Category: Drama

Short Film Spotlight: Malik

A hard-hitting 15-minute short film from French writer-director Nathan Carli, Malik concerns two men who are looking to make a better life for themselves, but find that escape is more difficult than either of them had hoped.

Malik and his boyfriend live in a low-income neighborhood that is less than accommodating to their lifestyle. The local homophobic attitudes have made their day-to-day lives unsafe.

They have formed a plan and attempt to flee the city, but Malik’s older brother Walid and his gang refuse to let them get away easily. What begins as an attempt to escape to greener pastures soon becomes a desperate run for their lives.

An intense drama, Malik has earned acclaim at film festivals and is now available to Dekkoo subscribers.

An international gay film franchise is born with the Thai romance Present Perfect

For Present Perfect, his 2017 feature-length film debut, Thai director Aam Anusorn Soisa-Ngim drew from his own experiences to tell the story of Toey and Oat (Adisorn Tonawanik and Kritsana Maroukasonti), a pair of young men who have a brief affair during a trip to the small town of Higashikawa in Japan.

Though there is clearly a spark between them, they’re both on different journeys. While Toey is still recovering from a recent breakup, Oat is engaged to a girlfriend back home – and the burgeoning romance that they soon share is far from guaranteed.

Ending on a cliffhanger, Present Perfect developed a dedicated fanbase in Thailand at the time of its release, which was evidenced by the crowdfunding success of its eventual sequel, Present Still Perfect, a few years later.

Dekkoo is proud to present the original film to American audiences. Now you can go back to the beginning and catch the start of this on-going romantic saga.

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

Short Film Spotlight: The Act

The Act is a stylish new 18-minute short from Thomas Hescott, a veteran director of the long-running British soap opera “EastEnders.”

The film follows the story of a young gay man named Matthews, played by Samuel Barnett, who believes that love is not, and cannot ever be, for him. That is, until he encounters the alluring Jimmy, played by Simon Lennon.

Set in 1965, just as acts of male homosexuality were about to be decriminalized in the UK, Matthews goes on quite a journey, discovering love, sex and a whole new chosen family in the backstreets and underground bars of Soho.

Speaking about The Act, Thomas Hescott said that the initial premise for the film was simple. Growing up, he never saw queer characters properly portrayed in period dramas. This new film is his attempt to tell a classic Hollywood love story with two gay men – a period drama wherein the characters that usually remain hidden start to emerge from the shadows.

The Act creates a world that juxtaposes the rigid conformity of mid-60s British society with the color and energy of an underground world and the intimacy and immediacy of a passionate relationship that would have been considered illicit at the time. The film also uses language taken directly from the 1965 House of Commons debates to frame the central love story.

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

Enjoy three unique short films from up-and-coming Spanish director Manu Roma

Manu Roma is an up-and-coming filmmaker from Barcelona who uses his work to tell personal queer stories. To give you a strong sense of his burgeoning talent, we have collected his first three short films, all made over the past three years.

First up is Bones, a 9-minute film about Victor, a 20-year-old with two immediate goals: to lose his virginity and, more dangerously, lose as much weight as possible before his 21st birthday.

Shot gorgeously in black and white, Roma’s next short, the 19-minute Anonymous, uses a first-person perspective to tell the stories of three men who go cruising for sex in different locations around Barcelona.

The final film, The Virgins, is a 13-minute slice of meta-fiction about the making of a short film. When the two stars of a new movie drop out at the last minute, the director and his boom operator find themselves taking over the lead roles and going to unexpected romantic lengths to tell their story.

A visionary filmmaker worth keeping your eye on, Dekkoo is proud to bring the work of Manu Roma to American audiences.

Bones, Anonymous and The Virgins are all available now on Dekkoo.

Short Film Spotlight: Jay

From Taiwanese director Szu-Wei Chen, Jay is a darkly funny and casually disturbing 14-minute drama that isn’t afraid to explore a particularly cringe-worthy taboo.

The film follows the titular character, a mysterious 13-year-old boy Jay, played by Nick Wang. Reaching a pivotal moment of sexual awakening, the teen finds himself suddenly fascinated by his toned and attractive older brother. Spying on him at every opportunity, including during a sexual encounter with a girlfriend, Jay’s curiosity morphs into an all-consuming obsession.

Playing out with very little dialog, the film gets its point across mostly through eerie suggestion. The story plays out mostly through visuals and emotions thanks to Wang’s lead performance – which, while somewhat stoic, conveys everything we need to know about this youngster’s misguided affections.

Watch a short teaser trailer for Jay below. The full short film is now available on Dekkoo.

Now Available: 5 Minutes Too Late

From Romanian writer-director Dan Chisu, 5 Minutes Too Late is a gripping drama based on true events.

A cinema in Bucharest screening a controversial film about a lesbian couple becomes the epicenter of a radical, far-right, anti-gay protest. During the incident, a young man is physically attacked and brought to the hospital in a coma.

Complicating matters are inconsistencies in the police reports, in which they claim the attack on the young man took place before their arrival. The accuracy of their claim is called into question when security footage shows the ambulance arriving after the police, and leaked footage belonging to a bystander reveals the captain making homophobic comments to one of the anti-gay protesters.

A battle over competing narratives ensues between the stubborn, arrogant captain and an equally stubborn, idealistic investigative reporter who is just looking to unveil the truth.

As each party attempts to gain the upper hand over the public narrative, the officer and the reporter engage in questionable tactics in an effort to thwart each other. Meanwhile, a young man clinging to life becomes increasingly forgotten amid their political struggle.

Watch the trailer for 5 Minutes Too Late below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.

Dedalus tells three expressionistic stories of lost souls in flux

Dedalus is a fictional triptych portraying community, love and loss.

In rural Iowa, a grocery cashier watches helplessly as classmates conceal their act of sexual violence against his teenaged step-sister.

In another story, a hustler sells his body for food, shelter and intimacy during a harsh winter in New York City. A young woman takes him in, but nothing satiates his unrequited love for an older gay client.

In the third story, mortality compels a father to leave his home in Los Angeles and move in with his daughter.

Director Jonah Greenstein’s gorgeously shot new feature debut laces loneliness with beauty to create a film of startling cinematic intimacy.

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