This Side of Heaven (2016)

Ranchlands

The story of a spiritually scarred man whose life changes forever when he must return to his estranged family to help care for a brother who is suffering from brain cancer. With the help of a spiritually enlightened caregiver, he faces the demons of the past and a secret that has haunted him and his family for many years.

Cabaret

Inside the Kit Kat Club of 1931 Berlin, starry-eyed singer Sally Bowles and an impish emcee sound the clarion call to decadent fun, while outside a certain political party grows into a brutal force.

In & Out

A midwestern teacher questions his sexuality after a former student makes a comment about him at the Academy Awards.

Water Lilies

Set during a sultry summer in a French suburb, Marie is desperate to join the local pool's synchronized swimming team, but is her interest solely for the sake of sport or for a chance to get close to Floriane, the bad girl of the team? Sciamma, and the two leads, capture the uncertainty of teenage sexuality with a sympathetic eye in this delicate drama of the angst of coming-of-age.

Savage Grace

This examination of a famous scandal from the 1970s explores the relationship between Barbara Baekeland and her only son, Antony. Barbara, a lonely social climber unhappily married to the wealthy but remote plastics heir Brooks Baekeland, dotes on Antony, who is homosexual. As Barbara tries to "cure" Antony of his sexuality -- sometimes by seducing him herself -- the groundwork is laid for a murderous tragedy.

Auroras

Constantly orbiting at 400 km (250 mi) above the earth, the ISS is perfectly situated to witness the beautiful streamers of green and red light emanating from the collision of highly charged solar wind particles with oxygen and nitrogen atoms in the earth's atmosphere. Centered about the northern (Aurora Borealis) and southern (Aurora Australis) poles the Auroras move in an almost hypnotic dance below the space station.

Tom Daley: Illegal to Be Me

Tom Daley visits the most homophobic countries in the Commonwealth to explore how gay athletes are facing extreme persecution. What can the Commonwealth Games do to help?

The Aussie Boys

Come and take a trip 'Down Under' and witness seven stories about the lives and loves of these men and boys from across Australia. From historical beginnings in the 1600's all the way through to noughties truck stop dilemmas, present day road trip romancing and faces from the past returning for a final goodbye. The 7 short films are: Burning Soul (2016); Miles (2017); Infidels (2017); Eric (2014); What Grown-Ups Know (2004); All Good Things (2019); The Dam (2016).

In Orbit

The future, the space. Sonia is about to be transferred from her station to a newer one. Although everything seems to be going well, Sonia's mind is actually elsewhere, haunted by tragic events from the not too distant past.

Given

Haruki secretly had feelings for Akihiko for years, but Akihiko was still in a relationship with his roommate, the violinist Ugetsu Murata. Haruki, Akihiko, and Ugetsu's love clashes and starts to move forward.

Tropical Night

Jae Hee and his brother Tae Kyung live quietly in Pattaya. They are one day visited by Min Ki, whose brother Min Hoon, committed suicide while on military leave. Convinced that Jae Hee is responsible, Min Ki comes to realize that Jae Hee was deeply in love with his brother, and grows fond of him. The buds of love then gradually sprout in the dreamy tropical night.

Maybe... Maybe Not

The heterosexual man Axel is thrown out of his girlfriends home for cheating and ends up moving in with a gay man. Axel learns the advantages of living with gay men even though they are attracted to him and when his girlfriend wants him back he must make a tough decision.

Billy Boy

In an era marked by the reign of fluid relationships, through apps and blind dates, Alejo seeks to fill his sentimental void by constantly changing sex partners.

Bend It Like Beckham

Jess Bhamra, the daughter of a strict Indian couple in London, is not permitted to play organized soccer, even though she is 18. When Jess is playing for fun one day, her impressive skills are seen by Jules Paxton, who then convinces Jess to play for her semi-pro team. Jess uses elaborate excuses to hide her matches from her family while also dealing with her romantic feelings for her coach, Joe.

My Own Private Idaho

In this loose adaptation of Shakespeare's "Henry IV," Mike Waters is a hustler afflicted with narcolepsy. Scott Favor is the rebellious son of a mayor. Together, the two travel from Portland, Oregon to Idaho and finally to the coast of Italy in a quest to find Mike's estranged mother. Along the way they turn tricks for money and drugs, eventually attracting the attention of a wealthy benefactor and sexual deviant.

Fire

In a barren, arranged marriage to an amateur swami who seeks enlightenment through celibacy, Radha's life takes an irresistible turn when her beautiful young sister-in-law seeks to free herself from the confines of her own loveless marriage.

The Swedish Boys

Get ready to explore a dizzying confection of Swedish life and love spanning all shades of the gay experience, from childhood confusion to a teen's coming out, a trio of friends in a three-way relationship, a mother trying to connect with her deaf son and a heterosexual ghost from a homosexual past. The 7 short films are: Coming Out [Komma ut] (2011); Polly (2017); Filip (2015); No Breaks [När bromsvajern släpper] (2008); The Memory of You [Minnet av dig] (2015); Distances [Bortom] (2014); Stockholm Daybreak [Gryning] (2013).

The Male Gaze: Nocturnal Instincts

Strap yourself in for an exhilarating journey into darkness with these five award-winning short films from across the globe that delve into heart-pumping escapades varying from the intensely erotic to the ultra-violent to the warm-inside feels. The night has never looked so inviting. Segments: After Dawn [Passée l'aube] (2017), Poof (2018), Spiral (2018), Night of Love (2018), Floating Melon [浮果] (2015).

The People's Joker

An aspiring clown grappling with her gender identity combats a fascistic caped crusader.

Philippino Story

Philip and Bastian are lovers. Philip has taken the responsibility to help his older brother’s family in the slums. However, when Bastian pursues painting and can no longer provide for Philip, Philip resorts to hustling in order to help his brother’s family. When Bastian catches Philip being picked up by a gay man in a car, he decides to keep everything inside. Can Philip and Bastian’s love prevail despite the odds?

Heaven and Nature

Set in the late 1950s, childhood sweethearts are confronted with the realities of their relationship as adults and are forced to acknowledge that situations are not always what they appear to be. They must ask themselves what they are willing to sacrifice to live the American Dream. Inspired by the melodramas of Douglas Sirk, Heaven And Nature includes LGBTQ characters, themes of class and privilege, and a glaring look at the gaps in our collective memory when we view history through a nostalgic lens.

The Obituary of Tunde Johnson

A wealthy, Nigerian-American teenager is pulled over by police, shot to death, and immediately awakens, trapped in a terrifying time loop that forces him to confront difficult truths about his life and himself.

Two of Us

Nina and Madeleine have been sharing their lives and the landing between their two apartments for decades. After more than 20 years of loving in the shadows, Madeleine promises Nina she will tell her family the truth. It takes an unexpected event to show her the importance of living your truth.

Bringing Him Back

After losing their mother, Mía and Moi take refuge in a ramshackle family home, in the countryside, in the middle of nowhere. With them, Biel, Moi’s boyfriend. Together the three of them try to rest and heal the wounds. Especially in the case of Moi, who is recovering from a severe nervous breakdown. These are days of recovering family memories, some of them painful, of meeting again, of living without haste. The arrival of Mikel, Mía’s boyfriend, will alter the coexistence and disturb each of the inhabitants of the house in different ways. The tension grows until it explodes in an act of violence with irreversible consequences.

Men Don't Whisper

After being emasculated at a sales conference, gay couple Reese and Peyton set out to do the most masculine thing they can think of - sleep with some women.

Crash

After getting into a serious car accident, a TV director discovers an underground sub-culture of scarred, omnisexual car-crash victims, and he begins to use car accidents and the raw sexual energy they produce to try to rejuvenate his sex life with his wife.

Brother of Sleep

In the beginning of the 19th century, Johannes Elias Alder is born in a small village in the Austrian mountains. While growing up he is considered strange by the other villagers and discovers his love of music, especially rebuilding and playing the organ at the village church. After experiencing an "acoustic wonder", his eye color changes and he can hear even the most subtle sounds.

Dog Day Afternoon

Based on the true story of would-be Brooklyn bank robbers John Wojtowicz and Salvatore Naturile. Sonny and Sal attempt a bank heist which quickly turns sour and escalates into a hostage situation and stand-off with the police. As Sonny's motives for the robbery are slowly revealed and things become more complicated, the heist turns into a media circus.

Warriors of the Discotheque

The place is the notorious Starck Club (so called because it was the first major project designed by Philippe Starck in the US.) The Starck Club opened in Dallas in 1984 and not long after hosted the 1984 national Republican Convention. Ironically, it was actually legal to buy MDMA aka ecstasy there, people would put it on their credit cards. The DEA stepped in and made it a category 1 drug on July 1, 1985... In a time when ecstasy was legal & guyliner was cool.

Irreversible

A woman’s lover and her ex-boyfriend take justice into their own hands after she becomes the victim of a rapist. Because some acts can’t be undone. Because man is an animal. Because the desire for vengeance is a natural impulse. Because most crimes remain unpunished.

No Hard Feelings

Parvis, the son of exiled Iranians, copes with life in his small hometown by indulging himself with pop culture, Grindr dates, and raves. After being caught shoplifting, he is sentenced to community service at a refugee shelter where he meets siblings Banafshe and Amon, who have fled Iran. As a romantic attraction between Parvis and Amon grows, the fragile relationship between the three is put to a test.

Operation Hyacinth

Not satisfied with the result of a murder investigation in Warsaw's gay community, an officer in 1980s communist Poland resolves to uncover the truth.

The Third One

After meeting in a chat room, Fede (22) arrives at a downtown building to have an intimate encounter with a gay couple older than him. As the night unfolds, Fede has an intense and telling experience. The next morning finds him different, as if suddenly he had found a new possible way to love.

The World In Your Window

Eight-year-old Jesse lives in a twilight world of sadness and silence, squeezed into a tiny caravan with his grief stricken father. They're in limbo, existing more than living. The child intuitively understands that looking forward is harder than looking back, and that's where life happens. But they are stuck, until an accidental friendship with a V8 driving transsexual unlocks the means for Jesse to liberate his father and himself.

Herculanum

Three "meetings." Two men. A rumbling volcano.

Boy Saint

A sumptuous short film of friendship and adoration between boys, based on a poem by Peter LeBerge. Moments of joy, bonding and roughhousing on a school trip to the beach counterpoint one teen boy’s introspective sexual awakenings and questionings. Magnificent cinematography and editing create a visual feast that provides the imagery for a narrated poem by Peter Laberge alluding to early homosexual desires, but with Catholic overtones never directly expressed.

(Nie)znajomi

A group of seven friends come together for dinner. What starts out as a normal evening, evolves into something else when they decide to play a game and read all text messages aloud and answer all phone calls on speakerphone...

Eclipse

Based on the legend of love between the sun and the moon, the short film Eclipse tells a captivating love story between Lucas and Saulo, two completely different people, who, through stories, comment on the feelings they have for each other.

Method Sampling: How to Build the Future Together

Method Sampling is explored through the works of a hip-hop orchestra, a disabled choreographer, a self-taught Black mycologist, a tiny house builder and a critical theorist.

Growing Up Trans

Just a generation ago, it was adults, not kids, who changed genders. But today, many children are transitioning, too—with new medical options, and at younger and younger ages. Told from the perspective of parents, doctors, and, most revealing of all, the kids themselves, the documentary takes a powerful look at this new generation, exploring the medical possibilities, struggles and choices transgender kids and their families face today.

Pretty Boy

Sean is taken to a motel and is given a prostitute for his 18th birthday by his father. He must sleep with her to "fix" his questionable homosexuality. "Pretty Boy" is a coming of age story of a young bullied teen, Sean, struggling with his sexuality and the hardships of high school. After his father finds some questionable magazines in his room, this devout Christian will go to any lengths to get his son to find the light and "perform" the way a man should. Sean is introduced to Katie, a prostitute that understands the stigmas of modern society and helps him see the true light that is within him.

Rift

Months after they broke up, Gunnar receives a strange phone call from his ex-boyfriend, Einar. He sounds distraught, like he's about to do something terrible to himself. Gunnar drives up to the secluded cabin where Einar is holed up and soon discovers that there's more going on than he imagined. As the two men come to terms with their broken relationship, some other person seems to be lurking outside the cabin, wanting to get in.

Be Happy!

A contemporary love story about Peter, a Freudian psychiatrist married to the Finnish Mika, David, a young British gay who lives in Banyoles, addicted to the Grinder, and Coco Lamour, a French actress from Paris.

Bye Bye Victor

Friendship between two old men becomes love. Slightly-unkempt, tired, and frail, Philippe Lanctot moves into a rest home. The administrator says she wants him to be happy, but that seems far from his mind: he's waiting to die. Then, into his room, unannounced, rolls the voluble Victor Laprade, who draws out Philippe over the next few months. Victor gives Philippe the gift of experiencing the moment. In return, the well-heeled Philippe organises field trips to dinner and to a botanical garden, and, unknown to Victor, becomes the man's benefactor when Victor's children get stingy. The openly-gay Victor also pushes Philippe to acknowledge feelings he's always kept suppressed.

Peter von Kant

Peter von Kant, a successful, famous director, lives with his assistant Karl, whom he likes to mistreat and humiliate. Through the great actress Sidonie, he meets and falls in love with Amir, a handsome young man of modest means. He offers to share his apartment and help Amir break into the world of cinema. Several months later, Amir becomes a star. But as soon as he acquires fame, he breaks up with Peter, leaving him alone to face himself.

Dead Don't Die in Dallas

A miracle pill intended to save the world causes unforeseen side-effects forcing the surviving gays and bible thumpers in a small Texas town to join forces or fall prey to the flesh craving mutants.

Kate Bornstein Is a Queer & Pleasant Danger

For decades, performance artist and writer Kate Bornstein has been exploding binaries and deconstructing gender. And, her own identity. Trans-dyke. Reluctant polyamorist. Sadomasochist. Recovering Scientologist. Pioneering Gender Outlaw. Kate Bornstein Is a Queer and Pleasant Danger, joins her on her latest tour capturing rollicking public performances and painful personal revelations as it bears witness to Kate as a trailblazing artist theorist activist who inhabits a space between male and female with wit, style, and astonishing candor. By turns meditative and playful, the film invites us on a thought provoking journey through Kate's world to seek answers to some of life's biggest questions.

Pillow Chocolate

For trans man Jamie, a one-night stand is more than just sex, it's a question of self-worth.

The 8.2 Second Rule

A sweet and bitter story about Koichi, who tries to help troubled boys with homemade sweets, until he finds his first love in 8.2 seconds.

Block Pass

Friendship and rebellion - but how will a secret play out in the masculine world of motocross? Willy and Jojo are best friends. They share a passion for motocross - whereas Willy uses it to honour his deceased father, it is only by excelling in the sport that Jojo’s father will notice him. Also the masculine world or racing is perfectly suited to suppress their own insecurities. Yet when Willy one fateful night discovers the hidden love life of Jojo, he will be forced to take sides in the wave of homophobia that follows.

Boulevard

Nolan Mack, a soft-spoken bank employee, undoubtedly loves his wife Joy, though their cavernous empty house only underscores how disconnected they’ve always been from each other. Nolan finds himself drifting from his familiar present-day life in pursuit of lost time after meeting a troubled young man named Leo on his drive home. What begins as an aimless drive down an unfamiliar street turns into a life-altering series of events.

Chasin'

Two men connect more than just sexually, when a Scruff hook-up has them meeting in a park in the middle of a hot summer's night.

Such Good People

A young couple discovers a secret room filled with cash while house-sitting for rich friends who die while out of the country.

The Lost Boys

In a youth correctional facility, Joe is preparing his return to society. But William’s arrival turns his desire for freedom into desire of another kind. Behind fences and cell walls, passions begin to play havoc with the need for liberty.

Playback

In Córdoba, far from the Argentine capital, the end of a military regime promises a spring that is all too brief. “La Delpi” is the only survivor of a group of friends who are transgender women and drag-queens, who began to die of aids in the late 80s. In a Catholic and conservative city, the Grupo Kalas made their weapons and trenches out of improvised dresses and lip-syncing. Today the images of unique and unknown footage are not only a farewell letter, but a manifesto to friendship.

Sipping

Santiago and Jared , two teenagers of opposite personality spend an afternoon together looking for ways to overcome their differences. After an act that begins as a game their senses will find the space to coincide.

Being Kae Tempest

Poet, rapper, playwright and recording artist Kae Tempest is one of the most viscerally exciting artists working in Britain today. They are the youngest ever recipient of the prestigious Ted Hughes prize and have been nominated for both the Brit and Mercury music awards. Tempest has always found support and respect within the queer art scenes, a place close to their heart. In July 2020, they came out as non-binary, announcing that they would publish and perform under the name Kae. This film delves deep into their creative process and gains rare, intimate insights into Kae’s life throughout a period of profound personal and artistic change.

Dasepo Naughty Girls

Based on the popular Internet novel, the film takes place in a school renowned for its sexual aberrations. The student body is comprised of sexually ambiguous teenagers, and the student president and vice-present flaunt their taste for S&M. Independent study and supplementary classes are done on homosexuality and transgenderism. But amidst this environment, there are some that just can't adapt.

Oasis

When an introverted teenager photographs an charming backpacker naked in a caravan shower block he must choose between keeping his precious secret or saving his friendship.

The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy

A close-knit group of gay friends share the emotional roller coster of life, relationships, the death of friends, new beginnings, jealousy, fatherhood and professional success. At various stages of life's disarray, these young men share humorous and tragic relationships and always have each other to rely on.

The Outlaw

Newly appointed sheriff Pat Garrett is pleased when his old friend Doc Holliday arrives in Lincoln, New Mexico on the stage. Doc is trailing his stolen horse, and it is discovered in the possession of Billy the Kid. In a surprising turnaround, Billy and Doc become friends. This causes the friendship between Doc and Pat to cool. The odd relationship between Doc and Billy grows stranger when Doc hides Billy at his girl Rio's place after Billy is shot.

Poz

A troubled "twunk" ventures down a destructive path, searching for a solution to his problems and a way to ensure his sister's continued support.

Samira

Janosch, an interpreter, is called to help during a police deployment at the Port of Hamburg. A young African woman has barricaded herself in a container ship and threatens to commit suicide. In order to get her out, Janosch promises to help her, an offer which bears unexpected consequences.

Six Degrees of Separation

The story of a young, gay, black, con artist who, posing as the son of Sidney Poitier, cunningly maneuvers his way into the lives of a white, upper-class New York family.

Friends and Family

Gay New York couple Stephen Torcelli and Danny Russo have something to hide from Stephen's parents -- their jobs as Mafia enforcers. When the Torcelli family plans to visit, Stephen and Danny panic because Stephen's father works for the FBI. Despite efforts to keep family and Mafia separate, a birthday party gets mixed up with a mobster's daughter's engagement party. Trouble arises when the mobsters concoct a political scheme at the party.

29th and Gay

Following a year in the life of James Sanchez, it's a story about a guy rapidly approaching thirty, who doesn't have a six-pack, full head of hair or a boyfriend. While his best friend Roxy, an actress-turned-activist, struggles with showing him there's life beyond the glitz of the disco ball, his other friend, Brandon, one of those gay boys comfortable in his own gay skin, works on getting James to at least talk to a boy. Feeling out of place in the world of circuit boys, caught between his Hispanic-American heritage and being gay, we watch James find his place in the world, realizing that life is in the journey, not the destination.

12 Points

Jonas's father expresses his enthusiasm about Conchita Wurst's victory at the Eurovision Song Contest 2014. Hence, his 18-year-old son works up the courage to come out as a homosexual and introduce his boyfriend to his parents unexpectedly, his father's euphoria about the tolerance and open-mindedness displayed at the Song Contest comes to a sudden end.

Albino

Yashima is a woman who works as a plumber. She is also uncomfortable with her own sexuality. One day she visits a home for a job and meets Kyu. Yashima senses Kyu's eyes watching her. They become intimate, but a dark secret is soon revealed.

Savage Fire

In the city of Cajamar, in the middle of ruined nature, lonely characters deal with the police, rodeos and mysterious fires.

Boys On Film 16: Possession

Golden boys, teen lust, self-conscious dolls, chance encounters, a vengeful creature, holiday romance, hidden sexuality — Boys On Film celebrates it's (not so) sweet sixteen with an astonishing selection of the latest international gay short films. Volume 16: Possession features ten complete films: Kai Stänicke's "Golden" with Christian Tesch and Maximilian Gehrlinger; Christopher Manning's "Jamie" starring Sebastian Christophers and Raphael Verrion; Kai Stänicke's "B." starring Susanne Bormann and Andreas Jähnert; Blake Mawson's "PYOTR495" starring Alex Ozerov; Charlie Francis's "When A Man Loves A Woman" starring Tommy Jay Brennan, Jemima Spence, and Diane Brooks Webster; Anthony Schatteman's "Follow Me" starring Ezra Fieremans and Maarten Ketels; Jake Graf's "Chance" starring 'ABS' and Clifford Hume; Andrew Keenan-Bolger's "Sign" starring John McGinty and Preston Sadleir; Oliver Mason's "Away With Me" starring Chris Polick and Lee Knight; and "We Could Be Parents" by Björn Elgerd.

The Estrogen Gospel

A young transgender woman takes a hike through the English countryside in an attempt to resolve her spiritual crisis - but an ancient evil strives to ensure that she never completes her journey.

Glen or Glenda

A psychiatrist tells two stories: one of a trans woman, the other of a pseudohermaphrodite.

Colours

In the aggressive and often hostile world of youth grass roots football, Adam faces an ultimatum from the team captain when they discover Adam's best friend Tom is gay.