When his cross-dressing teenage son suffers a brutally violent attack, a mannequin-factory manager desperately seeks help and, when none can be found, is forced to take matters into his own hands. ‘You’ll Never Be Alone’ is available now on Dekkoo!
On the night of October 6, 1998, two men lured Matthew Shepard, a gay freshman at the University of Wyoming, from a bar in Laramie, WY. He was kidnapped and driven to a field where he was tortured and tethered to a fence and left to die. Never regaining consciousness, Matthew succumbed to the severe injuries from the attack and died on October 12, 1998.
The murder of Matthew Shepard was a devastating tragedy that made countless headlines around the world. As people denounced the hatred and senseless violence that caused Matthew’s death, a much-needed dialogue about hate crimes and intolerance against the LGBT community began and continues to this day.
Matthew’s tragic story brought the reality of inequality and vicious, irrational contempt into the public consciousness and set the stage for the landmark Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which President Barack Obama signed into law in 2009.
The documentary Matt Shepard is a Friend of Mine follows director Michele Josue, a close friend of Matt’s, as she travels to pivotal locations in Shepard’s life, interviewing other friends and family members, and gaining insight into the beautiful life and devastating loss of Matthew Shepard.
While we’ve come a long way, LGBT inequality and hate crimes are still very real today, and parts of Matt’s story are unfortunately still very much a part of young people’s realities. Though framed through a very personal lens, Matt Shepard is a Friend of Mine tells a universal story that highlights the responsibility we have now to make sure young people around the world are not at risk of falling victim to the same story ending Matt was.
Written and directed by Adam Reeves, My Brother’s Shoes is a zany fish-out-of-water comedy that borders on fantasy and reality.
Dallas, portrayed by country singer Peter Stringfellow, is a successful executive with a beautiful wife (Gretta Sosine) and a lovely home. He has dreams of having a family and leading a rich, conservative life. Austin (Jacob Ellis) is his younger gay brother who is always in trouble financially and romantically. He has dreams of winning first place in the local drag queen contest and then using the money to start a new life.
Each brother thinks the other “has it so good” and wishes that they could experience what the other one’s life is really like. By a strange twist of fate, they switch places. The world around them sees no difference but Dallas and Austin realize they have been switched. Now Austin must handle the office for Dallas as Dallas spends the day getting ready for the upcoming drag contest with the help of Austin’s sidekick, Jackie. The hilarity reaches new heights as evening comes and Austin goes home to Dallas’s wife Katelyn, who is ready to start making a family with him. Dallas goes to the theater to perform on stage in drag and win for Austin! How far will they go?
A queer twist on the body-swap comedy subgenre, My Brother’s Shoes is a feel-good crowd-pleaser. Watch the trailer below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.
When Debbie comes home for Christmas, she and her mother Gayle are forced to confront the truth about their family’s past. Watch ‘He Could’ve Gone Pro’ on Dekkoo!
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Coming next week: Dekkoo Films presents the fun and sexy sequel to ‘The Handyman’!
Writer-director Andrew Ahn’s remarkably assured feature-length debut is a portrait of forbidden sexual awakening set in the nocturnal world of spas and karaoke bars in Los Angeles’ Koreatown.
David Cho (Joe Seo, who won the Special Jury Award at Sundance for his breakthrough performance), a timid 18-year-old living with his financially-struggling immigrant parents, chances upon a secret spot for cruising when he takes a part-time job at an allmale spa, and begins to realize hidden inner desires that threaten his life as a dutiful son and student.
Effervescent and atmospheric, this one-of-a-kind coming-of-age story makes the steamy spa a liminal place between dream and reality, and desire and disillusionment.
“Spa Night is an intensely personal film,” said Ahn. “I knew very early in the screenwriting process that I had to draw from my own life experiences in order to find the honesty I wanted to show on screen. As the son of Korean-American immigrants, I have felt the conflict between my parents’ expectations and my own personal desires. In Spa Night, I wanted to explore what it means to be a part of a Korean-American family. As Spa Night progressed into production, the film became even more personal for me. We shot on location in Koreatown, Los Angeles — at restaurants I have eaten at, spas I have visited, and streets I have walked down. As I directed scenes, I saw my family in this fictional family I had created.”
“My main character David speaks in a mix of Korean and English to his parents, the same mix I use when I speak to my parents. With Spa Night, I want to open up American independent cinema to include stories about immigrant communities told in languages other than English. It is important that our cinema culture reflect the diversity of the American experience. By telling this story, I am attempting to validate the immigrant experience and acknowledge my parents’ sacrifice to leave their home country and start a new life in America. Spa Night is my way of fulfilling my parents’ hopes and dreams.”
Watch the trailer for Spa Night below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.
This stirring feature portrait of Lucha Libre star Cassandro in his waning years in the ring is less a swan song than a meteor shower rendered in Technicolor.
Famed as much for his flamboyant drag and sky-high pompadour as for his show-stopping kicks and flips, Cassandro’s trailblazing ascent as one the industry’s first openly gay wrestlers has resonated internationally for a quarter century.
Director Marie Losier captures the moving, at times humorous, and always colorful dualities of this legendary figure with her talent for forging intimacy with a subject while celebrating his individuality broadly.
Cassandro, a prize-winning fighter who reinvented a staunchly macho sport, exudes resilience of all kinds—from the physical power to leave his opponents knocked out to an ability to revisit past trauma and cope with the scars of a body pushed to its limits. Cassandro’s story—of an underdog and a queer icon, simultaneously fragile and mighty—is ever more evocative as it unfolds on both sides of the Mexican-American border.
Losier’s signature 16mm filming melds tender encounters and larger-than-life fight scenes into a stylish whole that reflects the vivid textures and hues of a dazzling life in sport.
Foster siblings Vincent and Krystal have been estranged for many years. When they are forced to reunite, their polar opposite paths in life lead to an explosive outcome where each is made to come to terms with their own faults. Watch ‘Escaping Freedom’ now on Dekkoo!
João, a middle-class filmmaker, goes through a series of encounters with people like his long-time friend Irene; his boyfriend Álvaro; Matias, a young man he meets in the subway and has a sexual experience with, among others, some acquainted, others unknown. These encounters affect him and slowly begin to reveal a play of time frames which blends together life and creative process, present and memory. ‘Your Bones and Your Eyes’ is available to stream now on Dekkoo!
Two high school friends, Caleb and Macon, are reunited after many years. During the tense reunion, Macon fights his tortured mind, wrestling with a dark secret that is the source of Caleb’s greatest pain. ‘Good Boy’ is streaming now on Dekkoo!
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Coming next week: Three men struggle to save their relationship while traveling across country in search of a doctor they believe will make one of them well.
In a small town deep in the American Midwest, Suzanna begins a gender transition and becomes a boy: Coby.
Coby’s transformation deeply impacts the lives of everyone who love him – and each member of this tight-knit family must confront their own preconceived notions of gender and sexuality.
Combining excerpts from Coby’s video dairy with candid, heartfelt interviews from his closet friends and family – director Christian Sonderegger’s debut feature is an intimate and sensitive look at timely subject.
Ultimately, Coby’s journey morphs into the transformation of a whole family compelled by love to modify their own perspectives.
Coby weaves together interviews with Coby himself, his girlfriend, parents, and brother – along with his transition timeline YouTube videos. This documentary offers up a deeply compelling real-life portrait of what it looks, sounds, and feels like to go through the transition process.
Watch the trailer for Coby below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.
Morgan (Leo Minaya) comes home after a tragic accident in a bikers race leaves him paraplegic, binding him to wheelchair use for the rest of his life. He tries to stay positive, not letting the accident end his life, but deep-rooted feelings of uselessness make him wish, at times, that he has not survived.
Rolling out for beer, he meets the handsome, charismatic Dean (Jack Kesy), and the two strike up a friendship that quickly develops into a romantic connection. Morgan wants to participate in the biking race again, more so because of his competitive nature than to prove his ability. Everyone is against it, even Dean, leading to differences that begin to show between the two for the first time.
A powerful and moving story about love and overcoming even the toughest of life’s obstacles, Morgan is a deeply touching romantic drama from writer-director Michael Akers – featuring terrific performances from the two leads.
Watch the trailer for Morgan below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.
Following four gay men in Singapore, “People Like Us” is a poignant reflection and insightful look into the lives of Joel, Ridzwan, Rai, and Isaac navigating lust, love and life. Season 1 and 2 are available to watch now on Dekkoo!
In the village of Chagrin Falls, Ohio, 21 year old Coby leads a normal life, surrounded by his family and partner. In a very intimate way, this documentary tells the story of the journey that led him to live a life according to his true gender identity, but also the commitment of his close surrounding. An incisive, tender and ironic portrait of a transgender man and his family seeking for freedom. ‘Coby’ is streaming now on Dekkoo.
‘Cold Coffee’ is a punchy and heartfelt rom-com following the fragmented relationship of two people who cannot be together and yet cannot be without each other. Break-ups are never easy. Stream ‘Cold Coffee’ now only on Dekkoo!
Coming next week: An estranged brother and sister attempt to reconnect after choosing very different paths in life.
Discover great gay stories. 