Daybreak (Adolfo B Alix Jr, Phillipines)

Two men, one of them married, meet at a family vacation home after some time apart. They recommence an affair and face the possibilities ahead of them.

This was clearly a budget shoot, with directorial aspirations beyond the limits of filming on video – which does not show as much promise at that might sound. It’s a dreary tale, more a precursor to something that never happens. The title credits occur somewhere in the middle of the film, probably a quirk to spare us the silence of the couple eating dinner. Recommended for people who like cheap representations of tortured love.

Serbis (Service) (Brillante Mendoza, Phillipines/France)

A family operate a run-down porno cinema. Hustlers and patrons get to work inside, as the family are preoccupied with their own chores and vices.

This is an engaging and original piece of cinema. When it started I thought I was watching yet another long tracking shot, as is so typical in art house cinema. But as the film progressed I realised that traditional narrative and scene structure had been thrown out the dilapidated window. What we experience as the audience, is almost from the perspective of the building. Walking down corridors, spying into rooms and dark corners. The progression of time is so natural that you feel you could be there, perhaps that transsexual hooker sashaying up and down the stairs. It’s a very dirty film, both in terms of sexual content and flooded toilets. It straddles a divide between mundane and absurd – see hand washing clothes followed by chasing a stray goat out of the cinema screen – brilliant. Watching this will be a worthwhile and unique experience.

Wu sheng feng ling (Soundless Wind Chime) (Kit Hung, Hong Kong, China, Switzerland)

A Chinese waiter and a Swiss thief, meet and fall in love in Hong Kong. They find it difficult living together in a small room with the waiter’s prostitute aunt. When Pascal, the Swiss, dies, his partner Ricky makes a journey to Switzerland to find his lover’s lost soul.

With overtones of poetry, mythology and philosophy, this film is almost dreamlike. There are two definite narrative strands at work, but as we glide between two characters played by the same actor, we are never entirely certain which part of a cycle we are on. Moments of beauty jarred with romantic angst, in a sometimes unconvincing way, spoiling what I believe could have been a more complex visual poem. Well worth a watch for the space you are given to think and appreciate masterful flourishes, but unlikely to stay with you for very long.

Rabioso sol, rabiosa cielo (Raging Sun, Raging Sky) (Julian Hernandez, Mexico)

Hernandez portrays love as an epic act of martyrdom in which redemption and fulfilment can only be found in the afterlife. The story involves two men in love, who find each other after a long struggle, but are just as soon separated. Heaven’s heart herself guides them back together, but it takes a sacrifice.

This is a difficult film to review as it stands alone, a unique visual poem. With sparse dialogue, this is more akin in form to a ballet, without the pirouettes. Perhaps comparisons could be made to early surrealist experiments, but without the reactionary impetus, or even Derek Jarman’s Sebastiane. Beautifully shot, with beautiful men, you really have to make your own mind up, if you have the endurance for 191 mins of experimental cinema.

(PS – my screening finished at 1:30am, so if I can do it and not hate it, then you can too!)

Khastegi (Sex My Life) (Bahman Motamedian, Iran)

Seven young transsexuals struggle with their identities in Tehran, amidst a forceful and patriarchal Iranian society. This film is nominated for ‘Best documentary’, although it is mostly acted and scripted, employing some documentary style techniques. It is interesting that particularly in Europe the interpretation of documentary is much more flexible and makes for some wonderful experiments.

Such is this film, at once informative and compelling, funny and tragic. The genetically female taxi driver who identifies as male is potentially a work of comic genius, were it not for the fact that real people do struggle in these situations. But I couldn’t help but laugh as she confronts her ‘betrothed’ with the line: “next time you want to get married, see the bride first. Do you really want to marry this?”

By giving the characters, such strength, Motamedian avoids exploitation, as is so typical now with the misguided notion that a good documentary does not interact with its subject. Personally, I’ve always thought it was fine to take a stand.

Les Parents (Christophe Hermans, Belgium)

A documentary about a gay couple running a small home for the elderly, who decide it is time to sell up and leave.

This is perhaps the most emotionally complex of the features I have seen. The gay couple, at times, treat their elderly residents like children – which instantly raises a whole bunch of issues: are they just being kind, or condescending; are they child substitutes? Alain and Richard are constantly trying to lift the depressing mood with wry comments, and indeed, some audience members would laugh at them, and the Alzheimers induced ramblings of Noelle – but I find it quite upsetting. Alain is not so much a professional carer as ‘looking for a nice granny’ as can be seen when he is chastising a new resident for refusing to be strapped to her bed at night.

But these are just a few of my initial emotional responses, and what that tells me is that this is a well made documentary, designed to get you talking.

Una questione delicate (A delicate matter) (Peter Marcias, Italy)

Something about a boy who is beaten up in Rome…the Pope visits Sardinia…he talks to us for 30mins as though what he has to say is worth our time.

Supposedly a documentary, but more like a teenage youtube video diary. And if you think I’m being harsh, you should have heard the abuse hurled at him in the Q and A after the showing. (Well OK, my Italian is limited, but I got the gist from the shouting and pointing).

Sarajevo Queer Festival 2008 (Deviservic/Hilcisin, Bosnia Herzegovina)

Queer people and violent opponents clash on the streets of Sarajevo during the first Queer Festival, controversially held during Ramadan.

More of a news story than an insightful documentary, although if you aren’t aware of the troubles in Eastern Europe this is well worth a watch. Solutions aren’t really on offer, nor is an explanation of the tensions, but we do get a detailed chronicle of events leading up to the first Queer festival, hopefully not the last.

If One Thing Matters – A film about Wolfgang Tillmans (Heiko Kalmbach, Germany/USA)

Pretty much what it says on the tin, except that for a documentary released in 2008 it is strangely out of date, following him from 2000-03. I doubt you’ll learn anything from this, except how sweet Wolfgang seems, with his puppyish enthusiasm for his work, and that he liked to party in Ghetto. You may just as well go and see one of his excellent exhibitions.

The only exception would be his humorously haphazard approach to being asked to make a music video for The Pet Shop Boys that result in a badly lit, performance, mixed with images of London Underground mice.

The Times of Harvey Milk (Rob Epstein, USA)

If like me, you thought Milk was absolute tosh and piffle, then PLEASE watch this Oscar winning documentary from 1985, and learn about Harvey Milk from the people that knew him. By focussing less on the run up to his election, and campaigning techniques, and more on the after effects of his actions and death, it becomes less a biopic and more a treatise on how a society progressed. The most interesting aspect for me, not explored in Milk (as Gus Van Sant seemed to think a slow motion shooting was more important) was the public reaction to the trial of Dan White which followed. It is easy to see why, with that kind of miscarriage of justice, the initially peaceful candlelight vigils, descended into bitter violence.

Arrive at 11am for copious amounts of coffee and general mingling amongst the filmmakers, jury and hangers on like myself.  After a short introductory speech we watch the first selection of short films.  Here are my highlights:

Short Programme 1

You me and Him – Daniel Ribeiro, Brazil

A sweet and tender short about a young man who has to balance a love life and caring for his younger brother after the sudden death of their parents.  The script avoids drama and instead gives breathing room to the evolving relationships of the three characters.  Some fine work by the younger actor and an inventive closing scene involving milk and a microwave.

Countertransference – Madeleine Olnek, US

A very funny portrayal of a woman trying to build her self-esteem, but she is surrounded by domineering and quite frankly, insane people.  Particularly entertaining are the therapy sessions with an occasionally naked psychiatrist.  Both absurd and subtle, the convincing acting and superb timing keep you erupting with spontaneous laughter.

We are then lead to a restaurant around the corner for a pizza lunch.  On my table are the makers of short film ‘Morning Suits’ (who, it so happens, I have worked with before), Johann Hari, an award winning journalist, actor Simon Russell Beale and David Pearce of Queerscreen.  The conversation is so animated and enjoyable that we forget to queue for the buffet and are left with garlic bread and a single tomato.  Not to fear, more food was made which we swiftly consumed before a second queue forms.  After lunch I help Johan find a place to buy socks and then interview Simon, which you can hear on the forthcoming podcast.  Shorts Programme 2 follows:

SP2

The Young and Evil – Julian Breece, US

A confused and confusing story that includes murder, disability, homophobia, racism, drugs and a man searching to infect himself with HIV.  In 15 mins.  The latter is a serious topic that deserves further exploration, but certainly not in a way that felt like a ‘contemporary issues’ brainstorming session by an LA support group.

Gevald – Netali Baron, Israel

A thoughtful, well structured mix of documentary footage and drama, centred around a pride march (or lack thereof) in Jerusalem.  An intimate conversation mixes with angry demonstrations from Orthodox Jews and satirical cabaret numbers by drag artists.   A dutiful reminder of why Pride matters.

A short break means a chance to catch up on writing and yet more food (including a tasty cheesecake.  Yes, I know, I’m not here as a food critic).  This flurry of work is short lived as I can’t help getting dragged back into debate on the merits of the shorts so far.  One matter which isn’t in debate is the quality of the festival and it’s organisation.  A real sense of community already exists in less than a day.  A truly International mix of creatives, devoid of any of the usual cynicism sometimes seen in such gatherings.  And it’s not a closed environment people, so come along there’s still two more days to go!

In the third shorts programme:

Cowboy - Till Kleinert, Germany

This is the most hotly debated film so far.  I am loathe to call it short at 35 mins and this is perhaps the problem.  While it is clearly a great work, well shot, entertaining, sexy, thrilling, it really is half a feature film, with the production values to match.  Does this belong in a short film festival?  But then again, where does it belong?  I reflect that what matters is the content and there’s no denying this is a hot piece of cinema that would be a worthy and likely winner.  Hopefully coming to some sort of screen near you!

After a long set of short films we overrun into the evenings feature length Clandestinos (Antonio Hens, Spain).  It is ably introduced by one of Wales’s two openly gay MPs (to find out which one, listen to the podcast (I wil be interviewing them on Saturday).  They compare the ever growing national identity of Wales on the world and cultural stage, to the struggles faced by some gay men and in the case of this film, the Basque separatists.  If not an entirely accurate analogy (as organiser Berwyn suggests with comical expressions) it is an entertaining and interesting speech to begin/end the first day.  The film: A prison break sets up the film for a dramatic and action packed exploration of aggressive nationalism and sexuality.  A different sort of film that edges into providing an explanatory background for anything between petty crime and terrorism.  I found it working on an intellectual level, but with such a lack of sympathetic characters (unless you happen to be a jailbird) it was hard to follow the characters emotionally, and understand their motives, which, it seems to me, may have been the point of the film.  Recommeneded for people who like bad boys, constantly get themselves into trouble (possibly with terrorists) and wonder why.

To round of the evening (late evening), free flowing wine and an impromptu interview in Dorothy’s Chippy (how predictable are we) with the chaps from Another Gay Sequel: Gays Gone Wild (a proper interview is coming after I’ve actually seen the movie!) 

I have arrived in lovely Cardiff to report to you from the IRIS film prize.  Check out www.irisprize.org for detailed listings of this lgbt film festival.

DAY 0

I am being housed by a very kind Arwel, a ‘Friend’ of the festival.  He plies me with strong coffee and then leaves for Bristol to feed his cat.  He generally lives there, not just the cat.

So I figure out the buses after realising I can’t just walk to the bay (who knew Cardiff was more than five minutes walk from end to end?) to meet up with the organisers and some past filmmakers/jury members.

I admit, I did get a little excited when I walked past Torchwood HQ, like the big geek I am, but then Russel T Davies will be making an appearnce at the festival and I’m hoping to make at least some kind of contact (if not an interview….and a job).

I am first met by James, the token straight.  There seemed to be some contention this year at the lack of lesbian films, which, it has been suggested, is because there are no token women amongst the organisers.  I suggest that as there a very small number of them, it can be hard to effectively apply positive discrimination.  I’ve done my research, and yes, it is true, it has been an appalling year for lesbian films and there’s very little to programme.  So come on filmmakers - Lesbians: a gap to be filled…

We drink beer at The Waterguard, then on for an Indian at the bayside.  (That’s ‘by the side of the bay’, not as in ‘Bayside diner from Saved by the Bell’ - how nineties am I?)

This month’s Sight and Sound fuels a discussion on Critics vs Bloggers (it’s worth a read by the way), Alan Turing, Welsh Language gay movies, and wonder whether the inclusion of ‘Another gay sequel: Gays gone wild’ will bring in the kids, or water down proceedings.  We shall find out.

Tim Macavoy