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Short Film Spotlight: Getting Off

Getting off clients is easy. Getting off to a new start isn’t.

In the provocative new 34-minute short film Getting Off, Dane (Jonathan Rentler), a recent college graduate living in New York City, reflects on his time working as an escort to pay his way through school… all while he prepares to take his first real job in another city.

Jonathan Rentler and Lee Baptiste in Getting Off

Before he leaves, Dane decides to pay his dearest client, Harris (Paul Walling), one last visit. Harris, a sweet middle aged man, has been paying Dane for sex and companionship during Dane’s time in school. As the reality of their last time together sets in, the two men recount their history together and discover that getting off to a new start – apart from one another and their “maybe not just strictly business” relationship – might be more difficult than either of them had ever imagined.

Paul Walling and Jonathan Rentler in Getting Off

A New York University senior thesis project from writer/director Tommy Craven, Getting Off rises above its status as a student film. Edgy and sexually explicit, though never thoughtlessly so, the film explores an unusual relationship on the margins, but doesn’t cheat us on the humanity or deeply-felt emotions.

Watch the trailer for Getting Off below. The full short is available to watch now on Dekkoo.

Cinema Spotlight: Center of My World

After a summer away at camp, Phil (“Dark” and Red Sparrow star Louis Hofmann) returns home to find that his mother and twin sister aren’t speaking to one another. Not willing to confront his family during the last days of the summer holidays, Phil escapes to hang out with his best friend, Kat (Svenja Jung), eating ice cream and playing dress-up.

Louis Hofmann and Svenja Jung in Center of My World

As the school year begins, a new student arrives – the handsome and mysterious Nicholas (Jannik Schümann). Smitten, Phil watches his crush as he runs around the track after school, and is thrilled when Nicholas returns his feelings. However, when first love’s volatility comes to light, Phil realizes he must deal with the problems of his past in order to deal with the issues of his present.

Louis Hofmann, Jannik Schümann and Svenja Jung in Center of My World

A touching must-see romance, Center of My World was chosen as an Official Selection and won numerous “Best Feature Film” and “Best Director” awards at festivals around the globe. Louis Hofmann delivers a terrific lead performance, which has earned him a lot of additional high-profile work in film and television internationally.

Jannik Schümann and Louis Hofmann in Center of My World

Watch the trailer for Center of My World below. The film is available now on Dekkoo.

Now Available: Unfriend

Set in Manila, loosely based on a real-life true crime, Unfriend tells the story of a socially isolated fifteen-year-old named David (Sandino Martin) who is coming to terms with his sexuality and dealing with the intense emotions of his first relationship, which doesn’t seem to be going very well.

After having met the attractive, slightly older fellow teen Jonathan (Angelo Ilagan) on Facebook, David begins to develop strong feelings for his new social media friend. Unfortunately, he soon learns that social media relationships tend toward the casual. Realizing that Jonathan has discarded him for another guy, David embarks on an increasingly self-destructive mission to win him back at all costs.

Written by prolific Filipino television creator Zig Madamba Dulay and directed by Joselito Altarejos, the innovative filmmaker behind The Game of Juan’s Life, Pink Halo-Halo and Antonio’s Secret, Unfriend is a powerful film that aims to inspire discussion and shine a light on certain stigmas associated with mental health problems.

Also, according to the director, Unfriend is his take on “how social media has changed the way we live our lives, how we have become performers, and how social media has also made us voyeurs and exhibitionists.”

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

Now Available: Fire Song

One of the first films by a First Nations director to deal with two-spirited people, Fire Song, the thoughtful and moving debut feature by Adam Garnet Jones, focuses on a young Anishinaabe man who is forced to choose between staying in his community or exploring the expanded possibilities of the world outside.

In the wake of his sister’s death, Shane (Andrew Martin) finds himself at an existential crossroads. A smart kid with good grades, he wants to leave the reservation for Toronto and attend university. But his boyfriend David (Harley Legarde-Beacham) begs him to remain, dedicated to understanding their cultural history and ancestral traditions. At the same time, he’s also fooling around with Tara (Mary Galloway), who’s blind to his gay tendencies and hopes to depart for the big city with him.

Torn between the city and the country, formal education and embracing tradition, a straight life and being true to his desires, Jones has rendered a character pulled in all directions at once.

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

Two men get lost In the Grayscale

When architect Bruno (hot Chilean TV star Francisco Celhay) finds himself passionately drawn to Santiago tour guide, Fernando (Emilio Edwards) he faces challenging decisions about his identity – and his relationship with his wife and young son.

Hired to design a civic landmark for the Chilean capitol city, Bruno struggles with the commission. His uncertainty about how to proceed professionally is paralleled by his personal grappling.

Offering no easy answers, this tenderly told tale of sexual discovery has earned comparisons to Andrew Haigh’s Weekend for its beautifully realized portrayal of two men in love. Variety called In the Grayscale “A measured, tenderly played study of imprecise sexual identity.” The San Francisco Chronicle called it a “wonderfully complex character study.” The film also won the Jury Award for Best First Feature at the Frameline San Francisco LGBT Film Festival and the Ibero-American Debut Award at the Miami International Film Festival.

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

Heartstone is a moving coming-of-age story from Iceland

In a remote fishing village in Iceland, teenage boys Thor and Christian experience a turbulent summer. As one of them tries to win the heart of a girl, the other discovers that he is harboring romantic feelings toward his best friend.

When summer ends and the harsh nature of Iceland takes back its rights, it’s time to leave the playground and face adulthood for the first time.

An absolutely gorgeous, profoundly emotional coming-of-age film, Heartstone has won the hearts of critics all over the world. The Playlist said it’s “beautifully shot, touchingly performed and delivered with a thrillingly atmospheric sense of place.” And Screen International said it’s “Affecting as well as perceptive in how it intimately depicts the blossoming of youth… just the right amount of confidence, compassion and clear-eyed style.”

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

Short Film Spotlight: Hold My Hand

Writer-director Isabella Walsh shows the bittersweet demise of one relationship and the blossoming of a brand-new love her short film Hold My Hand.

Billy (Jordi Rea) is a nerdy-cute young straight guy who pops into the ‘Maid of Ink’ tattoo parlor with his girlfriend Meredith (Morgan McKenzie Moore). Once there, he quickly and quietly becomes enamored of Oscar (Ryan Farrell), the a confident young tattoo artist. Despite his “deathly fear of needles” he returns later, requesting a tattoo – any tattoo – in order to spend some quality alone-time with Oscar and figure out what’s really going on with these sudden urges.

Jumping back and forth in time, using fragmented story-telling to her advantage, Walsh manages to keep the tension running high in Hold My Hand. The film almost plays out like a mystery, showing us hints of trouble in Billy and Meredith’s relationship before we have the full picture of what has pulled them in different directions.

Walsh is also able to make the act of getting a tattoo highly erotic. With simple shots of wrist-holding and knees nearly touching, the sexual tension between Billy and Oscar becomes palpable without ever getting graphic.

Hold My Hand is now available on Dekkoo.

The new doc Words explores gender identity in NYC

“I know nothing in the world that has as much power as a word.” – Emily Dickinson

In a generation built on texts, tweets, memes, and irony, what has become of the weight of our words? In what way does communication serve as a form of self-expression, and self-expression a form of communication?

Director A.J. Mattioli’s new documentary Words explores how people navigate gender and identity in the open and evolving landscape of New York City. Using some of NYC’s most gender fluid scenes as a backdrop, Mattioli investigates how masculinity, femininity and everything in between are contextualized in a range of environments, from the theatre world to early childhood education.

Featuring exclusive interviews from a variety of artists, activists, icons, and innovators, Words is a poignant and powerful tribute to the language we use to shape our identities.

Check out the trailer for Words below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.

Cinema Spotlight: John Apple Jack

When handsome and philandering John (Chris McNally) discovers his sister’s fiancé is Jack (Kent S. Leung), his secret childhood crush, passions ignite and his life spirals out of control.

After losing his job and his playboy reputation, a newer, penniless, and more soulful John quickly becomes difficult for Jack to kick to the curb. Circling Vancouver’s trendy East-meets-West restaurant industry, they both venture to blend money, sex, family and love into one sumptuous recipe for life.

A positively adorable, uplifting, sexy and very funny new romantic comedy, John Apple Jack has earned acclaim at film fests around the world. Dumpling Magazine said that it’s “everything good about gay cinema with half the saturated hype.”

Lead actors Chris McNally and Kent S. Leung do a great job selling their romantic and sexual chemistry. It’s easy to see why these guys would secretly fall for one another.

John Apple Jack is available to watch now on Dekkoo.

The new coming-of-age drama Seeds packs an emotional punch

Young middle-schooler Andy (Emilio Puente) is about to see his world entirely changed. After witnessing the death of his mother during a senseless act of violence, he is sent from Mexico City to Cuernavaca, where he will stay with his paternal grandmother (Carmen Maura).

Tasked with weeding and picking fruit around the property, Andy meets a young, charismatic gardener named Charley (Diego Alvarez Garcia), who seems to be his only source of friendship and camaraderie. As Andy begins getting closer to Charley and searching for information about his absent father (Moises Arizmendi), he finds himself on an increasingly bumpy path through adolescence.

Seeds, the feature-length debut from award-winning short film and documentary director Alejandro Andrade Pease is gorgeously shot and features arresting performances. This sun-dappled coming-of-age story packs a serious emotional punch.

You can watch the trailer for Seeds (originally titled Cuernavaca) below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.