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Don’t miss the acclaimed, decades-spanning French miniseries Proud

In 1981, it was still illegal to be gay in France. Today, same-sex marriage is recognized and has paved the way for legalizing the adoption of children by LGBTQ families.

With stories set in 1981, 1999 and 2013, the epic, critically-acclaimed three-part French miniseries Proud tells the story of Charles (Frédéric Pierrot), Victor (Samuel Theis) and Diego (Julien Lopez), three generations of people from the same family who represent the seismic social changes that took place in just three decades.

Created by Philippe Faucon, the award-winning director of Fatima (the 2016 Cesar winner for Best Film), this episodic cinematic event is a chronology of tolerance and a portrait of one family through changing times.

Watch the trailer for Proud below. All three episodes are available now on Dekkoo.

Short Film Spotlight: My Loneliness is Killing Me

Proudly colorful femme Elliott (Luke Elliott) always appears to be the life of the party. But behind the make-up, he struggles in his search for sexual intimacy. When he manages to lure the animalistic Jack (Jamie Robson) back to his apartment for a late-night hook-up, he unexpectedly unearths a dark emotional connection.

Touching on the hot topics of hook-up culture and toxic masculinity, My Loneliness is Killing Me explores loneliness and division among gay and queer communities against a cold, neon metropolis.

Written by Michael Lee Richardson and directed by Tim Courtney, both Glasgow natives, My Loneliness is Killing Me is a dark, 17-minute short film that should connect with anyone afraid of living or dying without intimacy.

“What drew me to the project were the characters and the story’s commentary on modern issues,” said director Courtney.

“We have a character in Jack, who is openly gay, married and so ‘masculine’ he is almost homophobic. He’s a walking contradiction, a byproduct of toxic masculinity. He is someone who has married out of status and social obligation, and not necessarily for love. Elliott, on the other hand, is the polar opposite. Someone who embraces his ‘Queer’ identity. However, he is a victim to the new breed of homosexual men like Jack. Someone who feels left behind by his community in a world where being feminine is deemed ugly and unworthy.”

“Both men appeal to my obsession for complex characters who are dealing with their own differing experiences of loneliness, in their own conflicting ways.”

Watch a short trailer for My Loneliness is Killing Me below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.

And Then We Danced is one of the year’s most powerful films

A passionate tale of love and liberation set amidst the conservative confines of modern Georgian society, And Then We Danced follows Merab (Levan Gelbakhiani), a devoted dancer who has been training for years with his partner Mary (Ana Javakishvili) for a spot in the National Georgian Ensemble.

The arrival of another male dancer, Irakli (Bachi Valishvili) – gifted with perfect form and equipped with a rebellious streak – throws Merab off balance, sparking both an intense rivalry and romantic desire that may cause him to risk his future in dance as well as his relationships with Mary and his family.

Met with great hostility locally when it debuted in Georgian theaters, And Then We Danced is a bold, unforgettable romance featuring truly stunning dance sequences. The film was in the middle of its theatrical run in the United States earlier this year when national theaters began closing as a response to COVID-19. We’re happy audiences will have a chance to catch up with it now. It’s easily one of 2020’s most powerful films.

Watch the trailer for And Then We Danced below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.

Short Film Spotlight: His Hands

Written, directed and created by actor Arron Blake and cinematographer Darius Shu, the visionary and visually immersive new psychological thriller His Hands is now available on Dekkoo to satisfy your Halloween viewing needs.

A silent film about two men of different ages (newcomer Philip Brisebois and director Arron Blake himself) meeting for the strangest encounter of their lives, His Hands earned major critical acclaim when it screened at the Tribecca Film Festival.

Watch a short trailer for His Hands below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.

Two men embark on a revelatory road trip in Drive Me Home

When Antonio (Vinicio Marchioni) and Agostino (Marco D’Amore) were growing up together in a small town in Sicily, they each dreamt of living completely different lives… somewhere else. Now thirty-year-olds, their initial dreams have somewhat come true. They both live abroad, but they lost touch many years ago.

When Antonio discovers that the house he grew up in, which had been empty for a long time, is about to be sold at auction, he decides to start revisiting some of his past and reconnects with his childhood friend in the process. When Antonio and Agostino come back together, they find that their lives have changed a lot. Soon, during a road trip through Europe to reclaim the childhood property in question, old conflicts and new revelations rise to the surface, bringing them close together once again.

From writer-director Simone Catania and co-writer Fabio Natale, Drive Me Home tells a generational story about finding a place called home… wherever you are. It’s also a refreshing story about straight-gay male friendship not often seen.

Watch the trailer for Drive Me Home below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.

Short Film Spotlight: LiME

Donta Storey is a black, non-binary, prolific, and powerful voice and emerging actor, writer, producer, and director from Compton, California. In 2020 they released their writer/directorial debut film LiME, which is loosely based on their struggles while growing up black and “different”.

Set in the urban jungle of Compton in the early 2000s, LiME tells the story of Deshawn (played by Urian Mchugh), a young man who discovers how hard it is to walk and live in your truth after he experiences the bitterness of the real world.

LiME was the recipient of Honorable Mention at the San Francisco Black Film Festival in 2019 and screened in cities like Chicago, Il, San Diego, Ca, Denton, Tx, New Orleans, La, and Washington, DC before ending its successful festival run at the Los Angeles Ca OUTFEST Fusion Film Festival in March 2020. Their film has also been reviewed and referenced everywhere from Film Threat, AIPT Comics, Queerty and Willamette Week.

As a nonbinary black queer human, Donta wants to tell stories that start conversations that add to the narrative that we all matter. Through storytelling, they believe they can change the world.

You can watch a short trailer for LiME below. The film is now available to stream on Dekkoo.

New Dekkoo-Original Film: Vilom

Vilom, a lonely young man from India, is obsessed with becoming internet-famous and deeply confused about his sexuality.

When he moves in with Amay, a dynamic, openly gay hairdresser, and Nivi, a beautiful struggling actress, he finds that they are both slowly falling in love with him. This sudden love triangle leads to even more confusion, forcing Vilom to examine his sexual and romantic needs on a deeper level.

Meanwhile, societal pressures and prejudices are building just outside the walls of their home.

The feature-length debut of Mumbai-based actor Sunder Pal, Vilom is an unflinching sociopolitical drama centered around gay/straight relationships. This films tells a provocative story of risk-taking, creativity, rebellion and survival.

Watch the trailer for Vilom below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.

The founders of CockyBoys move in front of the camera for the new docu-series Meet the Morecocks

In July of 2012, burgeoning art-house porn studio CockyBoys was pushed to the forefront of the mainstream when its trio of owners/boyfriends – 25-year-old tech wiz Benny Morecock, CEO and filmmaker Jake Jaxson, and cinematographer RJ Sebastian — were profiled in New York Magazine’s Sex Issue.

Nearly four years later, the eponymous ‘throuple’ (as they’ve been dubbed by the media) are now putting themselves in front of the camera for a behind-the-scenes look at their personal and professional lives running the studio, interacting with their cult following of porn-loving fans, and navigating their often erratic relationships with their exclusively-signed models.

In the pilot episode of Meet the Morecocks, an eight-part documentary series, you’ll travel across Europe with Ben, Jason, and Adrian (their real names) as they promote their photo book, ‘A Thing of Beauty,’ with the help of three of their most popular CockyBoys models: the wildly outspoken Jake Bass, the calm and quirky Levi Karter and the subdued George Alvin )as he faces difficulties riding the coattails of a porn career he’s since transitioned away from).

An eye-opening glimpse into the realities of contemporary gay adult film, Meet the Morecocks exposes a unique business subculture where unmet expectations of leisure can often lead to life-changing consequences.

Meet the Morecocks is available now on Dekkoo!

Don’t Miss Writer-Director Marco Berger’s New Thriller Young Hunter

Ezequiel (Juan Palbo Cestaro) is a fifteen-year-old kid on the cusp of his sexual awakening. When he meets the handsome, twenty-one-year-old Mono (Lautaro Rodriguez), he’s so excited that he jumps into a quick relationship before he’s had time to really consider whether or not it’s a good idea.

Mono invites Ezequiel to his cousin’s villa, to spend a weekend together. But, while returning from the trip, Mono disappears completely, no longer responding to any of Ezekiel’s texts. The situation is confusing… until Chino (Juan Barberini), Mono’s cousin, sends him a hidden camera video of Ezekiel and Mono having sex, blackmailing him into making his own sex tape with a minor to be sold on the dark web, in order to keep his secret hidden.

Ezequiel, with an impossible choice, decides to try seducing Juan Ignacio (Patricio Rodríguez), a thirteen-year-old boy whom he knows from school and suspects has a crush on him. Ezequiel soon turns from prey to hunter – against his own will.

From prolific director Marco Berger (Absent, Taekwondo, Plan B), Young Hunter is an intense thriller that has earned rave reviews on the film festival circuit. Watch the trailer for the film below. It’s available now on Dekkoo.

A thoughtful LGBTQI doc takes a look at what lies Between the Shades

The documentary Between the Shades seeks to put faces to the letters that make up LGBTQI and examine how those individual letters, and the groups they represent, have evolved and expanded since the Stonewall riots. All the while the film also takes a look at the immense power of labels and the transcendence of love.

Director Jill Salvino invited fifty people, each with a connection to the LGBTQI community, to begin a conversation by sharing their stories. Between the Shades features many voices, among them: Beth Malone (of Broadway’s “Fun Home”), actress Kathy Najimy and former Democratic National Committee Treasurer Andrew Tobias. No film can ever capture the immense diversity of the LGBTQI community, but this film puts in a lot of effort to try.

The New York Times said that the film “suggests that human sexuality is far more nuanced than labels or even a linear scale can capture… it’s a conversation that feels right for the times in which we live.”

Watch the trailer for Between the Shades below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.