Stück für Stück questions Alara’s approach to religious conventions, while Sandro finds himself in a car wreck.
In Buffer Zone, two soldiers on the civil Cypriot border overcome political barriers and social constraints with Kate Bush.
Breakfast in Happy Ever After is magically prepared, but the Black Forest Cherry scandal is not far away. Three fairies help us escape from fairytale limbo into a queer utopia.
The Device That Turned Me Into A Cyborg Was Born The Same Year I Was: A film for our own disabled queer community of colour that confronts the audience with questions about technological aids, pathologized bodies and prevailing modes of communication.
Berlin, 2020s: The battle for living space rages on the streets and in shared kitchens. In Du bist so wunderbar(Paradise Europe), Edu urgently needs a new place to stay. In the day, Edu does (almost) anything to achieve this, while a cleaning job in a cruising shed awaits him at night – paradise, isn’t it?
Mitsuki and Umi steal away from a party and end up in a changing room. While Umi has a heart-to-heart about her own relationship, Mitsuki takes heart and they both dance through the autumn night in Salty Blue.
Drei Räuberinnen (three robbers) plan a vendetta. In Medusa’s home town, they practise for real and try their hand at male impersonation. Disguises and weapons at the ready – press the bell – let’s go!
Content notes
Stück für Stück: –
Buffer Zone: Insults, violence, bullying
Happy ever after: –
The Device That Turned Me Into A Cyborg Was Born The Same Year I Was: explicit sex
Du Bist So Wunderbar (Paradise Europe): Blood, excrement, nudity, sexual organs, bodily fluids, racist remarks, explicit sex
Salty Blue: –
Die Räuberinnen: Robbery, gunshots
approx. 87 min | original languages with German subtitles
In this documentary, comic book author Gordon introduces us to some of his companions, such as his partner Shawn, his brother Craig and his brain tumour Rick. With gentle humour, the artist deals with his incurable cancer by drawing comic strips, thus creating real encounters with other sufferers.
The voices of supportive people are also heard. Not least because of the loving relationship between Shawn and Gordon, the film is not only a confrontation with death, but also a documentary about solidarity, joie de vivre and resilience.
Content notes
Cancer, lockdown
GBR 2022 | Documentary | D: Will Hewitt & Austen McCowan | 88 min. | English original version with German subtitles
Set in a small town in southern Thailand, Solids by the Seashore tells a story of self-discovery and young love. Shati, the daughter of a conservative Muslim family, meets Fon, an artist visiting Shati’s hometown to use her exhibition to draw attention to the drastically changing environment — especially the once picturesque beaches. While Shati’s parents are about to arrange a wedding for her, Shati and Fon grow closer and closer.
In this metaphorically charged film full of beautiful scenic shots, we accompany Shati on her journey. She is ultimately faced with thie question: What is more important to her, her family’s dreams or her own?
Content notes
Alcohol consumption
THA 2022 | Feature film | D: Patiparn Boontarig | 93 min. | Thai original version with English subtitles
In cooperation with Queeraspora e.V. & Trans* Recht e.V., followed by a panel discussion.
In Joyland, Pakistani director Saim Sadiq tells a queer love story that sheds light on the social background of repressed desire within a patriarchal family in Lahore, Pakistan. His feature film debut portrays the life of Haider, an unemployed man living with his wife Mumtaz and family. In the course of the film, while looking for a job in a mujar theatre (dance studio), Haider gets to know Biba, a trans* woman. Themes of transphobia, racism and classism are addressed and interlinked.
Content notes
Homophobic and transphobic language, suicide, animal slaughter
PAK/USA 2022 | Feature film | D: Saim Sadiq | 126 min. | Punjabi/Urdu original version with German subtitles
Following the film JOYLAND, which will be shown that evening, we would like to discuss the topics of transphobia and racism and their intersections in the form of a moderated panel discussion.
We will be discussing issues such as perspectives change on multiple marginalisation (racism/trans* hostility) and the importance of non-western vs. western understandings of queerness, accompanied by a special guest (to be announced).
A mediated book table with trans* BIPoC books will also be offered throughout the evening.
Aisha spends her last day in Belo Horizonte with her three friends Bramma, Igui and Will. Between laughter and tears, intimate confessions and loving encounters, the four of them party until dawn. The film accompanies them in everyday moments and shows the power of friendship, love and cohesion in their encounters and experiences.
Tudo o que você podia ser is a portrait of trans* and queer friendship and celebrates the beauty of a chosen family and the many kinds of love that support us in new stages of life.
Content warnings
Drug use, stories of police violence, transphobia
BRA 2023 | feature film | D: Ricardo Alves Jr. | 83 min. | Original Portuguese version with German subtitles
Just before a crucial volleyball tournament, Sofia finds out that she is unwillingly pregnant. With abortion severely restricted in Brazil, she must fight for self-determination in a patriarchal society. Determined to take matters into her own hands, Sofia embarks on an emotional and physical journey.
In the process, she is met with the support of close friends and fellow players, but also the resistance of a society that places its own moral standards above the right to self-determination.
Thanks to the gripping narrative style and the strong performance of the main character, Levante succeeds both as an intense drama and as an astute commentary on social reality in Brazil.
Content notes
Anti-abortion propaganda, physical violence, abortion, various attempts at abortion by own means/self-injurious behavior
BRA/FRA/URY 2023 | Spielfilm | D: Lillah Halla | 99 Min. | Spanische/portugiesische Originalfassung mit deutschen Untertiteln
Desire Lines is a moving, steamy, complex exploration of trans* masculine identity, desire and belonging within the gay community. When an Iranian American trans* man delves into an LGBTQ+ archive, he finds himself not only learning about trans* masculine pioneers and stories in the past, but also about his own sexual desires and identity. Juxtaposed between archive shelves and gay bathhouse corridors, the dizzying documentary-fiction hybrid is educational as well as erotic. The film shares perspectives from diverse trans* men and non-binary people in the United States and touches on topics including sexual orientation, HIV and AIDS, transitioning and discrimination and acceptance within the queer community.
Content notes
Aids, HIV, mentions of racism, death, trans* hostility
USA 2024 | Documentary | D: Jules Rosskam | 81 min. | English original version with German subtitles
Pat and Angie have been a couple for over 30 years and live a happy everyday life surrounded by friends and family. When Pat passes away unexpectedly one night, Angie is faced with many questions and challenges: Where will the funeral take place? What will happen to the estate? And who actually gets to decide all this? All Shall Be Well sensitively and honestly tells the story of how Angie navigates her grief through this new situation and finds her own way with the support of the community.
Content notes
Death, mourning
HKG/CHN 2024 | Feature film | D: Ray Yeung | 93 min. | Cantonese original version with English subtitles
Followed by a performance and panel discussion by and with Mieze & Dysplasia McCripple
Acsexybility vividly tells the stories of disabled people around their sexualities. Through conversations between the protagonists and the director, the film covers topics like flirting, kissing, dating, masturbation, ableism and, of course, sex. With their open narration, the narrators break through the idea of disabled people as being asexual, innocent and desire-less.
Different forms of encounters, eroticism and togetherness are created with artistic play sequences. At the same time, the complexity and challenges of leading a fulfilling sex life in an ableist society are highlighted. Gonçalves shines a spotlight on an underrepresented community and allows these important conversations to be heard and seen.
Content notes
Explicit description and depiction of sex, mention of ableism, racism, sexual assault and rape as well as suicide
BRA 2023 | Documentary | D: Daniel Gonçalves | 86 min. | Portuguese original version with German subtitles
Experience an exciting mixture of reality and fiction on time spent in an Argentinian women’s prison, by and with former inmates. In musical scenes, the actors dance and sing about their past, relive their lives as fiction and thus invent a possible future for themselves.
The music and creative staging not only shed light on the harsh everyday life behind bars, but also on the protagonists’ longings, dreams and will to change.
The film not only addresses the personal stories of the inmates, but also the social and systemic factors that led to their imprisonment, while at the same time opening up a space for hope and self-empowerment.
Content notes
Mention of physical violence, sexualized violence, suicide and murder; depiction of physical violence and injuries
ARG/CHE/DEU 2024 | Feature film | D: Lola Arias | 82 min. | Spanish original version with German subtitles
In the forests of rural Alberta, Canada, queer and trans teens get to experience the joy of being their authentic selves at Camp fYrefly: a summer camp for LGBTQ+ youth. Supported by inclusive camp counsellors, the teens are able to express themselves, explore their identities, make friends and explore crushes. In this safer space, the teens also process the struggles they face outside camp – from coming out to working through self-harm. They encourage one another and face their own challenges, whether it be overcoming a fear of horses or coming out to their parents as trans. At the same time, they are given the space to simply be kids, and bond with one another through activities like crafting, sports, meeting queer and trans elders and, most importantly, toasting the perfect marshmallow.
Content notes
Mention of homophobia & transphobia, bullying and self-harm
CAN 2023 | Documentary | D: Jen Markowitz | 80 min. | English original version with German subtitles
Photographer Libuše Jarcovjáková documents both her own life and a piece of European history. She describes growing up in Soviet-occupied Czechoslovakia, political repression, factory work, party nights in queer clubs, private and professional setbacks. She tells of friendship and loneliness, of romantic and sexual encounters with men and women, but above all, of a radical search for authenticity. Through honest and intimate insights, the fusion of the political and the private becomes tangible. Based on the artist’s black-and-white photographs and accompanied by her eloquent diary entries, the documentary is also a captivating work of art in aesthetic terms.
Content notes
Alcohol and drug consumption, images of smoking children and dead animals, depression, nudity, abortions with health consequences, strobe and lighting effects, accidents
CZE/SVK/AUT 2024 | Documentary | D: Klára Tasovská | 90 min. | Czech original version with German subtitles
Judy (Todd Flaherty) and Chrissy (Wyatt Fenner) are best friends living their dream as a glamorous drag duo in New York. When Chrissy unexpectedly moves from New York to Philadelphia to join his partner and get his life in order, Judy is disillusioned and must reinvent herself as a drag queen or risk becoming an insignificant solo act. In his film debut, gay director Todd Flaherty directed, wrote, edited and produced the film as well as playing the lead role of Judy. His brother Brendan acted as cinematographer for the enchantingly poetic black and white images. The result is a melancholy and humorous film that deals with questions of friendship and self-realisation.
Content notes
Depiction of sex, drug use, mention of non-consensual behavior, lighting effects, fat shaming
USA 2022 | Feature film | D: Todd Flaherty | 96 mins | English original version with German subtitles
When the Chernobyl nuclear power plant explodes in the spring of 1986, Mimi arrives in a small town in Finland. Mariia is immediately fascinated by her. The two build up an intense relationship and experience the joys and turmoil of first love, with a tragic ending.
Twenty years later, Mariia returns to her hometown to look after her sick mother, and the memories of that summer that changed everything come flooding back. She is faced with the task of coming to terms with her memories and guilt.
Valoa valoa valoa shapes an affectionate coming-of-age story about two teenagers, which deals with issues of identity and sexuality, family and coming to terms with one’s past.
Content notes
Sexualized violence, suicide, thematization of nuclear power explosion
FIN 2023 | Feature film | D: Inari Niemi | 91 min. | Finnish original version with German subtitles
Markus Stein offers us an insight into Jürgen Baldiga’s diaries and photographs, thus allowing us to immerse ourselves in the gay subculture of (West) Berlin in the ’80s and ’90s. In his photographs, Baldiga documents his life in a very intimate, but also utterly blunt way. He not only deals openly with his homosexuality, but also with his HIV infection and AIDS disease, creating one of the most important works of the gay movement and AIDS epidemic in Germany in his artistic exploration. Baldiga – Entsichertes Herz is a haunting portrait that wanders between joie de vivre and despair and takes us back to a time that must not be forgotten.
Content notes
Aids, genitals, HIV, nudity, death
DE 2024 | Feature film | D: Markus Stein | 92 min. | German original version with English subtitles
Stück für Stück questions Alara’s approach to religious conventions, while Sandro finds himself in a car wreck.
In Buffer Zone, two soldiers on the civil Cypriot border overcome political barriers and social constraints with Kate Bush.
Breakfast in Happy Ever After is magically prepared, but the Black Forest Cherry scandal is not far away. Three fairies help us escape from fairytale limbo into a queer utopia.
The Device That Turned Me Into A Cyborg Was Born The Same Year I Was: A film for our own disabled queer community of colour that confronts the audience with questions about technological aids, pathologized bodies and prevailing modes of communication.
Berlin, 2020s: The battle for living space rages on the streets and in shared kitchens. In Du bist so wunderbar(Paradise Europe), Edu urgently needs a new place to stay. In the day, Edu does (almost) anything to achieve this, while a cleaning job in a cruising shed awaits him at night – paradise, isn’t it?
Mitsuki and Umi steal away from a party and end up in a changing room. While Umi has a heart-to-heart about her own relationship, Mitsuki takes heart and they both dance through the autumn night in Salty Blue.
Drei Räuberinnen (three robbers) plan a vendetta. In Medusa’s home town, they practise for real and try their hand at male impersonation. Disguises and weapons at the ready – press the bell – let’s go!
Content notes
Stück für Stück: –
Buffer Zone: Insults, violence, bullying
Happy ever after: –
The Device That Turned Me Into A Cyborg Was Born The Same Year I Was: explicit sex
Du Bist So Wunderbar (Paradise Europe): Blood, excrement, nudity, sexual organs, bodily fluids, racist remarks, explicit sex
Salty Blue: –
Die Räuberinnen: Robbery, gunshots
approx. 87 min | original languages with German subtitles
On October 31st, this year’s Queerfilm Festival in Bremerhaven will come to an end with the Short Film Evening. You can expect great DJs, refreshing drinks and a safer space where you can be yourselves. Chat with others about the films of the past few days or get the dancefloor glowing – we look forward to seeing you!
Admission from 9 pm, at Tusculum (Sonnenstr. 23, 27568 Bhv) Admission on a donation basis
For technical reasons, we are unfortunately unable to use the solidarity-based pricing system here.
If you do not have the opportunity to attend the queerfilm festival in person, we offer you three selected films for your private streaming pleasure. The online program will be available from 23.10. till the 05.11.2024 within Germany on the digital cinema platform of the Bundesverband der Kommunalen Kinos – BkF e.V.:
After purchasing the digital ticket, you can stream the respective film for 48 hours.
This requires a one-time log-in (user name & password). The VoD platform Cinemalovers is GDPR-compliant and develops solidarity-based forms of digital film offerings together with festivals, distributors and (municipal) cinemas. There is the possibility to pay the tickets via Paypal, direct debit and credit card via the PayPal interface. No Paypal account is required for this. For technical reasons, we are unfortunately unable to use the solidarity-based pricing system here.
