Category: Drama

The new gay series I Am Syd Stone is available now on Dekkoo

Originally released in 2014, writer-director Denis Theriault’s 10-minute short film I Am Syd Stone earned acclaim at film festivals around the globe and competed as an entrant in the prestigious Iris Prize festival. The film was also included in the 12th volume of the popular Boys on Film DVD series.

I Am Syd Stone followed a closeted gay movie star (played by Gharrett Patrick Paon) returning to his hometown for his high school reunion, who unsuccessfully attempts to rekindle his relationship with his former boyfriend Brent (Michael Gaty).

Now Theriault has followed up that successful short with a brand-new series of the same name. This new six-episode show expands the story.

Syd Stone (now played by Travis Nelson) has found his career as an actor has fading. He is now on location in a small town to film a B-movie, and meets and falls for lawyer Matt (Benjamin Charles Watson), but must confront the emotional consequences of having remained closeted for the sake of his career.

The series is set in the present day, and alludes to the events of the original film, however, there is a much happier ending in store for Stone this time around.

All six episodes of I Am Syd Stone are streaming now on Dekkoo.

New This Week – 4/16/21

When an Argentinian visits North America and meets his cousin’s boyfriend, instant attraction sparks a blaze of forbidden passion and deep emotion. ‘Sebastian’ is available to watch now on Dekkoo!

A flamboyant 90-year-old grandmother and her gay filmmaker grandson explore the taboos of gender, sexuality and the development of identity in a patriarchal environment. Watch ‘Madame’ now on Dekkoo!

Teenagers Jesus and Pablo travel around Monterrey city one night in order to find the right place to lose their virginity. ‘Let People Exit Before Boarding’ is streaming now on Dekkoo!

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Coming next week: The world of a married man with a seemingly perfect life is about to crack open.

New This Week – 4/9/21

A recovering alcoholic returns to his hometown after a hiatus, and falls in love with a man who will turn his world upside down. Watch ‘Complete Strangers’ now on Dekkoo!

When famed Poet Laureate William Meredith suffers a debilitating stroke, his long-term partner Richard must fight for the right to take care of him. Based on a true story, Marathon is a poignant and inspiring testament to the triumph of love and the reserve and resilience of the human spirit. ‘Marathon’ is now playing on Dekkoo!

In this short film a diverse array of lives intersect over one night in Manchester’s gay village. ‘Spectrum’ is available now on Dekkoo!

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Coming next week: A romantic movie in the vein of Before Sunrise or Weekend.” – NEWNOWNEXT

New This Week – 4/2/21

After the death of his father and end of his marriage Eric becomes restless and rudderless. When and old friend comes to town looking to reconnect with Eric the two must navigate unresolved issues of the past and uncertainties of the future. ‘Drawn Back Home’ is available to stream now on Dekkoo!

Dekkoo Films presents ‘The Big Snore’. In this short film a light sleeper struggles one night to get some rest amid his man’s loud snores.

‘Little Miss Westie’ chronicles a year in the life of two transgender siblings as they navigate puberty, a local beauty pageant, and transitioning in the Trump era. Watch ‘Little Miss Westie’ now on Dekkoo!

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Coming next week: A recovering alcoholic returns to his hometown after a hiatus, and falls in love with a man who will turn his world upside down.

Now Available: Why Not You

Mario (Thomas Prenn) is a sensitive and somewhat self-destructive young dancer. Always struggling to fit in and meet like-minded people, he finds difficulty in the day-to-day life of his small Italian village. At a local festival, he bumps into Lenz (Noah Saavedra), a strikingly handsome former childhood friend who left town long ago.

Instantly, old memories and suppressed feelings begin rising to the surface. Mario quickly becomes fixated on Lenz, who is now living out his dreams as an actor in Rome. Inspired, Mario decides to follow his friend to the Italian capital. When they meet in a gay bar, it becomes painfully clear that Lenz does not reciprocate his feelings.

The night takes a far more tragic turn when armed men rush in and Lenz falls victim to their attack. Escaping unharmed, Mario’s life will be forever altered by the incident and the loss that follows.

The debut feature of writer-director Evi Romen, Why Not You is a challenging character study, following a disoriented young man who senses that he must find a place for himself in the world.

Watch the trailer for Why Not You below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.

New This Week – 3/26/21

While shooting a film in a small town, a famous actor puts his personal life and career in jeopardy by starting an intense affair with another man. ‘I Am Syd Stone’ is available now on Dekkoo!

This screwball comedy follows a young couple who discover a secret room filled with cash while house-sitting for celebrity friends who die mysteriously while overseas. Stream ‘Such Good People’ now on Dekkoo!

France meets her son’s girlfriend for the first time. She loses control. ‘Calamity’ is available now on Dekkoo!

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Coming next week: A film about the lengths people go to find love, friendship, and a place to call home.

Short Film Spotlight: Verona

Inspired by William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Verona is the story of two young lovers separated by their rival fraternities.

Set in a small college town wherein young men are groomed for corporate success in All-American hyper competitive fashion, Verona presents the fate of star-crossed lovers in a society that condemns the very nature of their love.

Directed by Laurie Lynd (Breakfast with Scot), Verona features star actors known from DeGrassi, All My Children, The Best Years, Paradise Falls, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Queer As Folk and more. This post-modern retelling of the greatest love story ever told brings to light the homophobic/homo-erotic dual nature of fraternity life, its perks and perils.

Verona was shot as something of a calling-card, to pave the way for public, private and corporate interest in a full-length feature film version. The project is one of passion for all those involved, hoping to present the nature of love in its truest form – and it shows.

Verona is available now on Dekkoo. Watch the trailer below.

Now Available: Nevrland

In the dark, sexy, psychological coming-of-age drama Nevrland, 17-year-old Jakob (Simon Frühwirth) struggles with crippling anxiety and takes refuge in the Internet. While on a cam-to-cam chat site, he meets 26-year-old artist Kristjan (Paul Forman)… and soon nothing in his life will be quite the same.

Caught between reality and fantasy, youth and adulthood, Jakob’s blurry process of sexual awakening is a psychedelic trip of hot, strange hallucinatory sequences of desire and madness that will bring you to the edge of your seat.

With vivid imagery and atmospherically dense scenes, director Gregor Schmidinger shows the process of sexual awakening and self-discovery as an existential journey in which the borders between reality and fantasy become increasingly blurred.

Along with Simon Früwirth as Jakob in his debut acting role, the cast also includes the Austrian star stand-up comedian and actor Josef Hader as Jakob’s stoic father.

Nevrland is a well-founded depth psychological coming-of-age film about the courage it takes to be oneself and the often daunting fear blocking the way.

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

New This Week – 3/19/21

Ernesto is a teenager who wanders, in search of himself, through the streets of Rome, beginning impromptu relationships and causing pain to himself and to others… until life forces him to grow up and face some hard truths. ‘Ernesto’ is available exclusively on Dekkoo!

It is the last day before Victor has to move to another city with his parents. So he and his best friend Robert do all the things they liked to do together so much: skateboarding, spraying, hanging out. But something is different this time. ‘Reel’ is streaming now on Dekkoo!

These nine short films from director Roberto Perez Toledo feature stories of connections and missed opportunities with an appearance from cupid, a zombie couple, and a secret admirer. ‘The Films of Roberto Perez Toledo’ are available now on Dekkoo!

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Coming next week: While shooting a film in a small town, a famous actor puts his personal life and career in jeopardy by starting an intense affair with another man.

Short Film Spotlight: Involuntary Activist

Aled (Rick Yale) is faced with an incredibly emotional dilemma when his sister tells him that his husband isn’t on the guest list to her wedding in Turkey.

Torn between alienating the sister he loves or doing something that goes against his own core values, Aled struggles to keep everyone happy.

Exploring the theme of conformity versus defiance – Involuntary Activist shows us how easy it is to stand for something in theory but what a different matter it is to stand for it in practice.

Filmed in Sweden, Involuntary Activist was written and directed by prolific short filmmaker Mikael Bundsen, a longtime protégé of Ruben Östlund (the internationally acclaimed director behind Force Majeure and The Square). His short Mother Knows Best (also available now on Dekkoo) competed at Berlinale and has won a number of awards, including the Iris Prize, and been screened worldwide, including Palm Springs, Thessaloniki and Sydney Film Festivals.

Involuntary Activist is available now on Dekkoo. Watch the trailer below.