Short Film – Page 38 – Discover great gay stories.

DEKKOO DISPATCH 027 – ‘PROTEUS’ AND ‘TONIGHT IT’S ME’

Title – ‘Proteus‘

Director – John Greyson, Jack Lewis

Starring – Brett Goldin, Jeroen Kranenburg, Rouxnet Brown, Tessa Jubber

Release Date – 2003

Title – ‘Tonight It’s Me‘

Director – Dominic Haxton

Starring – Neil Elliot, Caleb James, Christian Patrick, Jake Robbins

Release Date – 2014

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In case you hadn’t noticed, we’ve added another one of Dominic Haxton’s brilliant short films to Dekkoo. ‘Tonight It’s Me‘ stars Jake Robbins who appears in 2 of Dominic’s other films (to be added in the future!) and is also the star in Robert Hawk’s super sexy short ‘Home From The Gym‘. In ‘Home’ Jake felt far away and objectified. Here he feels merely objectified which isn’t bad for us! But seriously, in ‘Tonight’ we actually get to know more of what makes a muscled hustler like him tick.

The films starts off with CJ (Jake Robbins) dealing with one his usual ‘johns’; A fat older man who can’t stop insulting him and making his life miserable. Later on CJ stops off at a new trick’s house, Ash, who with his effeminate manner and his openness about sexuality and gender strikes a chord within CJ and he begins to open up more than he has with others in the past. The film is a masterpiece in subtle characterization and the hot interplay between the two main characters is the icing on top.

At Dekkoo we’re really proud to bring queer classics to the platform and John Greyson’s ‘Proteus‘ is one of those. Greyson has been a pioneering voice in the realm of queer cinema ever since hitting it big with the HIV/AIDS musical ‘Zero Patience’ back in 1993. His signature style of Derek Jarman-esque experimental narratives mixed with historical context and a few musical numbers thrown in for good measure combine to create significant works of cinematic art that still makes the festival and art-house cinema rounds to this day.

‘Proteus‘ was written and co-directed with Jack Lewis and concerns two men who were SPOILER ALERT! executed for sodomy in 1735 in South Africa. Normally I hate spoilers, but this is a historical film and it’s important to understand a little bit about history in order to grasp the subtle nuances throughout the film. Furthering the issue at the time was that they were a bi-racial couple.

Claas Blank and Rijkhaart Jacobsz are the two men at the heart of this story. Both of them are prisoners on Robben Island (an island on the west coast of Cape Town where Nelson Mandela was held for 18 years of his prison term). Claas is a Khoi, a native of southwestern Africa and Rijkhaart is from the Netherlands whose government had control over the so-called ‘Cape Dutch’ area until 1795 when the British stepped in. A botanist named Virgil realizes that Claas has a deep knowledge of the South African flora and puts him in charge of the prison garden. Rijkhaart becomes one of his helpers and then eventually his lover. At first their relationship is joked about and ignored, but eventually simmering tensions between some of the other prisoners and the guards becomes too much to ignore.

Greyson combines this intimate historical drama with fun quirks such as incorporating modern technology like typewriters complete with busybody secretaries that give us historical context for courtroom scenes. The scenes towards the end of the film are of course saddening, but this is the 18th century and it would be dishonest to present a ‘happily-ever-after’ scenario.

If you like this film stay tuned because there will definitely be more classic queer gems like this one to grace Dekkoo in the future!

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Watch ’em with: A friend or two who like historical dramas.

Mix it with: A white wine.

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New This Week – 7/7/17

In 1952, Army Sergeant Bob Claunch was courted by his commanding officer Lieutenant Jack Reavley. In this self-narrated documentary, these two men recount the challenges they faced keeping their relationship intact, the issues they face growing old in a gay relationship, and their need for equal rights. Watch ‘Bob and Jack’s 52-Year Adventure’ on Dekkoo.com!

In ‘Tonight It’s Me‘, a hot young hustler finds himself in uncharted waters when he spends the night with a client who’s far from the “johns” he’s used to servicing.

Peter, a gay cabaret pianist, falls in love with Bill, a construction worker with intimacy issues. When Peter discovers Bill’s secret, he is determined to set him on a straight path, and when a shy young woman moves in across the hall, he puts his plan in motion, even as Bill seeks to strengthen his ties to Peter. Watch ‘Rhapsody’ on Dekkoo.com!

As their plane slowly makes its descent, a young couple is faced with their differences through sudden pockets of turbulence. Watch ‘Turbulence’, now available on Dekkoo.com!

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Coming next week – A stylish and supremely sexy gay road movie from acclaimed gay filmmaker Romas Zabarauskas.

New This Week – 6/30/17

A Spanish teenager is forced to abandon the safety of childhood (and his walking, talking teddy bear) for the troubling world of adulthood, sexuality and responsibility in this wildly original story. Watch ‘Animals’ on Dekkoo!

In the movie, ‘Kasal’, a gay couple, who resolve to stay together, is challenged as they attend a wedding.

‘It Gets Better‘ is a gay love story between Adam, a closeted jock, and Pierre, an openly gay boy, that revolves around peer pressure, bullying and acceptance.

‘The Abominable Crime‘ is a riveting documentary that explores the religious-based culture of homophobia in Jamaica through the eyes of gay Jamaicans forced to choose between their homeland and their lives.

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Coming next week – A true, self-told story about the same lifelong love we all hope for.

DEKKOO DISPATCH 023 – ‘EDGE OF SEVENTEEN’ AND ‘GO-GO REJECT’

Title – ‘Edge of Seventeen‘

Director – David Moreton

Starring – Chris Stafford, Lea DeLaria, Tina Holmes, Andersen Gabrych

Release Date – 1998

Title – ‘Go-Go Reject‘

Director – Michael J. Saul

Starring – Heath Daniels, Josh Babich, Korken Alexander

Release Date – 2010

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Hi everyone! We’re halfway through Pride Month now and I’m definitely not ready for it to be over yet. Tomorrow kicks off Frameline’s LGBTQ Film Festival in San Francisco which is always a great time. Let us know if you see any awesome films there you think should be added to Dekkoo!

Last week was a little on the dark side, so this week I’m lightening it up with two super cute ones! Start your movie night with a bit of glitter with ‘Go-Go Reject‘. Daniel is a your average queen that hangs out at go-go bars with friends and dreams of leaving his day job at Yogurt World. One day Daniel realizes he needs to fulfill his dreams of becoming a dancer. More specifically Daniel wants to be exactly like Jennifer Beals in ‘Flashdance’ minus the steel mill of course. Sadly Daniel isn’t exactly the hottest guy ever and can’t quite convince club owners to hire him so he takes matters into his own hands. The best thing about this short film is the unbridled enthusiasm of the main character played by Heath Daniels (who also stars in several other films by Michael J. Saul such as ‘Adults Only‘ which he also wrote!) and the really hot skinny guy he dances with at the end (call me!).

We’re traveling to the 80s gentlemen! Hold on to your mascara! Boom! The year is 1984 and it’s summer vacation. Eric Hunter is about to start his first day of work at a theme park in Sandusky, Ohio with his best friend Maggie. They both share a love of Toni Basil (Hey Mickey!), Eurythmics and making fun of their lame high school classmates, but right when Maggie seems to be having feelings for Eric that go beyond friendship Eric meets co-worker Rod. He’s older, sexy as hell, and is out and proud about being gay. Thus begins a sexual awakening for Eric that takes place over a year of his life, but only 103 minutes for us.

‘Edge of Seventeen‘ was written by Todd Stephens (‘Another Gay Movie’, ‘Another Gay Sequel‘) and was actually based on his life as a teen in Sandusky. Originally slated to direct the pic, the duty fell to his friend David Moreton (‘Testosterone’) at the last minute who took the reigns on this touching and ground breaking feature. The movie was filmed in 1998, but you’ll swear it was filmed in the 80s due to the awesome music (supposedly 80s music was unpopular to license at that point in the 90s so the filmmakers were able to get it for cheap), rad costuming (polyester everywhere!), and muted color grainy cinematography (filmed in 16mm and then blown up to 35mm). On Dekkoo we’re presenting the brand-new HD Restoration which looks gorgeous!

‘Edge of Seventeen‘ is one of those films where I could go on a very long rant about interesting facts. I’ll just talk about the case for brevity’s sake!

Chris Stafford who plays the main character, Eric actually left the world of acting shortly after starring in ‘Edge’ and became a lawyer. I was browsing the deep reaches of the internet one day and actually saw his speech from the University of Miami at his graduation where he was the class valedictorian!
You might find the girl who plays Maggie familiar. She plays the older sister character in the popular gay film ‘Shelter’.
Lea DeLaria who plays the lovable boss Angie is now super famous for her role in ‘Orange is the New Black’.
Andersen Gabrych (Rod) has a cameo role in every single Todd Stephens film. My favorite one is in ‘Another Gay Movie‘ where he gets puked on!

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Watch ’em with: A large group of fun queens!

Mix it with: One of those blue drinks.

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New This Week – 6/9/17

When siblings Emma and Toni inherit their family’s horse riding school things get tricky. Neither seem well equipped to keep the business going – Emma is young and Toni is busying leading a promiscuous gay sex life – but when they both fall for the school foreman’s beautiful and sexually fluid son things go haywire. Wild Awakening is an erotic forbidden love story.

In 1984, a scrappy little neighborhood in San Francisco – home to many low-income tenants and the heart of the gay male leather scene – faced destruction from the bulldozers of redevelopment and the AIDS crisis. The Folsom Street Fair was started to call attention to gentrification and raise money for AIDS charities. Folsom Forever tells the story of how this small street fair grew into the biggest outdoor kink and fetish event in the world, and managed to do a lot of good along the way. Folsom Forever is now available on Dekkoo!

In the short film, Johnny, a night with a troubled stranger forces a young male sex worker to confront a haunting moment from his past that he thought he’d left behind.

A businessman makes a regular arrangement with a Ukrainian prostitute, despite the youngster’s involvement in a controlling street gang. Watch Eastern Boys on Dekkoo!

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Coming next week – “A pleasure to watch – a spot-on story about the agony and ecstasy of adolescent first love.” – San Francisco Chronicle

DEKKOO DISPATCH 022 – ‘EASTERN BOYS’ AND ‘JOHNNY’

Title – ‘Eastern Boys‘

Director – Robin Campillo

Starring – Oliver Rabourdin, Kirill Emelyanov, Danil Vorobyev, Edea Darcque

Release Date – February 27, 2015

Title – ‘Johnny‘

Director – Micah Stuart

Starring – Tony Abatemarco, Luca Alexander, Brandon Crowder, Nikita Kochnev

Release Date – July 10, 2016

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Welcome to the new Dekkoo Blog everyone! It’s your new one stop shop for everything in the world of gay cinema. I encourage you to add Dekkoo.blog to your blog feed (or click the follow button below) and let us know if you have any suggestions to make it better.

This week we’ve got two dark and sexy films (both with hustlers) that we think you should watch ASAP!

First up is ‘Johnny‘. While there have been a glut of films that have dealt with an older man finding himself through a younger prostitute, I found that ‘Johnny‘ did it with an amount of grace and sexiness that few have come close to.

One night a random John (Sam) picks up the sexy Johnny for a hot time at a sleezy motel. What neither of them expects is the human connection that forms and the secrets that both reveal over the course of their encounter. Personally my favorite part of this short is the intense sex that occurs between the two characters. It’s rare to see such a hot inter-generational encounter in a short film like this. Even rarer to see poppers being brought into the fray. Woo!

After ‘Johnny’ you’re ready to go deeper into the world of hustlers with ‘Eastern Boys‘. This film is directed by Robin Campillo who was the writer of the Palme D’or winner, ‘The Class’. His new film ‘120 Beats Per Minute’ was just in the official selection at Cannes and is hyped as one of the best French films dealing with the ACT UP movement. The film follows a lonely gay man named Daniel. He seems well-off, but is lacking love and friendship in his life. The beginning of the film starts off showing the train urchins at the Gare du Nord station in Paris. It’s hard to tell where they’re from, but you can assume it’s somewhere in Eastern Europe. They had to leave to escape the poverty and now they’re looking for a way to make money. In walks Daniel looking for some company and he finds Marek. A rendez-vous is scheduled and when someone knocks on Daniel’s doors it’s not Marek, but a child claiming to be Marek.

I really don’t want to give too much more away. One of the best things about this movie is its wonderful balance of tension, romance, and action. I’ll tell you that I’ve never had a film make me sweat as much as this film does in the first 30 minutes. It’s nerve wracking!! ‘Eastern Boys‘ brilliantly tackles the fears and desires of both older gay men and young homeless immigrants all in just over two hours.

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Watch ’em with: You and maybe one other person whose hand you can grab onto during parts of ‘Eastern Boys‘.

Mix it with: Red Wine.

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DEKKOO DISPATCH 020 – ‘WE ARE ANIMALS’ AND ‘ANOTHER GAY MOVIE’

Title – ‘We Are Animals‘

Director – Dominic Haxton

Starring – Daniel Landroche, Clint Napier, Drew Droege, George Alvarez

Release Date – June 28, 2013

Title – ‘Another Gay Movie‘

Director – Todd Stephens

Starring – Michael Carbonaro, Jonathan Chase, Jonah Blechman, Mitch Morris

Release Date – May 3, 2007

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Heya Dekkoo-ers! Hope you’ve all been having a good week. Mine started off great via a Facebook Live stream of the annual Naval Academy freshman graduation ceremony where they attempt to climb a greased up monument shirtless. You can’t take your eyes off the struggle!

This week I want to continue the sexy vibes with two visually inventive and wild films starting with ‘We Are Animals‘.

The short film by director Dominic Haxton (we’ll be introducing you to many of his great short works in the next weeks) takes place in a dystopian future society where HIV positive citizens have been quarantined from the rest of society and given pills that keep their libidos in check. The main character has reluctantly joined with the oppressive government not so dissimilar to the Jews that helped out in the concentration camps, but once he meets a sexy member of the opposition his allegiance starts to shift.

I really love how this short film is able to set-up so much mood and world-building in such a short amount of time. Of course it really helps that the two main characters have such an sexy and radical rapport that deals with sexual confidence, the oppressed conquering the oppressor, and releasing the inner animal. A little ultra-violence also goes a long way too! Oh and a Drew Droege cameo is always hawt.

After the climactic ending to ‘Animals’ it’s time for a Gay Classic! When Todd Stephens made ‘Gypsy 83’, the follow-up to the honest and charming ‘Edge of Seventeen’, he encountered film distributors and executives saying either ‘It’s too gay!’ or ‘It’s not gay enough!’. Todd had so much difficulty with the film that he decided that he was going to
make the gayest film ever! Enter ‘Another Gay Movie‘. Todd Stephen’s answer to straight raunchy pics like ‘American Pie’ and ‘Porky’s’ turned out to be a massive hit. It turns out that gay people were dying for a film that tossed the typical gay coming-of-age plot-line out the window and embraced a more gross and wild narrative that felt like the ‘R’-Rated movies that straight people got to see all the time.

It also helps that the movie followed an adorable group of graduating high school seniors that decided they need to lose their virginity by the end of the summer. There’s Andy – your typical awkward everyman that has an obsession with sticking stuff up his butt. Jarrod – the jock of the group who claims he’s a total top and has some insecurities. Nico – the ‘leading lady’ of the group who’s always able to cheer everyone up and Griff – the nerd of the group that logically tries to get laid. Of course there are so many hilarious side-characters and cameos. A few highlights: Graham Norton as Mr. Puckov, Scott Thompson (‘The Kids in the Hall’) as Andy’s dad, Daryl Stephens as a hot go-go boy, and Richard Hatch as Richard Hatch.

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Watch ’em with: Your friends who appreciate gross humor

Mix ’em with: 420 Apple Martinis

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DEKKOO DISPATCH 019 – ‘BLOKES’ & ‘REMINGTON AND THE CURSE…’

Title – ‘Blokes‘

Director – Marialy Rivas

Starring – Alfonso David, Pedro Campos, Paula ZÃºÃ±iga, MarÃa de Los Ãngeles GarcÃa

Release Date – May 22, 2010

Title – ‘Remington and the Curse of the Zombadings‘

Director – Jade Castro

Starring – Martin Escudero, Lauren Young, Kerbie Zamora, Janice de Belen

Release Date – August 31, 2011

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Heya! Hope everyone’s week is going swell. It’s that time of the year in the film world when everyone seems to be asking, ‘Are you going to Cannes?’ I’m not, but that doesn’t stop me (nor should it stop you!) from watching some Cannes-worthy films this week and it just so happens the short film, ‘Blokes‘, was an official selection of the Cannes Film Festival a few years ago!

Luchito lives in a poor apartment complex somewhere in Chile during the military dictatorship which lasted from 1973-1990. He lives with his nosy mother who keeps barging in on him while he’s trying to jerk off to thoughts of the hunky boy playing soccer in the courtyard downstairs. Luchito is a dreamer and to that end spends a lot of time staring out of his window. Finally he gets to see his crush naked with a girl, but that’s just the start of a cat and mouse game with an ending involving a really big ‘cat’.

‘Blokes‘ was based on a short essay by a famous queer Chilean author and activist named Pedro Lemebel. I can’t read Spanish, but the google translation hinted that it was written really beautifully.

Next, we’ve got a mega silly film that I couldn’t get out of my head for weeks afterwards: ‘Remington and the Curse of the Zombadings‘ is a super queer zombie/witchcraft-comedy out of the Philippines which is known for a very flamboyant gay community due to the presence of the ‘Bakla‘. Sadly, gay people are barely tolerated in certain communities and violence does occur which is one of the focal points of the film.

The story concerns Remington (a super-cute Martin Escudero) who was cursed at a young age by a Pops (Roderick Paulate) who he mocked for being gay while Pops was mourning for a dead lover. However the curse is hardly your average cut-and-dry you’ll die soon or you’ll get boils on your butt. No! It’s that Remington will become gay when he gets older! Fast-forward 10 or so years and the curse starts to take effect right at the same time a rash of strange murders begin to plague his small community.

Watch the trailer and you’ll quickly get a sense if this movie is your taste. I’d highly recommend it though. Where else can you watch a straight guy struggling with a gay curse and having mood swings between the girl he’s falling in love with and his ‘straight’ best friend while at the same time solving a murder mystery?!?

Some fun facts about the movie:

-Once Remington starts to ‘turn gay’ he starts talking in bakla slang like ‘Hi Mumsie!’ and ‘Must dash!’ and you’ll notice that those subtitles are in pink!

-There’s a cameo by Daniel Fernando who was in the classic film, ‘Macho Dancer’.

-Remington can’t control his ass in one dance scene; emoji’s and rainbows take over the frame and it’s legit one of the best parts of the film.

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Watch ’em with: Your mega-gay friends

Mix ’em with: A Mojito, or two, or ten…

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New this week on Dekkoo – 5/12/17

A quartet of stories in which characters’ lives are changed by unusual sexual encounters, ‘Fourplay‘ frames desire through themes of connection, eroticism, shame, fear, love, spiritual healing and self worth.

Long after the end of the world, five strangers sharing an abandoned desert motel are forced to decide between love and survival. ‘Goodbye Blue Sky‘ is playing now!

When Guy Simms is yanked out of his mundane routine mopping floors at the gay cabaret and accused of burning down the evangelical church by the town preacher, Guy overcomes his fear of authority to prove his innocence in this sardonic film about Leathermen, the Bible and fighting for freedom. Watch ‘Theft‘ on Dekkoo!

Set on the Isle of Wight, ‘We Once Were Tide‘ tells the story of Anthony and Kyle, and their last night together as Kyle moves away leaving Anthony to look after his terminally ill mother.

DEKKOO DISPATCH 018 – ‘FOGI IS A BASTARD’ & ‘BOYGAME’

Title – ‘Fogi Is a Bastard‘

Director – Marcel Gisler

Starring – Fredric Andrau, Vincent Branchet, Urs Peter Halter, Jean-Pierre Von Dach

Release Date – April 28, 1999

Title – ‘Boygame’ (as part of ‘Straight Men and The Men Who Love Them: Vol. 3‘)

Director – Anna Ã–sterlund Nolskog

Starring – Charlie Gustafsson, Joakim Lang, Sophie Adolfsson, Palmira Koukkari Mbenga

Release Date – December 3, 2013

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This week on the Dekkoo Dispatch we’re covering two films that center on youth and sexuality and the angst that arises from that potent combination.

‘Boygame’ (part of ‘Straight Men and the Men Who Love Them Vol: 3‘) is a masterful investigation into the limits (or lack thereof) of male bonding from Swedish director Anna Ã–sterlund Nolskog. Yup that’s right. One of the sexiest and deepest probing studies into straight guys maybe not being that straight is from a woman. The short centers around best friends John and Nicholas. They joke together, encourage each other to chase after their girl crushes, and even jerk off together. But once conversation turns to
the mechanics of sex and how they’ll be able to keep from cumming too quickly that’s when the line between friends and something more gets a little blurry. There’s so much about this short film to fall in love with, but personally my favorite part is right at the end studying the character’s faces to determine exactly what they’re thinking. Each time I come up with something different and it never fails to make me feel giddy in one way or another.

After you’ve fallen in love with John and Nicholas from ‘Boygame’ it’s time to keep up those reading skills with another foreign film. This time from Switzerland (French language), the land of mountains, watches, chocolates, and drug addicted rockers like Fogi, one of the main protagonists (although he could also be considered the antagonist) of ‘Fogi is a Bastard‘. I watched this movie for the first time when I was in high school or early college and really felt a connection with Beni, the main character since he was a
similar age and also looking for love. Now re-watching it later I’ve fallen in love with it even more since I can now recognize many of the tell-tale signs of impending romantic disaster which occur in the film quite frequently – that and I’m also just really into guys in collars now more than I was before.

15-year-old Beni goes to a rock concert one night and falls in love with Fogi, the lead singer of a so-so rock band. He quickly becomes a ‘roadie’ and Fogi introduces him to sex and tenderness which Beni sucks in like a sponge. At first Fogi isn’t really a ‘bastard’ as the title would suggest. He’s vulgar and off-putting, but those are qualities that rock stars usually posses and Beni admires that. After a while though one of Fogi’s band members
gets him back into heroin which has negative consequences on their relationship (obviously). Beni is persistent in his love for Fogi and won’t let go even when Fogi prostitutes him out to older men for drug money.

‘Fogi is a Bastard‘ is definitely a film that stands out from the pack for its tender study of drugs affecting a loving relationship. Parallels could be drawn to Ira Sachs’ ‘Keep the Lights On’ for it’s portrayal of two souls battling it out in the name of affection and love.
There are also some fantastic images in this film that refuse to leave my memory like when Beni curls up at Fogi’s feet and then Fogi pours milk on his face. Lactosploitation indeed!

Watch these films! You won’t be disappointed.

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Watch ’em with: A friend who enjoys sexy foreign films

Mix ’em with: A 6-pack of good beer

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