Sunday, June 18, 8:00 pm, New Parkway Theatre (Oakland) + streaming encore
Aikāne, dir. Dean Hamer, Joe Wilson, & Daniel Sousa, 2023, USA, 14 min., no dialogue 👍
As You Are, dir. Daisy Friedman, 2023, USA, 15 min., fully open captioned 💖
It’s a Date, dir. Nadia Parfan, 2023, Ukraine/UK, 5 min., no dialogue 👎 • 🇺🇸 U.S. première
L’apprenante (The Learner), dir. Angelique Kalani Axelrode, 2023, USA/France, 7 min., in French with subtitles and in English without 👎 • 🇺🇸 U.S. première
Required Reading, dir. Iniyavan Elumalai, 2023, Netherlands, 15 min., in English, Dutch & Spanish with subtitles throughout 👍
Toe Tag, dir. Jordon Bolden, 2023, USA, 19 min. 💖
Youssou & Malek, dir. Simon Frenay, 2022, France, 22 min., in French with full English subtitles 💖 • 🌎 North American première
Aikāne, dir. Dean Hamer, Joe Wilson, & Daniel Sousa, 2023, USA, 14 min., no dialogue 👍
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| Aikāne |
As You Are, dir. Daisy Friedman, 2023, USA, 15 min., fully open captioned 💖
Winner: Colin Higgins Youth Filmmaker Grant (Frameline47)
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| As You Are |
An interabled lesbian One person drives fast, seemingly quite recklessly, through the streets of Kyiv, early one morning in 2022, for reasons that remain unclear even at the end. It’s well photographed, and there weren’t any crashes (at least not that we see), but the film failed to make whatever point it was trying to get across. Not recommended. couple spend the night together for the first time, bringing to the surface issues of sexual desire, bodily autonomy, and the essence of love, which they tackle together. Beautifully balanced story, in which one woman’s different abilities are part of the story but not the whole of it. Must see.
It’s a Date, dir. Nadia Parfan, 2023, Ukraine/UK, 5 min., no dialogue 👎 • 🇺🇸 U.S. première
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| It’s a Date |
One person drives fast, seemingly quite recklessly, through the streets of Kyiv, early one morning in 2022, for reasons that remain unclear even at the end, although presumably having something to do with the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine (Слава Україні!). It’s well photographed, and there weren’t any crashes (at least not that we see), but the film failed to make whatever point it was trying to get across. Apparently it’s a reference to the obscure 1976 French film C’était un rendez-vous (a.k.a. Rendezvous) by Claude LeLouch, but without that context, the film makes no sense. Not recommended.
L’apprenante (The Learner), dir. Angelique Kalani Axelrode, 2023, USA/France, 7 min., in French with subtitles and in English without 👎 • 🇺🇸 U.S. première
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| L’apprenante |
A young American university student is studying abroad in Paris, struggling with first semester French class. She talks about her weekend, and in particular a woman she met at a party, but has difficulty finding the words in French. The actual story of the meeting is almost an afterthought, obscured behind her limited vocabulary, her poor pronunciation, and her attempts to translate literally from English. I rather suspect that someone who doesn’t speak a word of French might have an easier time enjoying this film, relying solely on the English subtitles without the distraction of listening to her halting French. Not bad, but far from wonderful. Not recommended
• IMDb page • Official website • trailer • Instagram: @AngiAxe @BabyQueerz • Tiktok: @LApprenanteFilm •
Required Reading, dir. Iniyavan Elumalai, 2023, Netherlands, 15 min., in English, Dutch & Spanish with subtitles throughout 👍
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| Required Reading |
Two people flirt in a library, but find it difficult to connect outside. It starts as seemingly a “boy meets girl” story, but then the boy begins to realize that it’s not quite that simple, especially when his guy friends are around, and gradually wraps his mind around the real “boy meets non-binary person” narrative. In English, Spanish, and Dutch, with English subtitles throughout. Well done, captures the attraction between the two characters and their awkwardness as they venture into unfamiliar territory. Highly recommended.
Toe Tag, dir. Jordon Bolden, 2023, USA, 19 min. 💖
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| Toe Tag |
A man is walking in the Meat Rack area of Fire Island and finds a metal toe tag from a crematorium, flashing him back to memories of a lover whose ashes he scattered there many years earlier. Based on a true story. Captures a glimpse of the horrors of the early years of the AIDS crisis in the New York area. Must see.
Youssou & Malek, dir. Simon Frenay, 2022, France, 22 min., in French with full English subtitles 💖 • 🌎 North American première
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| Youssou & Malek |
Beautiful, heartfelt love story of two young men coming of age in Paris. Their love lights up the screen, and the obstacles they face are not the usual litany of family, friends, and internalized homophobia, but something much more personal. Youssou (Frank Onana, left) is about to leave to go to UC Berkeley (Go Bears!), leaving Malek (Adam Hafsia, right) behind, with their future uncertain. The film is visually beautiful, told in Greek chorus style with assurance and grace by the two principals and the whole supporting cast. Definitely a MUST SEE.
Note regarding captions and subtitles: Aikāne and It’s a Date have no dialogue and thus have neither subtitles nor captions. As You Are is in English, fully open captioned. Required Reading and Youssou & Malek have English subtitles throughout. L’apprenante (The Learner) has subtitles only for the portion of the dialogue that is in French, but not for the significant portions that are in English. Toe Tag is in English without open or closed captions.
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