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Sqifflix: Queer Horror Stories

May 15, 2020 @ 5:00 pm - June 15, 2020 @ 5:00 pm

Free

Click here to access the full programme.

In Queer Horror Stories we showcase provocative, bizarre, sometimes gory, sometimes scary films that delve into the terror of queerness and oppression. In a dystopian 2064, a federation of African States initiate an annual cull of men; a young gay man in Russia has a surprise in store for the ultranationalists who attack him; the unbearable weight of family expectations and difficulty of being stuck in unhealthy relationships are explored through formal film experiments; the movies of horror director Kang-Chien Chui are given a queer reading; and two queer feminist crews tackle violent forces in a surreal present.

All films have English language subtitles or captions. See notes for below for each film’s language/s, level of accessibility for blind and partially sighted people, age recommendation, content notes, and if the film contains flashing lights or sound levels that might be disturbing for some. These notes are also found on each film’s page on vimeo.

The films are all free to watch with thanks to the filmmakers. Click here to donate to LGBT Unity Scotland to support LGBTQIA+ refugees, asylum seekers, and other migrants.

2064 (12m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Joseph Adesunloye, Country: Botswana, Year: 2019
Devastating population growth, famine, and mass internal displacement pushes Africa to the brink. Many of the continent’s animals are wiped out due to hunting, ever-warming climate, and a ballooning population.  A federation of African States is created and institutes an annual cull of four million men. Soon the policy is successful, and the continent’s wildlife begins to flourish again. In 2064, a nascent freedom movement led by the ‘Ladies in White’ is fighting for the emancipation of the condemned men and to put an end to the human cull.

Language/s: Tswana

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Only Tswana spoken and mostly visual storytelling; relatively bright images.

Sound design access notes: Some abrasive sound effects.

Age recommendation: 15+

Content note: Discussion and depiction of death and suicide.

Cheat (2m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Ania Urbanowska, Country: UK, Year: 2015
At what cost to ourselves are we complicit in our families’ expectations for us? This is a film about breaking that unspoken contract; about the moment when cheating them of the person they want us to be stops feeling like a choice.

Language/s: English

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Small amount of surreal and poetic voiceover; dark images.

Sound design access notes: Loud and abrasive sound effects.

Age recommendation: 15+

Content note: Discussion of suicide.

PYOTR495 (15m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Blake Mawson, Country: Canada, Year: 2016
Set in present-day Moscow, 16-year-old Pyotr is baited by an ultranationalist group known for their violent abductions and attacks bolstered by Russia’s LGBT propaganda law, but Pyotr has a dangerous secret his attackers haven’t accounted for.

Language/s: Russian

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: All Russian language with some dialogue and some image-based filmmaking; quite dark images.

Sound design access notes: Abrasive horror sound effects.

Age recommendation: 18+

Content note: Discussion of sex including BDSM; depiction of homophobia, xenophobia, and graphic, degrading, and gory violence.

Stuck (11m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Ania Urbanowska, Country: UK, Year: 2013
Have you ever been in relationship where you can’t see its problems…?

Language/s: No spoken language

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: No dialogue, only music and sound effects; quite dark images.

Age recommendation: 15+

Content note: Depiction of drug-taking.

Yi-Ren (the person of whom I think) (14m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Tzuan Wu, Country: Taiwan, Year: 2015
A love letter in collage style, consisting of found footage and a queer reading of the work of Kang-Chien Chui, screenwriter of classic East Asian movies such as The Bells of Death and Twin Blades of Doom.

Language/s: Mandarin

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: All in Mandarin, poetic voiceover; dark images.

Sound design access notes: Abrasive sound effects.

Age recommendation: 15+

Content note: Suggestion of distress and violence.

Swarm of Selenium (23m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Maude Matton & SJ Rahatoka, Country: Germany, Year: 2015
In the surreal dystopian present, two queer feminist crews cohabit the shells of an abandoned malt factory. As a troubling pattern begins to emerge from their mouths in the form of shattered glass, all are shaken, but some are hit harder than others. Through dance, visual work, and anti-work, they merge forces to try to care for one another and combat the insidious violent process which seems to increasingly come from within.

Swarm of Selenium is a queer sci fi short film about collective healing, trauma, and other world-making. It was shot in Berlin in spring 2016 by a crew of more than 40 women, nonbinary, and trans artists.

Language/s: English

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Sparse and surreal dialogue; relatively dark images.

Sound design access notes: Lots of loud and abrasive sound effects and music.

Age recommendation: 15+

Content note: Depiction of violence.

Details

Start:
May 15, 2020 @ 5:00 pm
End:
June 15, 2020 @ 5:00 pm
Cost:
Free
Event Categories:
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Website:
https://vimeo.com/showcase/7128394

Organizer

SQIFF
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