TWIST Seattle Queer Film Festival runs from Oct 11–21.
TWIST Seattle Queer Film Festival 2018 Films
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USA | 2018 | 85m | Yen Tan
#20GayTeen Shorts
94m
These short films give a glimpse into what it's like to grow up as a queer-identifying person, from Barna Szász and Ellie Wen's "Share," about an 18-year-old Instagram celebrity who struggles to come out to his parents to Christina Willings'
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50 Years of Fabulous
United States | 2018 | 82m | Jethro Patalinghug
The LGBTQ+ organization the Imperial Council, founded in San Francisco in 1965 by José Sarria, played a pivotal role in the gay and trans rights movements. This documentary covers the accomplishments of some of its most influential members.
All the Feels: Family Shorts
94m
These short films traverse the ups and downs of family life through the eyes of queer characters, from Bola Ogun's "Are We Good Parents?" to Giovana Olmos's "Sylvia in the Waves."
Anchor and Hope
Spain | 2017 | 112m | Carlos Marques-Marcet
A lesbian couple living on a riverboat in London decide to start a family with the help of their friend Roger and his sperm.
Authenticity: Trans Shorts
94m
These shorts champion those who live authentically, whether it's the story of a psychedelic gender-fluid cat in Ana Čigon's "Rebellious Essence" or an animated journey narrated by Laverne Cox in "Time Marches On and So Do We."
Bao Bao
Taiwan | UK | 2018 | 96m | Shie Guang-cheng
A married lesbian couple, Cindy and Joanne, are expecting their first child with gay couple Charles and Tim. A series of misunderstandings over who will parent the child causes Cindy—who is carrying the child—to flee to Taiwan to the care
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Bixa Travesty
Brazil | 2018 | 75m | Kiko Goifman
Through spoken word, rap, and dance, trans performer Linn da Quebrada challenges heteronormativity and toxic masculinity in Brazil’s urban slums.
Blanket Fort Films Presents: Aperture
30m
These short films from the graduates of the Blanket Fort Films Motion Picture Program features a range of queer perspectives.
Boy Shorts
92m
These shorts put stories of gay men front and center, from Will Gordh's "Sex Notes" to Alden Peters's "Femme."
Canary (Kanarie)
South Africa | 2018 | 123m | Christiaan Olwagen
In apartheid South Africa, a gay army draftee named Johan joins the South African military’s traveling glee club—the “Canaries”—for his compulsory two-year service.
Chance Encounters: Shorts
Canada | Colombia | Israel | Mexico | United States | 86m
Characters fall in love, have one-night stands, and more after meeting by chance in this collection of shorts.
The Coming Back Out Ball
U.S. Premiere | Australia | 2018 | 82m | Sue Thomson
Set in the midst of the fight for marriage equality in Australia, this tribute to LGBTQ+ senior citizens features interviews with elders across sexual and gender identities.
The Drag Roast of Heklina
United States | 2018 | 78m | Cheyenne Picardo
Legendary San Francisco queen Heklina, who founded the infamous drag show "Mother," is ruthlessly roasted by Julie Brown, Peaches Christ, Sister Roma, Bob the Drag Queen, Alaska Thunderfuck, and Jinkx Monsoon.
Dykes, Camera, Action
United States | 2018 | 60m | Caroline Berler
This survey of great films made by queer women features interviews with Barbara Hammer, Rose Troche, Cheryl Dunye, Desiree Akhavan, Vicky Du, and others who helped transform the queer imagination in cinema.
Eva + Candela
Colombia | 2018 | 93m | Ruth Caudeli
Candela, a filmmaker, and Eva, an actress, fall in love. Over time, Eva's fame and Candela's interest in starting a family prove to be at odds.
Evening Shadows
India | 2018 | 102m
In a traditional Indian town, a young gay man named Kartik faces familial ruptures after being pressured into coming out.
Every Act of Life
2018 | 93m | Jeff Kaufman
This portrait of prolific gay playwright Terrence McNally, who won a Tony his play Love! Valour!, covers six decades of the artist's work through archive performances, interviews with celebrities who knew him, and readings by actors who worked with him.
Freelancers Anonymous
2018 | 82m | Sonia Sebastián
A woman quits her job and finds a group of similarly stumped friends who decide to start an app for freelancers.
The Gentleman Bank Robber
United States | 2017 | 81m | Julie Perini
After being released from prison on petty theft charges, Rita “bo” Brown started robbing banks as part of Seattle's George Jackson Brigade, during which time she was able to avoid penalty by being continually misidentified as a man.
George Michael: Freedom - The Director's Cut
United Kingdom | United States | 2017 | 113m | George Michael
During his illustrious musical career in the '80s and '90s, George Michael produced oodles of hits. This director's cut features exclusive footage and interviews with Elton John, Stevie Wonder, and others.
Girls Shorts
89m
These short films about queer women traverse themes of sex, secrets and love, from Jana Heaton's film about lighthearted dating apps, "Lesbehonest: I'll Be Alright" to Rhea Bozzacchi's butch love story "Boihood."
The Happy Prince
United Kingdom | 2018 | 105m | Rupert Everett
Rupert Everett's The Happy Prince focuses on the last years of the prolific poet, author, and playwright Oscar Wilde.
Hard Paint
Brazil | 2018 | 118m | Filipe Matzembacher
In southern Brazil, a boy copes with being frequently bullied by living a second life as an adult webcam performer called NeonBoy.
The Heiresses
Brazil | France | Germany | Norway | Paraguay | Uruguay | 2018 | 98m | Marcelo Martinessi
After her partner is sent to jail, a woman decides to take a job as a taxi driver in the wealthy city Asunción, Paraguay.
How to Be a Trans Ally
Canada | United States | 90m
Through the short documentary Beauty, about trans youth and their parents, this program gives an introduction into how to be a good ally for trans people.
In the Dark Shorts
Sweden | United States | 97m
These shorts explore dark impulses of all kinds.
Jules of Light and Dark
2018 | 94m | Daniel Laabs
In this coming-of-age story set in rural Texas, college-student couple Maya and Jules try to figure out where they'll end up after they graduate.
Just Friends
Netherlands | 2018 | 81m | Ellen Smit
A Syrian medical student returns home to his family in a small Dutch town, where he takes a job caring for an elderly woman who introduces him to her hot grandson. The two fall in love, but are met with
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Kill the Monsters
USA | 2018 | 80m | Ryan Lonergan
When Frankie—the third in a relationship between primaries Patrick and Sutton—falls mysteriously ill, his two partners go on a cross-country journey in search of treatment.
Kiss Me!
France | 2017 | 86m | Océan Michel
When Océanerosemarie meets and falls in love with a beautiful photographer named Cécile, she enlists the help of her friends, family, and 76 ex-girlfriends to help win her heart.
L'Animale
Austria | 2018 | 96m | Katharina Mückstein
Mati is the only gal in a group of motocross-riding havoc-wreakers. Her tough, loveless exterior begins to wear off when she falls in love with her best friend, Sebi.
Latter-Day Glory
United States | 2018 | 74m | Brandon Deyette
In light of Utah's high rate of LGBTQ+ suicide, two ex-Mormons make it their mission to expose the truth behind the state's anti-gay lawmakers.
Leitis in Waiting
United States | 2018 | 72m | Dean Hamer
Despite begin long accepted within Tongan culture, trans women native to the South Pacific experience "mainstream" homophobia and transphobia from outsiders, threatening the women's livelihoods.
Making Montgomery Clift
2018 | 87m | Robert Anderson Clift
Classic film star and queer icon Montgomery Clift is remembered with admiration by his friends, former lovers, and his brother, Brooks, in this documentary directed and narrated by Clift's nephew, Robert.
Mapplethorpe
United States | 2018 | 102m | Ondi Timoner
American photographer Robert Mapplethorpe is known for his controversial subject-matter in large-scale works, including photographs of the underground BDSM scene in '60s and '70s New York. U.S. Senator Jesse Helms denounced his work, saying "look at the pictures," which is
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Mario
Switzerland | 2018 | 124m | Marcel Gisler
A soccer player being scouted by professional European teams pairs up with another player, Leon, to increase his chances of success. When their friendship develops into a romantic relationship, they're forced to choose between their sport and their love.
Montana
Israel | 2017 | 74m | Limor Shmila
Efi returns to her family in the Mediterranean coastal town of Acre for the first time in 15 years, after her father dies. There she meets a woman named Karen, and the two begin a torrid affair.
Moroni for President
USA | 2017 | 76m | Saila Huusko
Moroni Benally, a young gay Mormon professor at the University of Washington, launches an impassioned campaign for president of the impoverished Navajo Nation, where he's from.
The Most Dangerous Year
United States | 2018 | 90m | Vlada Knowlton
The Advocate dubbed 2016 the most dangerous year for trans Americans. In 2018, anti-trans laws—such as "bathroom bills"—continue to threaten the safety of trans communities across the country. In this documentary from Seattle filmmaker Vlada Knowlton, the director teams up
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My Best Friend
Argentina | 2018 | 91m | Martín Deus
Two teenage boys living in Patagonia help each other through their family issues.
Paternal Rites
United States | 2018 | 82m | Jules Rosskam
Trans filmmaker Jules Rosskam explores "the American family and its false dreams of normalcy" through found footage, animation, and This American Life-style narratives.
Postcards from London
United Kingdom | 2018 | 89m | Steve McLean
This film takes place in the perpetual nighttime of an imaginary version of London, where a young man named Jim joins a group of high-end, literature- and art-savvy escorts known as the Raconteurs.
QTPOC-POV Shorts
99m
These short films prioritize the QTPOC experience, from Mahaliyah Ayla O's film about a nightclub shooting, "Masks," to Shane Watson's "I Live Here."
Rafiki
Kenya | 2018 | 83m | Wanuri Kahiu
In Nairobi, two women—Ziki and Kena—meet in a cafe and immediately fall in love. As it happens, the women's fathers are opponents in an upcoming political race.
Riot
Australia | 2018 | 105m | Jeffrey Walker
Set in 1978, this fictionalized retelling of Australia’s gay rights movement chronicles the creation of Sydney’s queer Mardi Gras.
Room to Grow
United States | 2017 | 88m | Matt Alber
This uplifting documentary from Portland-based directors Matt Alber and Jon Garcia follows LGBTQ+ youth as they navigate formative stages of their lives.
Saturgay Morning Cartoons
83m
Start the day with adult-oriented animated shorts like Kathleen Mullen's brief history of the LGBTQ+ movement, "Button Out," and Chintis Lundgren's story of a fox who find a new family in "Manivald."
Shakedown
2017 | 71m | Leilah Weinraub
This love letter to the now-defunct Los Angeles underground nightclub Shakedown, which provided a space for queer women of color, features a decade's worth of footage, plus interviews with people who witnessed the club's heyday.
Sidney & Friends
Kenya | 2017 | 76m | Tristan Aitchison
Filmed over a span of three years, this documentary explores Kenya’s intersex and transgender communities through the story of Sidney, a trans man who flees to Nairobi and meets a group of trans friends after his family disowns him.
Sodom
United Kingdom | 2017 | 94m | Mark Wilshin
A young man and a forty-something former pianist meet, have an affair, and share secrets of their past.
Sorry Angel
France | 2018 | 128m | Christophe Honoré
After a chance encounter, a writer diagnosed with AIDS and a college student begin relationship fraught with unrequited feelings in the 1990s.
Still Waiting in the Wings
United States | 2018 | 109m | Q. Allan Brocka
Starving singers and performers strive to make it big in this show biz-themed musical.
Strowlers
2018 | 40m | Ben Dobyns
In a version of Seattle where magic is an everyday occurrence, a young woman named Whit enlists the help of the "strowlers"—a group of activists who "want to keep magic free"—to protect a young girl. Meanwhile, Whit's girlfriend is being
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Tracing Desire Shorts
98m
This eclectic collection of provocative short films includes Marianne Farley's "Marguerite," Travis Mathews's "Just Past Noon on a Tuesday," and others from around the world.
Tucked
UK | 2018 | 78m | Jamie Patterson
When a drag queen of a certain age is diagnosed with a terminal illness, her young protégé helps her reconnect with her estranged daughter, among other things on her bucket list. Jamie Patterson directs.
Two in the Bush: A Love Story
2018 | 106m | Laura Madalinski
After a breakup and a job loss, a young woman moves in with her best friend Rosa and finds a job working for a dominatrix.
Venus
Canada | 2017 | 95m | Eisha Marjara
A trans woman in the middle of her transition tries to live up to her Indian family’s traditional expectations. Meanwhile, she discovers she has a teenage son.
Viewfinder: Shorts
91m
These short films tell queer stories through song and dance, including Clyde Petersen's "Late Nights in the lab" and Matthew Kaundart's dance montage "Lavender."
When the Beat Drops
USA | 2018 | 86m | Jamal Sims
This documentary introduces the exuberant art of bucking: a type of performance likened to '80s-era vogueing that originated at historically black colleges in the south. Directed by choreographer Jamal Sims.
White Rabbit
United States | 2018 | 83m | Daryl Wein
A Korean American performance artist living in Los Angeles meets a photographer who helps her through her recent breakup.
