Category: Gay Rights

Pride Month Spotlight: Proud

In 1981, love was forbidden. In 1999, starting a family seemed impossible. By 2013, everything had changed.

From French filmmaker Philippe Faucon, the award-winning director behind Fatima, this amazing new three-part cinematic event takes us through each of these years.

Proud tells the stories of Charles (Frédéric Pierrot), Victor (Samuel Theis) and Diego (Julien Lopez), three generations of men, all from the same family, who represent the seismic social changes that took place within the LGBTQ community over the course of just three decades.

A three-part episodic cinema event, Proud offers up a chronology of tolerance and a portrait of one family through changing times. Cahiers du Cinema called it “one of the most exciting series of the year.” Le Parisien called it “A series that defends the fundamental rights of gay people.”

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

Three gay Palestinian friends advocate for sexual and national equality in the moving documentary Oriented

A feature-length documentary from Israel-based British director Jake Witzenfeld, Oriented follows the lives of three gay Palestinian friends as they confront their national and sexual identities in modern Tel Aviv.

Khader is an “It Boy” and provocateur from a prominent Muslim mafia family in Tel Aviv’s neighboring Arab suburb of Jaffa. An aspiring journalist and producer, he lived for many years in the heart of Tel Aviv with his “Jew-ish” boyfriend David.

Fadi left his Christian community in northern Israel to pursue his dream of becoming a nurse. He feels that his new freedom is marred by the guilt of his nation’s tragedy. His passionate nationalism is challenged when he falls in love with an American Jew fighting in the Israeli Defense Forces.

Naeem describes himself as a Palestinian, vegetarian and feminist. Like Fadi, he comes from a Christian family in northern Israel. His time in Yafo inspired him to confront his family’s expectations and be honest with his loved ones about his sexual identity.

Determined to change their reality, the three friends form a non-violent, cultural resistance group to advocate for sexual and national equality. Meanwhile, a war is brewing that may jeopardize their best laid plans.

A stirring film which has sparked active engagement at community screenings, Oriented has inspired a great deal of discourse about LGBTQ rights, the perception of “the other” in conflict zones and the role of grassroots social activism all around the world.

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

Now Available: In the Family

In the town of Martin, Tennessee, Chip Hines (Sebastian Banes), a precocious six year old, has only known life with his two dads, Cody (Trevor St. John) and Joey (writer-director Patrick Wang). And a good life it is.

When Cody dies suddenly in a car accident, Joey and Chip struggle to find their footing again. Just as they begin to, Cody’s will reveals that he named his sister as Chip’s guardian. The years of Joey’s acceptance into the family soon unravel as Chip is taken away from him.

In his now solitary home life, Joey searches for a solution. The law is not on his side, but friends are. Armed with their comfort and inspired by memories of Cody, Joey finds a path to peace with the family and closer to his son.

With an ambitious 169-minute running time, In the Family is an intimate drama with an epic scope. Wang, who has gone on to make films such as The Grief of Others and the two-part community theater celebration A Bread Factory, created In the Family independently and earned great acclaimed for his effort.

Roger Ebert, writing at the time of the film’s release in 2011, awarded the film four out of four stars and said “I was completely absorbed from beginning to end. What a courageous first feature this is, a film that sidesteps shopworn stereotypes and tells a quiet, firm, deeply humanist story about doing the right thing.”

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

New This Week – 5/6/22

Chip Hines, a precocious six year old, has only known life with his two dads, Cody and Joey. And a good life it is. When Cody dies suddenly in a car accident, Joey and Chip struggle to find their footing again. Just as they begin to, Chip is taken away. Joey searches desperately for a way to get his son back in this critically-acclaimed and criminally underseen indie epic from director Patrick Wang. ‘In The Family’ is available to stream now on Dekkoo!

The Bears are back for Season 6! Nelson is framed for the murder of a rival TV star while true crime host Reggie has a romantic fling with a prince who may hide a mysterious agenda. He’s also stalked by a former lover! Meanwhile, Wood and George decide to expand their brand by producing gay porn while government agent and resident hunk Todd struggles to prevent the assassination of a foreign dignitary. Watch ‘Where The Bears Are 6’ now on Dekkoo!

Single, thirty-something Aaron abruptly wakes when Jane, his sister, arrives early to help finish packing their deceased mother’s home. He scrambles to hide the evidence of his wild night. When his one-night-stand turns up on their doorstep a few hours later, long held grievances are brought to the surface that threaten to sever family ties forever. Stream ‘Mary’ now on Dekkoo!

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Coming next week: Bad Boy delivers four new episodes!

New This Week – 12/3/21

The children of a religious family begin clashing with their elders during the wake of their recently deceased brother. Teenage Mason is desperately trying to reach his lost identical twin brother through spiritual means. When a handsome stranger arrives, family secrets are brought out into the open. ‘A Wake’ is available to stream now on Dekkoo.

18-year-old Jules is reluctantly spending his holidays in the naturalist camp where he was raised. He soon finds himself torn between his attraction to Karim, an alluring seasonal worker on the textile beach, and Adele, his depressed mother who refuses to let him grow up and move on. Watch ‘Nuclear Family’ now on Dekkoo!

When twenty-something Maurice joins his family on a weekend getaway, he starts to notice how much of a gap has grown between the generations. Though he tries to keep up appearances, he grows more and more frustrated by his family’s myriad secrets – until he reaches a breaking point. The short film ‘Holiday’ is now playing on Dekkoo!

The life and important work of Hank Wilson, a longtime San Francisco LGBTQ rights activist and AIDS survivor, are chronicled in this deeply emotional feature-length documentary. ‘Thanks to Hank’ is available now on Dekkoo!

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Coming next week: A film that holds a mirror up to what it still means to be young and gay today in so much of the world.

Watch the award-winning documentary Memories of a Penitent Heart

Combining a wealth of recently discovered home movies, video and written documents with artfully shot contemporary interviews and vérité footage, Memories of a Penitent Heart is a documentary that cracks open a Pandora’s box of unresolved family drama.

The intimate lens of the film refracts on a wider cultural context: the AIDS crisis of the 1980s and 1990s, and in particular, how families treat their LGBTQ members in a Latin American cultural and religious context.

A story about the mistakes of the past and the second chances of the present, Memories of a Penitent Heart is a cautionary tale about the unresolved conflicts wrought by AIDS and a nuanced exploration of how faith is used and abused in times of crisis.

Watch the trailer for the film below. It’s now available on Dekkoo.

New This Week – 7/23/21

DJs, dancers, a party producer and an adult entertainer – take us on a wild ride through the inner workings of the New York City gay dance party subculture. Explore the eponymous “circuit” parties as the cast juggle career, love and the thrilling events themselves until a global pandemic and a series of unfortunate decisions turns their world on its head. ‘The Circuit’ is available now on Dekkoo!

“Who’s on Top?” (narrated by George Takei) is the emotional story of members of the LGBTQ community who challenge stereotypes about gender and sexuality and demonstrate their diverse journeys in overcoming physical and figurative mountains. Stream ‘Who’s On Top?” now on Dekkoo!

After emigrating from Israel, Noam, a young transgender artist, is now happily living in New York with an older woman, but things change when an old friend from Tel Aviv comes to town for a visit. ‘The Friend From Tel Aviv” is now available on Dekkoo!

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Coming next week: Love sick and longing in Hong Kong.

New This Week – 6/18/21

When Annamaria, a longtime friend of Alessandro and Arturo, ask the couple to take care of her children, the relationship between the two men reaches a point of no return. ‘The Goddess of Fortune’ is available to stream on Dekkoo!

‘Brothers’ follows a Muslim Arab boy who realizes he is different, and is fortunate to have an older brother who stands by him and encourages him to be himself, in the face of bias and adversity. ‘Brothers’ is now streaming on Dekkoo!

In the wake of the Birmingham protests against LGBTQ+ relationship education in primary schools, a team of queer community reporters of colour challenge homophobia and call out racism in LGBTQ+ spaces. Watch ‘Pride & Protest’ now on Dekkoo!

Desperate for connection and longing for a fresh way to find it, Bruce decides to explore his trusted dating app with a unique search for a new mate. Watch ‘Huckleberry’ now on Dekkoo!

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Coming next week: The Dekkoo-original series ‘Here Comes Your Man’.

New This Week – 6/11/21

Jacques is an older writer from Paris. Arthur is a young student in Rennes. They instantly fall in love. But they’ll have to face rejection and sickness to keep it that way. ‘Sorry Angel’ is available to watch now on Dekkoo!

Produced in 1967, this amazing 22-minute short film introduces us to four transwomen who are subjected to a six-month psychological project and then grilled about their personal lives. This unique exploitation documentary offers a rare and provocative glimpse into pre-Stonewall queer life. ‘Queens At Heart’ is available now on Dekkoo!

Don’t miss: LGBT Film Archivist and Historian Jenni Olson on Queens at Heart

Knowing your queer history is essential, and the award-winning ‘When The Beat Drops’ offers an immersive deep-dive inside the growing culture of bucking—an energetic, hyper-athletic, dance phenomenon cultivated by queer people of color in the Deep South. Watch ‘When the Beat Drops’ on Dekkoo!

Jesse, a mixed race transgender teen, arrives from Switzerland for a cross-country road trip with her estranged father Marcus. They strike a weighty deal, one with serious repercussions for their relationship and their trip. ‘Jesse’ is now playing on Dekkoo!

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Coming next week: Arturo and Alessandro have been a couple for 15 years. When their friend leaves her children in their care, their tired routine is turned upside down.

Take a trip through Queer Japan from the comfort of your own home

In this new documentary, trailblazing artists, activists, and everyday people from across the spectrum of gender and sexuality defy social norms and dare to shine in this kaleidoscopic view of LGBTQ+ culture in contemporary Japan.

From glossy pride parades to playfully perverse underground parties, Queer Japan pictures people living brazenly unconventional lives in the sunlight, the shadows, and everywhere in between.

Dazzling, iconoclastic drag queen Vivienne Sato peels back the layers of language and identity. Maverick manga artist Gengoroh Tagame tours the world with his unapologetically erotic gay comics. Councilwoman Aya Kamikawa recounts her rocky path to becoming the first transgender elected official in Japan. At the legendary kink-positive hentai party Department H, non-binary performance artist Saeborg uses rubber to create a second skin.

Culled from 100+ interviews conducted over three years in locations across the entire country, Queer Japan features dozens of individuals sharing their experiences in their own words. Get to know a vibrant and inspiring group of human beings in a country with a unique history of queer expression.

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