Shorts 3 – Flaring Up

The body as a site of restriction, the body as a portal of potential: In this program, the filmmakers and their protagonists explore the physical. Issues with my other Half takes us on a surreal journey of body-object-relations. In Flare, the filmmaker navigates illness in friendship and in solitude, while the protagonist in Enflightenment yearns to grow wings and fly away.

Dreams and desires shimmer throughout. Hold on to me celebrates mother LaTravious, a Black Trans matriarch, emphasizing the importance of community. Connection and pleasure are found in unusual spaces, with Alex’s Machine bringing a whole new level to the notion of fleshly desires. Last but not least, in that search for desire, Bold Eagle explores mind-altering states and digital space. “All I want is to be happy”, the voice-over concludes.

Content notes: cutting with knife, medication, drugs

Length: 91 min

Issues with my other Half

Issues with my other Half

In 23 short scenes, in Issues with my other Half deep-seated fears are visualized as surreal nightmares.

by Anna Vasof

Austria, 2023

No dialogue

5 min.

Experimental

Babylon Kreuzberg
31.05.2024 – 20:30

Flare

Flare

A first-person poetic search for freedom and identity whilst navigating landscapes of autoimmunity

by Kate Blamire

Germany, 2023

English
(English subtitles)

27 min.

Experimental

Babylon Kreuzberg
31.05.2024 – 20:30

Plaza Melayang (Enflightenment)

Once upon a future, there was a man who didn’t grow wings. He yearns to fly like others and often has vivid dreams about it. When the dreams vanished without a trace, his world crumbled, but that devastation didn’t stop him from wanting to fly.

by Teo Wey Yinn

Malaysia, 2023

Malay, Cantonese
(English subtitles)

11 min.

Experimental

Babylon Kreuzberg
31.05.2024 – 20:30

Hold On To Me

Hold On To Me

Hold On To Me is an ode to Mother LaTravious, originally from Florida, a Black trans matriarch who chronicles her journey from a caterpillar on the street to a beautiful butterfly. Her transition, however, is not one of gender, but of the mind, heart and character — one she hopes her community of Black and Brown sisters will one day undertake as trans women brimming with potential.

Mother LaTravious and her community signify a chosen family both Rajvi and I as co-directors craved, and we felt compelled to make this film as an ode to the beauty, safety and dignity espoused in this world.

Unfortunately, Mother LaTravious passed away on October 12, mere days before Hold On To Me’s first screening at NewFest. We are determined to spread her vision for her community to as many audiences around the world as possible, in Hold On To Me, which will now serve to be one of the last forever places she will live on.

by Te Shima Anusha Brennen and Rajvi Desai

United States, 2022

English
(English subtitles)

5 min.

Narrative

Babylon Kreuzberg
31.05.2024 – 20:30

Alex's Machine

La Machine d’Alex (Alex’s Machine)

Alex is the only girl in her “automotive biomechanics” class. For her degree, she has chosen to build an engine made of artificial flesh. One night, Chloé, who shares her boarding school room, discovers that Alex takes a singular pleasure in working on her living machine…

by Mael Le Mée

France, 2022

French
(English subtitles)

25 min.

Narrative

Babylon Kreuzberg
31.05.2024 – 20:30

Bold Eagle

Bold Eagle

Trapped at home with hallucinogenic drugs and his talking cat, an “alter” anonymously performs lascivious acts on the Internet, seeking refuge in the strong arms of strange men, hoping to masturbate his way to true happiness.

by Whammy Alcazaren

Philippines, 2022

Filipino
(English subtitles)

16 min.

Narrative

Babylon Kreuzberg
31.05.2024 – 20:30

Queendom
Cidade; Campo
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