STREAMING

Thanks to the support of Salzgeber, our festival is also able to offer a selection of its films to an online audience. All selected films will be online for one week after their physical screening in the cinema. Please note that a Vimeo account is required to access the films, which can only be viewed from Germany. From May 27th onwards, five feature films and one short film program can be viewed online: https://vimeo.com/showcase/xposedfilmfestival.

The following programs will be made available for streaming:

FRAMING AGNES by Chase Joynt, Canada & USA 2022, 76 min

In 1958, a young trans woman named Agnes entered a study about sex disorders at UCLA to get the gender-affirming care she needed, by any means necessary. Her story was long considered to be exceptional until never-before-seen case files of other patients were found in 2017.

Directed by Chase Joynt (No Ordinary Man) and featuring an all-star cast of transgender artists and performers, Framing Agnes uses re-enactment and genre-blurring storytelling techniques to breathe new life into previously unknown people who redefined gender in the midcentury. Who becomes a symbol for what, and for whom? Featuring Angelica Ross, Jen Richards, Zackary Drucker, Silas Howard, Max Wolf Valerio, and Stephen Ira, this unusual film explores trans pasts and presents in the US, discussing overarching themes of visibility and vulnerability.

MOTHERS OF DERICK by Cássio Kelm, Brazil 2020, 77 min

Mothers of Derick portrays the daily life of four women who, together, raise Derick, a nine-year-old boy. The four women – lesbians, bisexuals, non-monogamists and anarchists – built a house to raise their child in a forest on Brazil’s southern coast, despite threats of expulsion by the police.

As a friend of the family, director Cássio Kelm offers an intimate and tender perspective on parenting, family and community-building. The film brings us close to the protagonists, their passionate fight against ‘normality’, and their resistance to state interventions. Mothers of Derick is a powerful testament to creativity and solidarity in everyday lives.

SHINJUKU BOYS by Kim Longinotto, Jano Williams, UK 1994, 54 min

Shinjuku Boys introduces three onnabes who work as hosts at the New Marilyn Club in Tokyo. Onnabes are women who live as men and have girlfriends, although they don’t usually identify as lesbians. As the film follows them at home and on the job, all three talk frankly to the camera about their gender-bending lives, revealing their views about women, sex, transvestitism and lesbianism. Alternating with these illuminating interviews are fabulous sequences shot inside the Club, patronized almost exclusively by heterosexual women who have become disappointed with real men.

From the makers of Dream Girls, this is a remarkable documentary about the complexity of female sexuality in Japan. Set in Tokyo night life, Shinjuku Boys is a delightful piece of 1990s queer history, and an honest document of visionary explorations around gender and sexuality.

VALENTINA by Cássio Pereira dos Santos, Brazil 2020, 95 min

Valentina, a 17-year-old transgender girl, moves to the countryside of Brazil with her mother Márcia to start fresh. To avoid being bullied in her new school, Valentina tries to enroll with her new name and hopes to be private about her gender history. However, the girl and her mother quickly face dilemmas when the local public high school needs a second parental signature for enrollment.

Presenting trans actress Thiessa Woinbackk’s debut in features, Valentina is a reflection of the real-life hardships that society forces a strong young woman to endure. Cássio Pereira dos Santos’ touching film shows the challenges a young trans person faces, all the while underlining the importance of sometimes unexpected support from friends and loved ones.

24 by Royston Tan, Singapore & Thailand 2021, 76 min

24 places, 24 frames per second. This sound recordist has 24 places to visit after his death, going on a journey from sex club to Peking Opera, passing through forests and concrete hallways, reminiscing at the lotus lake. The position of the boom operator comes to define how we hear and experience the soundscape of the place.

24, the most recent film by iconic gay/queer Asian filmmaker Royston Tan, follows his tradition of naming films after numbers. With camp aesthetic, he offers deep criticism of the rapid modernity of Singaporean life. The film works as a tongue-in-cheek commentary on the relationship between sounds and performativity of social norms, showing how queer positions go beyond gender and sexuality, transcending time, space, and the living realm.

Online Shorts: A Close Look

In the search for community and liberation, for past connections and future solidarities, these films take a close look at what matters. Binaries are resisted, the body cherished, friendships born again. Six shorts – total length of 89 min – will be made available for streaming in one program. Click on the poster to see the whole program!