Category: Pride

Head to the beach with ‘The Best Friend,’ a sexy, vibrant and romantic new gay musical!

Set at a bright and beautiful Brazilian beachside, The Best Friend follows Lucas (Vinicius Teixeira), a handsome young architect who is in a crisis with his boyfriend. On vacation, he spots Felipe (Gabriel Fuentes), an alluring former school crush who is now working as a local tour guide.

Hidden desires are soon re-awakened. In this musical paradise, Lucas surrenders to the pursuit of liberating intimacy while Felipe loses himself in colorful nights and a variety of willing partners.

Will these two men find happiness and love together under the scorching Brazilian sun? As nostalgic pop music of the 1980s and ’90s fuel spontaneous song and dance, the pair explore reconciliation, jealousy, and self-discovery.

From writer-director Allan Deberton, The Best Friend is a vibrant gay musical, blending romance and rhythm within the coastal paradise of Brazil while celebrating gay love with lighthearted charm and infectious energy.

Watch the trailer for The Best Friend below. The film is now available exclusively on Dekkoo!

Short Film Spotlight: Solitude

Young Zeph’s (Jael Saran) relationship with his best friend and secret crush, Sol (Da’Von J. Solomon), is called into question as the pair spend increasingly more time together preparing for an art exhibition.

Desperate to save her son, Zeph’s mother Augustine (Marlo Stroud) stages an ambush to confront him. Events soon take a grim turn, forcing Zeph to question how he will reconcile who he really is with the person he’s pretending to be for the sake of his disapproving family.

A 17-minute short from Atlanta-based writer-director Knial Saunders, Solitude is a deeply affecting vignette, following the burgeoning sexuality of a queer black teenager who is forced to make the painful choice of conforming to family expectations or finally reaching out for romantic love and self acceptance.

Check out the poster for Solitude below. The short film is now available on Dekkoo.

Don’t miss ‘Joyland,’ a critically-acclaimed, award-winning queer romance from Pakistan

Banned in its home country of Pakistan, the critically-acclaimed Joyland explores the many sides of love and desire in a patriarchal society.

Gentle and timid, Haider (Ali Junejo) lives with his wife, his father, his elder brother, pregnant sister-in-law and their three daughters in Lahore, Pakistan. As the family eagerly anticipates the birth of a baby boy to continue their family line, Haider secretly takes a job as a background dancer at an erotic theatre.

The unusual position shakes up the steadfast traditional dynamics of his household and enables Haider to break out of his shell. He also finds himself intrinsically drawn to Biba (Alina Khan), the strong-willed trans woman who runs the show.

Soon, Haider and Biba fall into a secret summer romance, which opens his eyes and ultimately his worldview, in ways unexpected, intimate, and heartbreaking.

Writer-director Saim Sadiq calls Joyland “an homage to all the women, men and trans people who pay the human cost of patriarchy.” It is also a celebration of the desire that creates unlikely bonds and the love that immortalizes them.

Watch the trailer for Joyland below. The film is now streaming on Dekkoo.

Acclaimed filmmaker Eytan Fox explores queer life in Tel Aviv in ‘The Bubble’

From Eytan Fox, the director behind Sublet, Walk on Water and and the beloved 2002 romance Yossi and Jagger, The Bubble follows a trio of charming and sexy Israeli twenty-somethings who share an apartment in Tel Aviv’s hippest district.

The group includes the idealistic Lulu (Daniella Wircer), the goofy and flamboyant Yali (Alon Freidman) and the moody Noam (Ohad Knoller), who works in a record store when he’s not doing dispiriting reserve duty at a Palestinian checkpoint.

They love their carefree lives inside Tel Aviv’s “bubble,” where the strains of a violent outside world are kept at bay. But the bubble is threatened, and nearly bursts, when Noam hooks up with and gradually falls in love with Ashraf (Yousef ‘Joe’ Sweid), a young Palestinian man who cannot legally work or reside within the borders of Tel Aviv.

Seeing Ashraf’s situation as a chance to act on their principles of peaceful coexistence, the three roommates go to great lengths attempting to smuggle Ashraf into their home. How their ideals run headlong into tragic realities forms the core tension of this smart, keenly felt drama – originally released in 2006 to great acclaim on the international film festival circuit.

Watch the trailer for The Bubble below. The film is now streaming on Dekkoo.

Take a trip back to 1995 with the heartfelt coming-of-age comedy ‘Screams from the Tower’

From up-and-coming writer-director Cory Wexler Grant, Screams from the Tower takes place in 1995, following best friends Julien and Cary (Richie Fusco and David Bloom) as they begin their junior year of high school.

Though his offbeat, frequently edgy and often inappropriate sense of humor is not for everyone, Julien’s primary ambition is to host a show on the high school radio station.

When his dreams start to become a reality, Julien learns that he must come to terms with his shiny new popularity, his at-risk friendship with Cary and the reality of his own sexual identity.

A hilarious and heartfelt blend of comedy and drama, Screams from the Tower perfectly captures the highs and lows of teenage life, the struggle for self-acceptance and the true meaning of friendship. The real screams are the friends we make along the way.

Watch the trailer for Screams from the Tower below. The film is now streaming on Dekkoo.

‘Sandbag Dam’ is a sensitive, stunningly photographed portrait of youthful masculinity

Croatian director Cejen Cernic’s acclaimed romantic drama Sandbag Dam examines an internal battle that forms between small town ideals and burgeoning gay desires.

Former childhood friends Marko and Slaven (Lav Novosel and Andrija Zunac) shared a secret teenage romance before being found out – which resulted in Slaven’s father casting him out of the family.

Years later, Marko has become a local arm-wrestling champion and plans to start a career close to home with his younger brother. When Slaven returns after the death of his imposing father, their reunion threatens the delicate balance of Marko’s life and the traditional future he sees for himself.

As their town prepares for a coming flood, Marko will have to deal with his own torrent of buried emotions and decide what path he wants to follow: the life that was chosen for him or a more authentic one of his own making with Slaven.

Set in rural Croatia, this relaxed, slice-of-life drama skillfully captures the everyday rhythms of small town life while telling a gripping tale of forbidden gay love and long-awaited second chances.

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

Check out the first season of ‘People Like Us’ – now available on Dekkoo!

Following the lives of four gay men, People Like Us, a short-form series from creator Leon Cheo, offers up a poignant reflection and insightful look at being gay in modern-day Singapore.

Issac (Steven Lim) is a senior private banker exploring new freedoms after living a double life hosting chem-sex parties. Ridzwan (Irfan Kasban) is a discreet accountant who keeps his work and social life separate. Joel (Josh Crowe) is a smart, but woefully impatient public relations yuppie who struggles to maintain long-term relationships. Lastly, Rai (Hermant Ashoka), is a young and idealistic conscripted soldier who is searching for love.

These characters drift into one another’s worlds – and beds – as they navigate love, lust and life in the big city.

In addition to the sexual escapades and relationships that unfold between the characters, People Like Us explores themes of acceptance, community support, the challenges of dating, substance addiction, and HIV awareness in the local LGBTQ+ community.

Check out the first season of People Like Us – now available on Dekkoo! The next two seasons will be available in the coming months.

Short Film Spotlight: Boychick

In sunny suburbia, a loud-mouthed Jewish mother (Andrea LaBella) incessantly nags and humiliates her shy, gay, teenage son (Ben Lang) – who she calls her Boychick.

Meanwhile, in the classroom, Boychick can’t seem to stop ogling a hunky male classmate. If only Boychick had the courage to face up to his desires.

As if by magic, along comes his idol, a pop star by the name of Ashley Hart (Lindsey Girardot). She arrives just at the right time, ready to give our lonely, long-suffering protagonist the hip-strutting, hair-flicking confidence he desperately craves.

Originally released in 2001, this crowd-pleasing 12-minute comedy from writer, director and producer Glenn Gaylord won over 14 different awards at LGBTQ+ festivals.

Boychick is finally back to slay once again! The short film is now streaming on Dekkoo!

Short Film Spotlight: Totems

During a wake for their close friend Bastien, who died before his time, a group of close-knit friends have a conversation with his mother. Learning that she intends to go to Bastien’s apartment that evening to pack up his things, they have a sudden revelation.

Quickly, the friends find themselves on an unusually altruistic mission to get to the apartment and remove Bastien’s impressively large selection of sex toys before his mother can discover them for herself.

Totems follows this group of friends during their trip, as each of them are confronted with their feelings of loss while realizing how much Bastien truly meant to them.

Darkly funny and deeply touching while never shying away from taboo topics, this intimate short film from French writer, director and co-star Arthur Cahn is a testament to the power of friendship, especially during times of grief.

Totems is now available on Dekkoo.

The rock n’ roll romance ‘Throuple,’ a Dekkoo-original film, is now available to stream!

Gay singer-songwriter Michael (Michael Doshier) is hopeless when it comes to expressing himself. When he meets Georgie and Connor (Tommy Heleringer and Stanton Plummer-Cambridge), a married couple, their nonchalant hook-up turns into a night of vulnerability that none of them expected.

As the couple challenges him to open up about his feelings, Michael ignites a new flicker of excitement in their marriage. His world is soon thrown into chaos, however, when everyone in his social circle begins making life-altering decisions that leave him feeling abandoned. He must decide whether to finally open up and go after what he wants or watch his dreams slip away.

From director Greyson Horst and screenwriter/star Michael Doshier, Throuple is a colorful and sexy new rock n’ roll romance about one man’s journey to live and love openly… while creating a few new songs along the way.

Watch the trailer for Throuple below. This brand-new exclusive is now available to stream on Dekkoo!