophobic country or is it only its government? Are there in Poland, as the conservative media would have you believe, "LGTBI-free zones"? To answer these questions, Jon Sistiaga takes an immersion trip through divided Poland.

Mala reputación

A film that sets a magnifying glass on the representation of lesbians in fiction products that were broadcasted on Argentine television from 1992 to 2014 on over-the-air channels. Based on interviews with professionals from various disciplines and archival images, the documentary reveals a negative characterization that predominates in the representations. The characters lack social depth and are distant from reality. The small screen presents us with lives marked by a dramatic coming out of the closet or, even worse, their permanence in it. The voices of Albertina Carri, Ernesto Meccia, Analia Couceiro and Vir Cano reflect on fictions from their backgrounds and their own life stories.

Political Bodies

At a time when the far right is ascending to power around the world, the 2020 Brazilian municipal elections saw a surprising and unprecedented record of LGBT candidates. This film follows four young queer politicians during their electoral campaigns and reveals their struggle to affirm their rights to exist and be heard.

Forbidden Love: The Unashamed Stories of Lesbian Lives

Ten women in Canada talk about being lesbian in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s: discovering the pulp fiction of the day about women in love, their own first affairs, the pain of breaking up, frequenting gay bars, facing police raids, men's responses, and the etiquette of butch and femme roles. Interspersed among the interviews and archival footage are four dramatized chapters from a pulp novel, "Forbidden Love".

Chimera

A non-binary folk watches the handover of the first non-binary ID in the history of Chile. As they try to do the paperwork, they will face the bureaucracy of the legal proceeding.

That's Not All

Two young women narrate their stories of recent love relationships. Living in the metropolis of São Paulo, their experiences are permeated by issues influenced by current ways of relating in love.

Gaming Hearts

An online friendship blossoms between Olivia and Tristan, two gamers brought together by the pixels of a screen. As their connection deepens, they must navigate the blurred boundaries of virtual and real worlds, where friendships are formed online, but emotions are felt offline. 'Gaming Hearts' is a poignant short film that explores the unique bonds forged in the digital age and the vulnerabilities that come with it.

Drawn to You

Young Emily didn’t see anything wrong with her drawing of two girls holding hands, but her mother saw otherwise and tore both the paper and her child’s heart in two. Little did they know, the drawings had come alive and are determined to reunite with one another across the vast bedroom of pages, no matter what risk comes their way. An adventurous and heartwarming tale, “Drawn to You” shows audiences both the struggles and joy that comes with being true to your heart, and not letting others tell you who to be.

Falas de Orgulho: Histórias (Im)possíveis

Plot unavailable

What Makes a Family

Janine and Sandy are a lesbian couple who decide to have a baby, but after a few years Sandy dies. This tragedy is exploited by Sandy's parents to snatch the girl from Janine's care. But then, and despite having the laws against her, Janine decides to fight in order to regain custody of her daughter.

Bodies of Desire

Using Varsha Panikar's poetry series by the same name, it follows the journey of a poet as they rediscover love, passion, and identity after encountering their muse.

Shout

With the aim of denouncing and dismantling homophobia, transphobia, and biphobia, Movistar and VMLY&R Mexico launched “Shout,” seeking to tackle the longtime “macho” stereotype, and put an end to cyberbullying through a positive narrative.

When I Let the Fish Fly

Amid his early self-discovery age, his family encountered a tragedy, where Boyboy had already witnessed how unequal society treated their kind.

AYOR

In 1970, during the annual Dutch national commemoration of those fallen in World War II, two men try to make a statement against gay discrimination. In the moments before and after the incident, their doubt, fear and firm belief becomes clear.

Ditadura Gay

Based on conspiracy theories, a threat from an authoritarian, homophobic and retrograde government generates a revolution in the gay community that promises to dominate political power and impose its ideas on heteros, more or less as they always have, on the other hand. It is impossible? Yes. Is it ridiculous? Yes. But there are people who believe in the way they imagined it, a short that is a prologue to a possible future series...

Conditional Desire

In a conformist society, Ahmed and Salma, marry for convenience to pursue their passions with secret lovers. "Conditional Desire" delves into identity, love, and authenticity amid societal constraints.

Santiago's Theorem

In 1969 Argentine filmmaker Hugo Santiago directed Invasión, his opera prima, written by Jorge Luis Borges and Adolfo Bioy Casares, and later settled in France. This film documents his return to Buenos Aires in 2013 to shoot his latest film, Le ciel du centaure.


A Year in Space

Follow astronaut Scott Kelly's 12-month mission on the International Space Station, from launch to landing, as NASA charts the effects of long-duration spaceflight by comparing him to his identical twin on Earth, astronaut Mark Kelly.

Syd Barrett: Under Review

In this Under Review we look at the genius of Syd Barrett.

Wrong Elements

Uganda, 1989. A young Acholi rebel guided by spirits, Joseph Kony, forms a new rebel movement against the government: the LRA, The Lord’s Resistance Army. An “army” that grew by abducting teenagers – more than 60 000 over 25 years – of which less than half came out of the bush alive. Geofrey, Nighty and Mike, a group of friends, as well as Lapisa, were among these youths, abducted at 12 or 13. Today, in their effort to rebuild their lives and go back to normal, they revisit the places that marked their stolen childhood. At the same time victims and murderers, witnesses and perpetrators of horrific acts that they did not fully understand, they are forever the "Wrong Elements" that society struggles to accept. Meanwhile, in the immensity of the Central African jungle, the Ugandan army still continues to hunt the last scattered LRA rebels. But Joseph Kony is still out there, on the run.

Automatic Brain

Two parts documentary about the brain: "The Magic of the Unconscious" and "The Power of the Unconscious" "Your brain is a state-of-the-art marvel, managing 90% of everything you do without letting you know regardless of whether you're awake or asleep. When you think you have an idea your brain has already had that idea. Something in your head navigates you through the everyday adventures of modern life, something that decides things for you before you can think about it, because your brain is always on automatic."

Enter the Battlefield: Life on the Magic - The Gathering Pro Tour

Magic: The Gathering is the most popular collectible card game in the world. At Magic's Pro Tour, players from around the globe compete to prove who is the best. They are writers, game theorists, jewelry apprentices, female pioneers, and teenage geniuses.

Dissonant

Manon de Boer films the dancer Cynthia Loemij, who improvises to Eugène Ysaÿe’s 3 Sonates for Violin Solo.

Sudan's Forgotten Films

Benjamin and Awad run Sudan's national film archive. The two men, who have worked together for more than 40 years, are devoted to protecting their country's visual memories. Home to some 13,000 films, the archive preserves pivotal moments of Sudan's turbulent history and is one of the largest in Africa. But the archive is in a fragile state. Following years of neglect and poor storage, many film reels are turning to dust in Sudan's unforgiving tropical climate. The two friends are determined to turn it around and embark on a mission to save the old films. Will they succeed in preserving Sudan's visual history for future generations before it's too late?

The Death of Cinema and My Father Too

When Yoel hears about an imminent Iranian military attack on Tel Aviv, he knows what to do - escape with his family to a safe haven in Jerusalem. His son Assaf, who is a filmmaker and about to become a father himself, wants to give Yoel one last lead role in his movie by melting the fictional world into bittersweet reality.

Downstream to Kinshasa

For two decades, the victims of the Six-Day War have been fighting in Kisangani for the recognition of this bloody conflict and demanding compensation. Tired of unsuccessful pleas, they have finally decided to voice their claims in Kinshasa, after a long journey on the Congo River.

9 Days at Raqqa

Leila Mustapha is Kurdish and Syrian. Her battle was Raqqa, the former capital of the Islamic State with 300,000 inhabitants, reduced to a field of ruin after the war. An engineer by training, mayor at just 30, immersed in a world of men, her mission is to rebuild her city, to reconcile, and to establish democracy there. An extraordinary mission. A French writer crosses Iraq and Syria to meet her. In this still dangerous city, she has 9 days to live with Leila and tell her story in a book.

Say My Name

Say My Name is a documentary about two transgender women, Selem and Diana, who are struggling for the right to change their names and gender in all official documents and seeking respect from their families and society.