Animation Now - SOLD OUT
2024-10-11 18:00 - 20:00 UTC | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening. CCA Box Office are operating a waiting list for sold out events – please contact them directly or go to their website to be added to this!**
Back for a second year, Animation Now brings you the best of contemporary queer animation. We continue to see an increase in both demand and creation of animated queer work and present you with a screening to celebrate that. The programme includes animation produced using techniques ranging from stop motion, frame-by frame, 3D sculpture and more. Expect heartfelt emotions paired with seamless visuals.
Join us for a special mural drawing workshop led by Nat Lall and Huss after the screening.
Curated by Nat Lall and Huss.

Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £2, £4, £6, £8, £10, or £12. To book, click here or call the CCA Box Office on 0141 352 4900.

Accessibility:
This programme has:

English, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Tagalog audio with English language descriptive subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for the intro and workshop.
Live Captioning for the intro and workshop.

This screening is 42 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 15+.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2024 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2024, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Films in this programme include:

POLAR, Dir. Phoebe Yemi Ara, 2024, United Kingdom, 2 min
An avalanche changes a polar bear’s life, sending him on a journey across a barren fantasy world. A rich narrative exploration of mental health.
Inspired by testimonials on bipolar disorder, this disorienting frame by frame animated short gives life to the experience of millions through fantasy, vivid colour, and metaphor.
Content notes: Discussion of mental health.

The Secret Lives of Lesbians Cats, Dir. Kate Jessop, 2023, United Kingdom, 2 min
What do cats talk about when their owners aren’t around? What do they really think of their lesbian owners? The Secret Lives of Lesbians Cats is the new episode of Planet Pussy Willow, the feminist sci-fi development of the multi award winning comedy adult animation series Tales From Pussy Willow.

I Would Like to Live on the Moon, Dir. Emily Burke, 2023, United Kingdom, 2 min
A young non-binary person feels overwhelmed and wants to escape – literally, to the moon.
Content notes: Discussion of mental health.

Mavi, Dir. Aylin Alakbarli, 2023, Azerbaijan, 1 min
The moon wants to play with her cat.

Alwan, Dir. Qais Sarhan, 2024, United Kingdom, 3 min
Meet Alwan, a cheerful child longing for a friend. After a series of disappointments, a box of crayons unexpectedly brings magic into his life. The crayons come alive, creating a magical world filled with joy and friendship. Here, Alwan discovers that his imagination holds the key to happiness, celebrating the power of creativity and the simple joys found within our imagination.

Cesspit of Freedom, Dir. Oran Rose O’Sullivan, 2022, United Kingdom, 2 min
The police’s consistent harassment of a popular gay bar heralds the UK’s first national Gay Pride March, taking place in the textiles town of Huddersfield, 1981.
Content notes: Discussion of police.

Little One, Dir. John Clister Santos, 2023, Philippines, 9 min
In Manila, Ili-Ili follows Joy, a pregnant mother seeking advice from her gay dads, Iko and Tino. When Iko has a heart attack, Tino reflects on their family’s journey through old footage. Joy learns that true parenting is defined by love and support, not gender, as the film’s painterly visuals convey a timeless message of parental devotion.
Content notes: Depiction of hospitalisation.

Cherry Passion Fruit, Dir. Renato José Duque, 2024, Portugal, 5min
Nature contains both the raging fire and the flowing waterfall. Inside a mysterious rainforest, lust takes shape between love and pain. Would you face your haunting desire?
Content notes: Depiction of sexual content.

I’m fine mum, Dir. Josema Palenzuela, 2023, Spain, 5 min
Blanca, a young illustrator recently independent, faces a chaotic life she hides from her mother by creating a false, idealised version of reality on her walls. The story is told through phone messages and photos exchanged between mother and daughter. Meanwhile, Áurea, Blanca’s partner, observes the growing lies and their impact on their relationship.

Forza, Rea!, Dirs. Isabel Pahud, Isabel Clerici, Laura Zimmermann, Polina Tyrsa, 2023, Switzerland, 3 min
In a hillside village in Ticino, Rea sets out to deliver a love letter to her crush while roller skating. As she heads to the house, the letter is swept away downhill, sending Rea on a frantic chase through the village. Navigating obstacles on the rough old town streets, she races to catch the letter before finally delivering it.

Strokes, Dir. David Colin William Crump, 2023, United Kingdom, 4 min
Strokes tells the story of a father and son through painting and what they might paint based on their broken relationship.

Pussy Love, Dir. Linda Krauss, 2023, Germany, 4 min
Cool Cat invites you! To join the world of Pussy Love. Enjoy a show of lust and laziness! Let’s have fun with tits and dicks. The claws are sharp, the soda is sparkling and the fur is getting wet. Romance is kitsch. But even the most jaded cat can still be lost for love.
Content notes: Depiction of animated genitalia, sex, sensual dancing. Discussion of sexual language.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: I’m fine mum, Dir. Josema Palenzuela, 2023

Drag & Performance Through Censorship - SOLD OUT
2024-10-11 21:00 - 23:00 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening. CCA Box Office are operating a waiting list for sold out events – please contact them directly or go to their website to be added to this!**
Drag & Performance through Censorship is a captivating short film screening programme that delves into the stories of Arab, Turkish, and displaced drag queens and performers. The programme highlights the ways these artists navigate and resist the censorship and social conservatism in their home countries, offering a powerful insight into their struggles, resilience, and artistry. These selection of short films paint a vivid and emotional portrait of the drag/performance community’s defiance, creativity, and spirit, offering audiences a deeper understanding of their fight for visibility and freedom.
Following the screening, Huss is hosting a panel discussion with drag queens Kiki Rivera and Caramella aka 3MR.
Curated by Huss.

Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £2, £4, £6, £8, £10, or £12. To book, click here or call the CCA Box Office on 0141 352 4900.

Accessibility:
This programme has:

Arabic, English, French, Russian, Turkish audio with English language descriptive subtitles.
English-BSL interpretation for the introduction and panel discussion.
Live Captioning for the introduction and panel discussion.

This screening is 58 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 15+.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2024 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2024, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Films in this programme include:

Sultana’s Reign, Dir. Hadi Moussally, 2023, France, 10 min
‘Sultana of New York’ is a Palestinian drag queen and artist. ‘Sultana’s Reign’ begins with her being painted by Jordanian artist RIDIKKULUZ. She reflects on her journey from the Middle East to New York, discussing the challenges of drag in conservative societies, her nostalgia for Egyptian cinema, and her commitment to self-expression and authenticity.
Content notes: Discussion of displacement, war, family discord, death, suicide.

Queen’s Illusion, Dirs. Ceren Özkanlı Samlı, Erinç Durlanık, 2024, Turkey, 21 min
In an era of political repression and growing conservatism in Turkey, Istanbul’s drag scene thrives. This documentary goes backstage with popular queens like Cake Mosq, Pepi IV, Ahsen Gönülce, Anna Tholia, and Gia Androgeny. They discuss the effort behind their personas, the threat of harassment, and new opportunities online, sharing the challenges of performing drag in a sometimes-hostile world.
Content notes: Discussion of drug use, homophobia. Depiction of alcohol use, cigarette use.

Show Up, Dir. Maria Zakhodiaichenko, 2024, United States, 11min
Friday evening. Coney Island, New York. Russian-American drag artist Maxim and his mom Ilona separately tell us the history of their family back in Russia and during their immigration to the US while getting ready for the Maxim’s performance. Soon they will reunite, just it should be.
Content notes: Discussion of homophobia, death.

ANYA KNEEZ: A Queen in Beirut, Dir. Mohamad Abdouni, 2017, Turkey, Lebanon, 11 min
Anya Kneez, an Arab Drag Queen, left Brooklyn in 2012 after 23 years in America and returned to live with her parents in Beirut. At 28, she still grapples with the values of a Middle Eastern society that struggles to accept her lifestyle. This short documentary glimpses the journey of the drag performer who brought Brooklyn’s drag scene to Beirut’s clubs.
Content notes: Discussion of homophobia, family discord.
Access notes: Flashing lights.

Bellydance Vogue, Dir. Hadi Moussally, 2020, Lebanon, 5 min
“My birthday was on the 3rd of April 2020 during lockdown, and for the first time, I celebrated it all by myself. But even if I was alone, I decided to celebrate it as if it’s the last one”
The film was made during quarantine.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: Sultana’s Reign, Dir. Hadi Moussally, 2023

Our World: Signs for the Future with Take One Action and Edinburgh Deaf Festival - SOLD OUT
2024-10-12 11:30 - 13:30 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening. CCA Box Office are operating a waiting list for sold out events – please contact them directly or go to their website to be added to this!**
Curated by Charlie Little, a queer, deafblind film access consultant and curator, ‘Signs for the Future’ is a collection of short films interwoven with intersections of identity, our natural world and elements, and climate justice issues. These films capture Deaf and disabled perspectives and intersectional identity, seeking to spark conversations about collective, intertwined struggles and how our climate plays a role in our unity.
This special showcase will also feature the short film Bee’s Journey, which was produced by emerging Deaf filmmakers and created in response to the Scottish Sensory Centre’s ‘Rewilding BSL’ project. This project led to the creation of over 400 British Sign Language signs for climate and environment-related terms, making climate justice action and environmental discussions more accessible for BSL users.
Bee’s Journey came to life during a filmmaking workshop, ‘Filming Our World: Rewilding BSL & Queer Ecologies,’ facilitated by Take One Action Film Festivals, SQIFF, and Edinburgh Deaf Festival this summer. The workshop presentations were led by Dr. Audrey Cameron, Will Clark, and Klarissa Webster.
Curated by Charlie Little.

Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £2, £4, £6, £8, £10, or £12. To book, click here or call the CCA Box Office on 0141 352 4900.

Accessibility:
This programme has:

American Sign Language, British Sign Language, English audio English language descriptive subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for the introduction.
Live Captioning for the introduction.

This screening is 60 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 12+.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2024 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2024, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Films in this programme include:

Bee’s Journey, Sandra Duguid, Audrey Cameron, Tanya, 2024, United Kingdom, 3 min
Filmed in the serene wildness of Salisbury Centre’s communal garden space, Bee’s Journey follows the perspectives of three individuals and their connection to nature and their identity. This film was imagined and manifested during a Deaf and climate justice-focused filmmaking workshop in collaboration with Take One Action, SQIFF, and Edinburgh Deaf Festival.
Content notes: Discussion of ADHD.

Scotland, Forgive Me, Dir. Will Clark, 2022, United Kingdom, 6 min
Set against a picturesque Scottish beach, a Deaf person writes a love letter to Scotland and to people looking for a place to belong, using poetry to explore their struggles of identity and connection to the country they were born in.

Battery, Dir. Ewan Marshall, 2023, United Kingdom, 14 min
In this apocalyptic love story, Elliot uses his last remaining wheelchair battery to navigate a city devastated by climate disaster, hoping to reunite with his deaf boyfriend.
Content notes: Physical violence.

Octopus, Dir. Ella Glendining, 2022, United Kingdom, 12 min
Upon returning to her sleepy seaside home town for a funeral, a young woman reconnects with the friends she left behind.
Content notes: Discussion of grief, death.

The Beauty of Being Deaf, Dir. Chella Man, 2021, United States, 3 min
Submerged underwater, three people explore and express their celebration of identity and hearing loss.

How to Carry Water, Dir. Sasha Worztel, 2024, United States, 15m
This punk rock fairytale doubles as a portrait of Shoog McDaniel – a fat, queer, and disabled photographer working in and around northern Florida’s vast network of freshwater springs, the state’s source of precious drinking water.
Content notes: Depiction of nudity. Discussion of sexual references, references to fatphobia.

Access notes: Strobe effects.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: The Beauty of Being Deaf, Dir. Chella Man, 2021

Dear Future Self
2024-10-12 12:30 - 14:30 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page

Dear Future Self is a heartfelt short film screening programme that explores the personal journeys of queer individuals through the art of letter writing and poetry. Each film delves into the self-reflection of its protagonists as they navigate various hurdles, offering intimate glimpses into their thoughts, emotions, and growth. The short film screening offers a compelling and deeply personal look into the lives of queer individuals as they reflect on their past and envision their futures. Through the medium of letters and poetry, these films capture the raw, unfiltered emotions and the transformative power of self-expression and introspection.
Following the screening, enjoy a letter writing workshop with creative practitioner and artist Huss Mitha. In this session participants will use tools from abolitionist theory and sci-fi to imagine liberated future selves and others. The writing exercise will seek to imagine emergent worlds out of the intersection of queer and anti-colonial struggles of the present.
Curated by Huss.

Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £2, £4, £6, £8, £10, or £12. To book, click here or call the CCA Box Office on 0141 352 4900.

Accessibility:
This programme has:

English, Italian, Portuguese, Yue Chinese (Cantonese) audio with English language descriptive subtitles.
English-BSL interpretation for the introduction and workshop.
Live Captioning for the introduction and workshop.

This screening is 73 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 18+.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2024 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2024, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Films in this programme include:

Twenty Something, Dir. João Nunes, 2024, Portugal, 14 min
After the end of a 3-year relationship, João writes a letter about the past, the future, love, friendship, fears and personal growth.
Content notes: Discussion of relationship grief.

Cara Mamma, Dir. Sky Neal, 2024, United Kingdom, 24 min
When dancer Naissa tells his mum, Daniela, that he is transitioning, she struggles to understand. Over three years of candid letters, dream-like sequences, and cinéma vérité, Cara Mamma follows Naissa as he asserts his identity and Daniela as she grapples with losing a daughter. As Naissa begins his dance career and embraces his gender, Daniela learns to listen with love.
Content notes: Discussion of transition, gender dysphoria, family discord, transphobia, mental health.

Letter To Dad, Dir. Rafael Ferreira, 2023, Portugal, 10 min
An audiovisual letter from a son to his dad in which he travels through his earlier memories and tries to fix their relationship. The director intends not only to create an environment where his sexuality related conflicts with his dad can be solved in order to repair their connection, but also heal himself from all the past wounds those issues may have caused.
Content notes: Discussion of homophobia, family discord.

Heart Murmurs, Dir. Dorothy Cheung, 2023, Hong Kong, 9 min
Heart Murmurs is a poetic dialogue between the filmmaker and Dean, a young man living in Hong Kong. In reflecting on his experience living with a congenital disability and HIV during the first years of the COVID pandemic, the film questions the boundary of care and control in relationships.
Content notes: Discussion of COVID-19 pandemic, hospital, medical treatments.

Letter To My Daughter, Dir. Jess T. Dugan, 2023, United States, 16 min
Letter to My Daughter is an autobiographical video about my journey to parenthood and my daughter’s first five years. Narrated through a letter, it features personal images like snapshots and ultrasound photos. It covers my expectations, challenges of having a child, miscarriage, and adjusting to parenthood as a queer, nonbinary person, while exploring the deep love and personal growth that come with being a parent.
Content notes: Discussion of miscarriage, homophobia. Depiction of pregnancy, nudity, hospitalisation.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: Twenty Something, Dir. João Nunes, 2024

Music as Resistance - SOLD OUT
2024-10-12 15:00 - 17:00 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening. CCA Box Office are operating a waiting list for sold out events – please contact them directly or go to their website to be added to this!**
People have been gathering to perform and listen to music since the dawn of time. How is it being utilised by queer people now? Music As Resistance delves into the universal language of music being used across the globe to gather and empower marginalised communities. Expect informative films on the history of newer sub-genres such as Bounce and Guaracha and current insights into underground music by Armenian and Asian-American artists.
This screening is followed by a panel discussion hosted by Nat Lall with Nxa and Queer History of Dance Music duo Duncan Ross McBride and Amy Rodgers.
Curated by Nat Lall.

Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £2, £4, £6, £8, £10, or £12. To book, click here or call the CCA Box Office on 0141 352 4900.

Accessibility:
This programme has:

Armenian, English, Spanish audio with English language descriptive subtitles.
English-BSL interpretation for the introduction and panel discussion.
Live Captioning for the introduction and panel discussion.

This screening is 47 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 18+.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2024 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2024, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Films in this programme include:

Symptom, Dir. Kamee Abrahamian, 2023, Armenia, 23 min
Embodying the dreams and poetics of a post-Soviet generation, two young Armenian women share their politics of justice and feminism with the world through their music.
Content notes: Discussion of queerphobia. Depiction of physical violence, police violence, alcohol use, cigarette use.
Access notes: Minimal flashing lights.

Confluence: A Meditation in Documentary Form, Dirs. ETA, Shanhuan Manton, 2021, United States, 15 min
CONFLUENCE is a meditation on ancestry and identity through the lens of APIDA and queer artists, filmed during moonroom’s 2019 PHASE event series celebrating APIDA Heritage Month in Southern California. This mix of hypnotic images and heartfelt testimonies explores the turmoil of being othered, while creatively shattering community and perceptual barriers. The film directly challenges reductive myths about the Asian American diaspora, advocating for self-defined identities.
Content notes: Discussion of colourism, racism, colonialism, fetishisation.
Access notes: Hypnotic layered imagery appears throughout the film.

furious guaracha (videomanifesto), Dir. Resonantes Ruido Trans, 2023, Colombia, 4 min
⚧️🔥🚨may the scream embrace us and our fury lead us to tenderize our emancipation🔥🚨⚧️
🏳️‍⚧️ we share with you the videomafiesto of our furious guaracha, a creation resulting from our outbreaks of trans love
In this piece we weave elements from our collective archive of the trans present, with the party as a struggle. 📢📢
Content notes: Discussion of sex work.
Access notes: Minimal glitchy imagery, flashing lights within party footage.

Jump, Dir. Wilberto Lucci, 2023, United States, 5 min
A history about the origins of twerking and the uber-successful Bounce Music genre of New Orleans. Narrated by New Orleans own LGBTIQA+ artist & award winning reality show star “Big Freedia”. Big Freedia is featured on Beyonce’s current #1 hit”Break My Soul” and Drake’s #1 bounce music hit “Nice For What”.
Content notes: Discussion of hurricane destruction.
Access notes: Minimal flashing laser lights within party footage.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: Symptom, Dir. Kamee Abrahamian, 2023

In Rage and Grief - SOLD OUT
2024-10-12 15:30 - 17:30 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening. CCA Box Office are operating a waiting list for sold out events – please contact them directly or go to their website to be added to this!**
In Rage, In Grief is a powerful and emotive short film screening programme that explores the harrowing experiences and resilient spirits of queer activists who have been forcefully displaced from their homelands. Each film captures the intersection of activism, identity, and the struggle for safety and acceptance in the face of adversity. This short film screening provides a profound and intimate look into the lives of queer activists who, despite being displaced, continue to fight for their rights and the rights of others. Through these films, audiences will gain insight into the courage, determination, and enduring spirit of those who face persecution yet remain committed to their cause.
This screening is in partnership with the Scottish Refugee Council, who will be leading a panel discussion with LGBTIA+ people who have found safety in Scotland.
Curated by Huss.

Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £2, £4, £6, £8, £10, or £12. To book, click here or call the CCA Box Office on 0141 352 4900.

Accessibility:
This programme has:

Arabic, Dutch, English, Georgian, German audio with English language descriptive subtitles.
English-BSL interpretation for the introduction and panel discussion.
Live Captioning for the introduction and panel discussion.

This screening is 80 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 18+.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2024 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2024, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Films in this programme include:

Beirut Dreams In Color, Dir. Michael Collins, 2022, Lebanon, 28 min
At a Cairo concert, Mashrou’ Leila’s lead singer, Hamed, the first openly gay Arab rock star, performs for 35,000 fans. A fan waves a rainbow flag, creating a magical night that results in tragic fallout. Beirut Dreams in Color explores the band’s activism and the fight for LGBTQ equality in the Middle East, showcasing music’s power and the universal desire for freedom.
Content notes: Discussion of suicide, death, queerphobia, trauma, mental health, religion, death threat, police violence, torture, physical violence, prison, forced displacement. Depiction of bomb explosion.
Access notes: Minimal flashing lights.

Queer Exile, Dir. Ahmed Awadalla, 2024, Germany, 10 min
After fleeing Egypt post-2011 revolution, an activist seeks safety in Berlin but ends up in a refugee camp plagued by far-right protests. Torn between the hostility of his new environment and nostalgia for his past, he questions his choices and queer identity. Reflecting on his memories, he gains new insights into exile, forges friendships, and redefines “home” in Berlin.
Content notes: Depiction of police violence. Discussion of racism, forced displacement, police violence, queerphobia.

The Pride Liar, Dir. Andres Lübbert, 2023, Belgium, 19 min
Emzo, a courageous queer activist, escaped persecution in Georgia five years ago, finding refuge in Belgium. This short documentary captures his unyielding commitment to the LGBTQ+ cause, showcasing the indomitable spirit of one individual’s fight for acceptance and equality.
Content notes: Discussion of queerphobia, physical violence, forced displacement, family discord, war, mental health, drug use. Depiction of physical violence, queerphobia, police violence.

MOTHER, Dirs. Meg Shutzer, Brandon Yadegari Moreno, 2023, United States, 23 min
In San Francisco, a city known for its queer community and bustling gay nightlife, there hasn’t been a lesbian bar for almost a decade. Driven by nostalgia for a time when queer women had spaces, Malia Spanyol, a self-identified dyke sets out to build one for the next generation of women and femmes.
Content notes: Depiction of alcohol use, cigarette use, vape use. Discussion of homophobia, patriarchy.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: Beirut Dreams In Color, Dir. Michael Collins, 2022

Closing Film: Lesvia - SOLD OUT
2024-10-12 19:00 - 21:00 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening. CCA Box Office are operating a waiting list for sold out events – please contact them directly or go to their website to be added to this!**
Since the 1970s lesbians have been gathering in the village of Eressos, Lesvia, once home to the ancient Greek poet and ‘First Lesbian’, Sappho. Lesvia is a documentary film chronicling the site of queer pilgrimage and tensions felt between local villagers and new sapphic arrivals of the last four decades. The feature will be followed by two shorts exploring Barbara Hammer and the lesbian iconography of the carabiner, respectively.
This screening will be followed by a panel discussion hosted by Nat Lall with Looking for Barbara director Helen Kilbride.
Curated by Nat Lall.
Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £2, £4, £6, £8, £10, or £12. To book, click here or call the CCA Box Office on 0141 352 4900.

Accessibility:
This programme has:

English, French, Italian, Greek with English language descriptive subtitles.
English-BSL interpretation for the introduction and panel discussion.
Live Captioning for the introduction and panel discussion.

This screening is 93 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 18+.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2024 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2024, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Films in this programme include:

Lesvia, Dir. Tzeli Hadjidimitriou, 2024, Greece, 77 min
Since the 1970s, lesbians from around the world have been drawn to the island of Lesvos, the birthplace of the ancient Greek poet Sappho. When they find paradise in a local village and carve out their own queer lesbian community, tensions simmer with the local residents. With both groups claiming ownership of lesbian identity, filmmaker Tzeli Hadjidimitriou—a native and lesbian herself—is caught in the middle and chronicles 40+ years of love, community, conflict, and what it means to feel accepted.
Content notes: Depiction of nudity, sex toys, alcohol use, cigarette use. Discussion of homophobia, sex, harassment, political legislation, oppression, gender dysphoria, body image, fatphobia, childhood trauma, xenophobia, physical violence, police violence, patriarchy, sexism, alcohol.
Access notes: Minimal flashing light in some party scenes.

Looking for Barbara, Dir. Helen Eve Kilbride, 2021, United Kingdom, 9 min
Looking for Barbara is a short experimental film exploring personal archives—photos and cine film from home. Using the filmmaker’s mid-1990s Super 8 footage, it questions memory’s significance and whose stories are prioritised. Inspired by Barbara Hammer, the film blends an ethereal soundtrack with personal testimony, offering a queer perspective on memory and how archives can be reinterpreted to amplify marginalised narratives.
Content notes: Depiction of nudity. Discussion of queer erasure, sex.

The History of The Carabiner, Dir. Gianna Mazzeo, 2023, Netherlands, 7 min
A tongue-in-cheek, historical documentary / fashion film hybrid that takes viewers on a journey through queer history to trace the origins of the carabiner as a lesbian symbol.
Content notes: Discussion of sexism, sex, homophobia.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: Lesvia, Dir. Tzeli Hadjidimitriou, 2024

SQIFF x Q'IWA x Mojxmma x Scandal Party - SOLD OUT
2024-10-12 22:00 - 2024-10-13 02:00 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening. CCA Box Office are operating a waiting list for sold out events – please contact them directly or go to their website to be added to this!**
This year the festival closing party features a full QTIBPOC line-up of artists!
After an incredible week of trans and queer events, come celebrate with us at this amazing partnership party with Q’IWA, Mojxmma, Scandal. Two DJs on at all times, both in the CCA Courtyard and Third Eye Bar. Q’IWA will start the night with an hour of cabaret performances hosted by Kiki Rivera at the CCA Courtyard, and have performers on across the night. Scandal and Mojxmma have curated incredible line-ups of DJs for the whole night. Come shake your queer booties to the hottest DJs in Glasgow ❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥
BSL interpreters will be available for Q’IWA’s cabaret performances from 10-11pm.
Line-Up:

3MR
Salam Kitty
Hu-Sane
star eye
Rahul.mp3
DJ Bellarosa
Keza
Priya
Q’IWA performances all night

Curated by SQIFF, Q’IWA, Mojxmma, and Scandal.

Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £2, £4, £6, £8, £10, or £12. To book, click here or call the CCA Box Office on 0141 352 4900.

Accessibility:
This event has:

English-BSL interpretation for the Q’IWA cabaret performances.

You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2024 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2024, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: Lou McCurdy

SQIFF Queer Filmmakers Group
2024-11-09 16:00 - 18:00 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page

Curious about making a short film in just two days? Ready to team up with other creatives one last time to bring your ideas to life?
Come join us for the final session of the SQIFF Queer Filmmakers Group, where we’ll celebrate our journey together with a special 48-Hour Film Challenge! This final gathering offers a unique opportunity to connect and collaborate, honouring the friendships and creative partnerships formed throughout our time together. If you haven’t had the chance to participate before, this is a perfect moment to meet like-minded individuals and get involved. You’ll have 48 hours to develop and complete a short film, drawing on the skills and inspiration cultivated within the group.
We’ll also have a moment to reflect on ongoing projects, share future plans, and discuss how we can continue supporting each other’s work beyond this final in-person session.
The SQIFF Queer Filmmakers Group has been a space for local queer filmmakers to connect, support one another, and grow as artists. Open to all levels and backgrounds across filmmaking and supporting arts (acting, prop making, music and sound design, and more), the group has welcomed everyone from newcomers to experienced filmmakers.
Although this is our last in-person session, the group will continue online through our Discord channel, allowing members to share resources, feedback, and new ideas to keep this creative community alive.

About the group
The SQIFF Queer Filmmakers Group is an initiative to bring local queer filmmakers together for monthly two-hour group sessions to network and support each other in the development of film projects.
The group is open for any level of filmmaking or film supporting arts (acting, prop making, music and sound design…) and we really encourage people just starting out in these mediums to come along.
Join a very friendly and supportive cohort of queer artists in Scotland making films!

This session is delivered thanks to support from See Me Scotland, No Drama, Glasgow Filmmakers Alliance, Transmission.

Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £2, £4, £6, £8, £10, or £12. To book, click here or call the CCA Box Office on 0141 352 4900.

Accessibility:
Accessibility:

BSL-English interpretation for the whole event.
Relaxed event.
Wheelchair Access.
We have an Audience Access Fund for travel costs. If you would like to take this up, please contact info@sqiff.org.

If you have any other access needs you would like to discuss with us, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: Ocean Teal

Making Masculinities with Take One Action and Pillow Talk Scotland - SOLD OUT
2024-11-22 19:00 - 21:30 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening.**

A compelling evening of short films exploring the complexities of masculinity today – from harm to love.

What does it mean to be masculine today? Young men face increasing pressures, grappling with toxic stereotypes and the “loneliness epidemic,” often feeling isolated and inadequate. Data shows that young men are veering to the right globally, underscoring the urgent need to address these issues. However, masculinity is far more fluid and diverse than commonly portrayed, and we invite audiences to reflect on these nuances through a broader, more intersectional lens.

Featuring short films from Glasgow artist Trackie McLeod, filmmakers Miles Warren and Campbell X, director and writer Daniel Bailey and others, Making Masculinities takes us on a journey through masculinity’s many facets.

The event encourages attendees to participate as men or people who identify in some way with masculinity, to bring friends with them, and to bring the men in their lives. Together we’ll have meaningful conversations about male identity’s positive and negative aspects. Hosted by Take One Action, the Scottish Queer International Film Festival, and Pillow Talk Scotland, the screening will take place on 22nd November, shortly after International Men’s Day and just ahead of this year’s 16 Days of Activism. This event provides an opportunity to challenge traditional narratives and promote a healthier understanding of masculinity today.

Curated by Iris Pase, Rachel Hamada, and Zeo Fawcett, with support from Indigo Korres.

Tickets are FREE. To book, click here and you’ll be redirected to the Take One Action website.

Understanding Masculinity Trackie McLeod, 2018, UK, 5 minutes
​Trackie McLeod is a Scottish artist based in Glasgow. Best known for his text-based work, Trackie recontextualises our relationship with everyday colloquialisms. His punchy take on sculpture, textiles and print mixed with his love of Scottish patter creates a visual best described as ‘one part tongue-in-cheek, an ounce of sarcasm and a pint of Tennent’s Lager’. Here, in an early piece of his work, he explores experiences of masculinity.

I Love Hooligans Jan-Dirk Bouw, 2013, Netherlands, 13 minutes
In this animated short, a football hooligan feels unconditional love for his club. However, being gay, he has to hide his identity in order to survive in this world that is so precious to him.

Father and Son Mitchell Lazar, 2018, US, 7 minutes
An up and coming writer competes against his father for a prestigious book award. This portrait of male insecurity and psychological cruelty shows that violence doesn’t have to be physical to maim – but who will triumph?

Des!re Campbell X, 2017, UK, 9 minutes Trailer
DES!RE is an experimental film exploring desire for transmasc, transmen, butch, stud, aggressives, masculine of centre (MOC) people assigned female at birth. Stunning black and white images drift across the screen while transmen, femme women and butch and MOC people speak about the complexity of their desire.

Bruiser Miles Warren, 2022, USA, 10 minutes
After his father gets into a fight at a bowling alley, Darious begins to investigate the limitations of his own manhood. Inspired by Worldstar fight videos, this Sundance and SXSW selected short film interrogates the emotional fallout of macho violence, and inspired a later feature debut by the director.

Soft Bwoi Daniel Bailey, 2022, UK, 5 minutes
In yardie culture, “yuh too soft” can mark you from childhood, the equivocation of gentleness and sensitivity with weakness and irrelevance. This ensemble production refuses such sentiment and Babylon itself, using folklore and imagery from Caribbean carnival culture and queerness to redefine this misconception. The concealment of emotion, embracing norms, and the repression of femininity are no longer signs of power and strength. Instead, it is in seeking the divine feminine, deep connections with one another and the rejection of toxicity that will unite Black men to find better ways to survive in this harsh but limitless world. Yes lawd!

You Can’t Always Get What You Want But You Can Get Me Samira Elagoz/Z Walsh, 2023, Canada, 13 minutes
A unique slideshow documenting two longhaired trans men falling in love. Over the course of one year, the artist couple gathered photographs from real-life events such as their first kiss, meeting each other’s parents, long distance thirst traps, a beach wedding, and top surgery. A sweet and steamy celebration of T4T love with life and art all tangled up.

La Vita Semplice Lucas Tielke, 2022, Italy, 3 minutes
Pedro and Flavio live a simple and beautiful life together, filled to the brim with love, away from the distractions of the outside world. For the past 30 years, they have poured their heart and soul into their scenic property situated in the rolling hills of Bologna. The instant you meet them their commitment to “The Beautiful Life” becomes apparent.

BEYOND THE SCREEN: Following the films, a panel and interactive audience discussion will further explore the themes presented. The discussion will be hosted by Zeo Fawcett, and will feature actor, writer and storyteller Adam Kashmiry and Isaac Hoff from the University of Glasgow. We’ll also be asking the audience to share their experiences, good and bad, of masculinity and your ideas about what positive masculinity looks like.
Adam Kashmiry is a neurodivergent Egyptian-born and Glasgow-raised performer, storyteller, experimental mover and writer, and queer activist. Some of the projects Adam has worked on include autobiographical BAFTA-winning film Adam; As You Like It with Northern Broadsides; Tako Taal’s After Kinte; Where Are You From? at the Children’s Festival; Everyman and Who I am now? from Bombito Productions; Walter Sholto Douglas; and the exhibition The Untold Stories of People Who Shaped Scotland.
Isaac Hoff is a lecturer in media and sociology at the University of Glasgow with interests in masculinities, youth, culture and class. He has written about masculinities, transitions to adulthood and leisure. He completed his PhD at the University of Leicester’s research institute for cultural and media economies in 2021 and has been at Glasgow since September 2022.

Accessibility:

BSL-English interpretation for introduction and discussions.
English Descriptive Subtitles.
Wheelchair Access.
Content Notes:

I Love Hooligans: Depictions of physical violence, homophobia, strobing lights.
Bruiser: Depictions of physical violence
You Can’t Always Get What You Want But You Can Get Me: Discussion of surgery, sex, genitalia. Depiction of nudity, sex, bodily fluids, hospitalisation, surgical drains, needles, blood, stitches, fresh top surgery scars, pain medication, scabbing wounds.

If you have any other access needs you would like to discuss with us, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: La Vita Semplice (2022, Dir Lukas Tielke)

SQIFF Queer Screening: Edinburgh Takeover with Edinburgh Arts Festival & Rhubaba - SOLD OUT
2025-03-18 19:00 - 21:00 | French Institute, West Parliament Sq, Edinburgh, EH1 1RF, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening. Edinburgh Arts Festival are operating a waiting list for sold out events – please contact elle@edinburghartfestival.com to be added to this!**

SQIFF are very excited to announce our collaboration with Rhubaba for the Edinburgh Art Festival. The evening will consist of a screening of short films, a panel discussion with Scottish QTIPOC filmmakers and food. The event will take place on the 18th March 2025 in the French Institute, Edinburgh.
All of the short films in the screening are taken from the SQIFF 2024 programme and with this we aim to bring a bit of the queer magic we experienced in Glasgow to Edinburgh. The selected films include works from our Scottish Shorts, Sci-Fi Meets Reality, Queer Asia, ★,。·::·ﾟ☆ “The Real Internet Is Inside You” ·ﾟ✧*:·ﾟ✧ and Drag & Performance Through Censorship events. The selection highlights a range of techniques and genres in queer filmmaking including digital animation, text-based film, collage and live-action. It also explores a diverse range of topics such as young trans girlhood, intimate friendships between men of colour, medical drag-satire and more.
All of the selected films are either directed by and/or have a central focus on QTIPOC. This event aims to spotlight and celebrate queer people of colour in film. We will explore filmmaking techniques, community initiatives and future hopes for people of colour in queer film with a panel discussion after the screenings. And after that, we will end by chatting over food and drink provided by the festival.
Curated by Nat Lall.
Tickets are FREE. To book, click here and you’ll be redirected to the Edinburgh Arts Festival website.

Films in this programme include:
A Float, Dir. Isabel Barfod, 2023, United Kingdom, 3 min

A Float explores subtle modes of refusal through the lens of a Black Queer swimmer in a hostile environment. Set in a Victorian era public swimming pool, A Float follows our protagonist as they access alternate realities, speculated futures and enact small acts of revenge.

Content Notes: Depiction of racism.

Access Notes: Contains flashing imagery.

Dr. XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology, Dir. El Jones, 2023, United Kingdom, 14 min

Dr. XYZ is a community-made trans+ healthcare training film and ethnofiction. It is an exercise in queering the public information film genre, shot in 16mm. The film weaves ethnographic healthcare accounts from Birmingham’s trans+ community with moments of drag-satire re-enactment to depict a collective vision of the UK’s healthcare system.

Content notes: Discussion of suicidal ideation, suicide attempt, mental health issues, medical neglect within NHS, transphobia, ableism, racism, passing culture, self-medicating, gender dysphoria, medical waiting lists, explicit language. Depiction of animated genitalia.

Scrapped Fabric, Dir. Jake Muñoz Consing, 2024, Philippines, 11 min

Fearing her mother’s disapproval, a teenage trans girl secretly sews a prom dress from her mother’s scrap fabric (“retaso”).

Content notes: Discussion of transphobia.

Farewell, Dir. Soham Kundu, 2024, United Kingdom, 15 min

Two friends: one with a broken heart, the other on the brink of marriage. Together they set out on a day’s journey that leads them to confront their past amidst shared grief and hopes for a brighter future. Centred around intimate friendships between men of colour, Farewell presents evolving expressions of modern masculinity.

Content notes: Depiction of cigarette use.

Diffused in Marginalised Orders, Dir. Florence To, 2024, United Kingdom, 3 min

Words have a powerful role in shaping identity and transforming our lived experiences. The Scottish-born Hong Kong artist uses texts that ignite deep connections and solidarity. Their work confronts the dispossessions wrought by imperialism and challenges complicity in public amnesia about ongoing injustices, redefining our relationship within social barriers and power struggles in public spaces.

Access notes: Flashing light and rapid visual effects.

Bellydance Vogue, Dir. Hadi Moussally, 2020, Lebanon, 5 min

“My birthday was on the 3rd of April 2020 during lockdown, and for the first time, I celebrated it all by myself. But even if I was alone, I decided to celebrate it as if it’s the last one”

The film was made during quarantine.

Accessibility:

BSL-English interpretation for introduction and discussions.
English Descriptive Subtitles.
This event is located upstairs in the Salle Emilienne Moreau-Evrard space at the French Institute of Scotland, accessible via stairs or lift.
You will enter the building at street level via the entrance on George IV Bridge, where a reception desk is available for directions to the space or the lift.
Accessing this venue is an uphill walk from Waverley Station. For a step-free journey, travel along Market Street, left along North Bank Street towards the Bank of Scotland, and find the French Institute across the road.
If travel costs would be a barrier to attending this workshop, please contact Rhubaba (admin@rhubaba.org) or EAF (info@edinburghartfestival.com) to arrange travel reimbursement.

If you have any other access needs you would like to discuss with us, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org.

This event is part of Refractions: New Conceptions of Film + Photography (15 Jan—18 Mar). Co-created by the EAF Civic Programme and Rhubaba, this free event series aims to connect marginalised people with creativity through film, ceramics, writing, and more. Find out more here.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: Tiu Makkonen

Floating in Ecosystems
2025-05-03 13:00 - 15:00 | Rio Cinema, 107 Kingsland High Street, London, E8 2PB, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page

This screening brings together the work of queer East and Southeast Asian artists based in Scotland, showcasing bold explorations of identity, transformation, and community. The films in this programme experiment with dynamic visual narratives that challenge cultural and bodily boundaries, blurring the lines between reality and fiction, self and other. From fictional work to artist moving image work, these films offer a range of experiences where body and identity intersect with culture and memory.
Florence To will introduce this event by presenting an expansive overview of queer East and Southeast Asian filmmaking in Scotland today.
Curated by Indigo Korres.

Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of £3, £6, £9, £12, £15. To book, click here or call the Rio Cinema Box Office on 020 7241 9410.

Accessibility
This programme has:

British Sign Language, Chinese, and English audio with English language descriptive subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for the introduction.
Rio Cinema is a wheelchair accessible venue.

This screening is 90 minutes long.

Films in this programme include:

Strangers, Dir. Klarissa Webster, 2023, United Kingdom, 4 min
2 peoples worlds collide in a graveyard. One dealing with a near loss, another still harbouring the pain after many years.

In the penumbra, the strange wave, Dir. Wei Zhang, 2022, United Kingdom, 11 min
This 11-minute collage film explores Zhang’s personal trauma through a blend of various media forms and techniques, creating an alternate reality with symbolic characters representing complex emotions.
Access notes: Distorted voice.

Fluid, Dir. Wei Zhou, 2016, United Kingdom, 13 min
An autobiographical story traces the filmmaker’s very own personal growing-up experiences of love and desire as a Chinese born and raised queer woman.
Access notes: Static imagery.
Content notes: Discussion of porn, self harm.

body is/as landscape, Dir. Joanne Lee, 2020, United Kingdom, 13 min
‘Body as/is Landscape’ shows the landscapes of St Andrews, Dunoon, a human body and the now demolished site of the Red Road flats in Glasgow. Lee asks what frames of references we are using to understand and relate to these landscapes? Attempting to situate the self among these places of privilege, absence, ruin and industry by observing in front and behind the camera. Questioning how we relate to and consume these landscapes – through the frame of the phone, the lens of the digital camera.

In Conversation with, Dir. Eye Suriyanon, 2024, United Kingdom, 11 min
‘In Conversation with ‘ (2024) is an animated film in collaboration with Members of the Children’s Parliament (MCP) from Stirling and Eye Suriyanon. As part of the ‘Fairness and Bias in AI’ workshop for the ‘Exploring Children’s Rights and AI’ project by Children’s Parliament Scotland. Featuring elements of graphic scores created by MCP and sound effects from DIY instruments, animated in Processing, additional music by Eye Suriyanon.
Access notes: Flashing imagery.

Narratives and Counternarratives, Dir. Chaoying Rao, 2022, United Kingdom, 9 min
This work examines representations of the self, dissecting the persistent fetishisation of Asian women through collaging and reviewing memorable moments in Western culture. Questioning the ideas of the ‘Asian mystique’ and how it manifests in popular culture, this film examines how the legacy of orientalism continues to manifest in spaces both physical and digital.
Content notes: Depiction of nudity, physical violence, body modification, fetishisation, racism, sex, sensual dancing, death, gun violence, knife violence, sword violence, decapitated head, blood. Discussion of harassment, violence.

Wah Yen, Dir. Wei Zhang, 2024, United Kingdom, 29 min
Set in 1970s Glasgow, the film explores the rich inner world of young, queer, and neurodivergent Chinese immigrant Chen through their emerging kinship with Scottish shipbuilder, James. Wah Yen employs a non-linear narrative, underpinned by Wei’s interweaving of 3D animation, archival footage, and drag performances, creating a dynamic and compelling visual language. The visually diverse film highlights the intimate relationships and struggles of marginalised identities, resonating particularly with Glasgow’s Chinese and queer residents.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: Wah Yen, Dir. Wei Zhang, 2024

Building Solidarity & Kinship: Short Film Screenings + Panel Discussion (Glasgow)
2025-06-22 13:00 - 15:00 | Kelvin Hall, 1445 Argyle Street, Glasgow, G3 8AW, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page

This event is part of the Building Solidarity & Kinship programme curated by Esraa Husain at the Refugee Festival Scotland 2025.
We are featuring a selection of short films followed by a panel discussion exploring the Festival’s theme Milestones and elements connected to finding refuge and belonging and the importance of community building.
After the screening we are joined by the directors Adéráyọ̀ Adenekan and Theo Panagopoulos, community organisers Mahasin from Exhale Group, Solidarity Screenings, and Xuanlin Tham the author of Revolutionary Desires: The Political Power of the Sex Scene to discuss the themes mentioned and share reflections.
Tickets are FREE. To book, click here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

English language descriptive subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for the introduction and panel discussion
Live Captioning for the introduction and panel discussion
Kelvin Hall is a wheelchair accessible venue

Films in this programme include:

Mark Thomas, Permissible Beauty (2023)
Baz Sells, Two Black Boys in Paradise (2025)
Theo Panagopoulos, The Flowers Stand Silently, Witnessing (2024)
Adéráyọ̀, DISSONANCE (2025)

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: Permissible Beauty, Dir. Mark Thomas, 2023

Pride Hub - SQIFF x Excuse My Beauty Movie Night
2025-07-15 06:00 - 21:30 | The Social Hub, The Social Hub, Candleriggs Square, Glasgow, G1 1TQ
Listen to this Event Page

Join us for a movie night curated by SQIFF and Excuse My Beauty, with a special screening of Hot Young Geek Seeks Blood Sucking Freak by Heath Virgoe and Tops by Ames Pennington and Jos Bitelli.
Following the film screenings there will be a panel with members of trans collectives Excuse My Beauty, Trans Healthcare Access Glasgow, and Glasgow Electrolysis Project. All money raised from this event will be split between the three collectives.
This event is open to all, and is run by and for trans people to celebrate our community’s creativity and resilience. If you are an ally planning to attend we ask that you come with respect and awareness of how your privileges might show up in the space, and encourage you to pay the maximum donation of £12.

Excuse My Beauty is a trans artist/activist collective that organises events to fundraise for their database of trans healthcare and survival GoFundMes. Follow us and support our work @excusemybeauty.gla
Trans Healthcare Access Glasgow are a group of trans people working to improve access to blood tests for HRT monitoring through community-led research and direct provision of services.
Glasgow Electrolysis Project are a group of trans women fundraising to equip and train a transfem electrolysis in Glasgow.

Tickets are free with a sliding scale donation of £2, £4, £6, £8, £10, or £12. To book, click here.

Accessibility:

An age recommendation of N/C 16+.
English language descriptive subtitles.
BSL-English interpretation provided for the introduction and panel discussion.
The Social Hub is wheelchair accessible, with gender neutral toilets.
Please let us know at check in if you don’t want to be in pictures or video.

This screening is 82 minutes long with an introduction and panel discussion.
If you have any other access needs you would like to discuss with us, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org.

Films in this programme include:
Hot Young Geek Seeks Bloodsucking Freak, Dir. Heath Virgoe, 2024, United Kingdom, 12 min
When best friends Max and Ricky find themselves the prey of an angry vampire, they must ditch their Halloween plans to hide out at home. But when a forgotten pizza delivery shows up, can they risk letting the driver in? Can they stop arguing with each other? And can Max find the courage to face the one thing worse than death – coming out?
Content Notes: Discussion of sex, role-play. Depiction of death.
Access Notes: Contains flashing imagery.

TOPS, Dir. Ames Pennington and Jos Bitelli, 2024, United Kingdom, 70 min
Fun, satirical and a pastiche of the chaotic, brash, self-deprecating and clueless 1990s/2000s British reality TV, TOPS sees self-proclaimed future award winning filmmaker Ames Pennington present their landmark faux-documentary. Casting themselves as an invasive TV presenter, Ames goes on a satirical odyssey through the lives and homes of four unique individuals, exploring the crucial question that defines trans masc experience, “What TOP did you wanna wear after TOP surgery?”.
Content notes: Discussions of gender dysphoria, sex toys, surgery.

How to get there:
Address: The Social Hub, Candleriggs Square, Glasgow, G1 1TQ
Train: the venue is only a 10 minute walk from Queen Street Station or Central station
Driving: parking is a 4 minute walk at NCP Glassford Street – The Glasshouse NCP Car Park
Subway: the nearest subway station is a 10 minute walk from St Enoch station
Bikes: bike racks are available just outside the venue

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: TOPS, Dir. Ames Pennington and Jos Bitelli, 2024, United Kingdom

SQIFF Filmmakers Group - SOLD OUT
2025-07-22 18:30 - 20:30 | GMAC Film, 103 Trongate, Glasgow, Scotland, G1 5HD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the event.**

We’re so back (for one session for now)! Our July 2025 session has been developed in partnership with the GMAC Film.
During this session, GMAC will showcase some of their Little Pictures short film projects: Caha; Shrapnel; and First Step Swim. Filmmakers behind these projects, Holly Barbour, Cailtin McMullan, and Chak Hin Leung will talk about their experiences in the Little Pictures programme and the making of their short films. You’ll get a chance to meet and ask the filmmakers as well as the Little Pictures team on how to get into the programme as well as get your short film ideas off the ground.
GMAC Film is a Glasgow-based charity and arts organisation, who are dedicated to opening access to filmmaking. Little Pictures is their short film commissioning scheme for first time or emerging filmmakers, offering them a budget and mentorship to make a film. With applications opening soon, Little Pictures is looking for or people aged 18 and over who are interested in writing, directing or producing films and are yet to receive their first short film commission.
This is a great opportunity to learn more about Little Pictures, the types of films they make and understanding what the process is like. You can also learn more about GMAC and the wider support they offer.

About the group
The SQIFF Queer Filmmakers Group is an initiative to bring local queer filmmakers together for two-hour group sessions to network and support each other in the development of film projects.
The group is open for any level of filmmaking or film supporting arts (acting, prop making, music and sound design…) and we really encourage people just starting out in these mediums to come along.
Join a very friendly and supportive cohort of queer artists in Scotland making films!
Tickets are free. To book, click here.

Films included in this event are:
Caha, Dir. Chak Hin Leung, 2025, 10 minutes
Synopsis: In a bustling London tea house, an Indian and Bruneian immigrants share their desires over a cup of chai.
Language: English
Content Notes: discussion of transphobia, homophobia, violence, death

Shrapnel, Dir. Holly Barbour, 2025, 15 minutes
Synopsis: Exes Layla and Jamie haven’t seen each other since their relationship catastrophically ended 5 years ago. Things were said, objects were thrown. When the two women find themselves trapped in a room at Layla’s dads funeral, they are forced to confront the ghosts of their pasts.
Language: English
Content Notes: discussion of parental death, terminal illness, grief, vaping, smoking mentions, anxiety attack

First Step Swim, Dir. Cailtin McMullan, 2021, 7 minutes
Synopsis: First Step Swim follows Caitlin on a journey of wild swimming as she navigates not only her relationship to her body, but also to the water and space in which she inhabits throughout the film.
Language: No dialogue

Accessibility:

BSL-English interpretation for the whole event.
English Descriptive Subtitles for all films.
Relaxed event.
Wheelchair Access.

Total runtime: 31 minutes

Venue access note:
The GMAC Film space has capacity for one wheelchair user at any given time. If this applies to you, please let us know when you plan on visiting so that we can ensure you are able to access the space comfortably and safely. Our email is hello@gmacfilm.com.
There are two lifts to gain access to GMAC on 5th floor.
In the unlikely event of a fire, both lifts will be out of use, and everyone will exit the building via five flights of stairs. If a disabled person is in the building and cannot evacuate using the stairs, the fire rescue team will be called immediately to recover them.
You can use our access form to let us know what adjustments or support we can provide to ensure you can take part. We recognise that our space is not as accessible as we would like it to be. With this in mind, please know that we are reviewing our next steps towards a more accessible experience for all.

FFP2 masks are available for this event. We ask that you wear a mask if possible and please don’t attend the event if you have any symptoms of Covid-19 or have been in recent contact with a confirmed case.
If you have any other access needs you would like to discuss with us, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org.

Credit: GMAC Film Little Pictures

Neirud (Edinburgh) - SOLD OUT
2025-09-13 18:15 - 20:15 | Edinburgh Filmhouse, 88 Lothian Road, Edinburgh, EH3 9BZ
Listen to this Event Page
Neirud died shrouded in mystery, leaving behind no trace of her past. Confronting family secrets, the filmmaker pieces together the mysterious life of her enigmatic “aunt”. In doing so, she discovers Neirud’s colourful life as a pioneering black lesbian wrestler in an all-female circus troupe through the 60s and 80s. As she investigates Neirud’s controversial ring persona, the filmmaker paints a fascinating story touching on race, identity and queer life through changing Brazilian society.

To book your ticket for this event, click here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

Portuguese audio with English language Descriptive Subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for introduction and panel discussion

This screening is 72 minutes long and has a BBFC U age rating.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: Neirud, Dir. Fernanda Faya, 2023

Neirud (Glasgow)
2025-09-19 18:00 - 20:00 | GMAC Film, 103 Trongate, Glasgow, Scotland, G1 5HD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
Neirud died shrouded in mystery, leaving behind no trace of her past. Confronting family secrets, the filmmaker pieces together the mysterious life of her enigmatic “aunt”. In doing so, she discovers Neirud’s colourful life as a pioneering black lesbian wrestler in an all-female circus troupe through the 60s and 80s. As she investigates Neirud’s controversial ring persona, the filmmaker paints a fascinating story touching on race, identity and queer life through changing Brazilian society.

To book your ticket for this event, click here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

Portuguese audio with English language Descriptive Subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for introduction

This screening is 72 minutes long and has a BBFC U age rating.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: Neirud, Dir. Fernanda Faya, 2023

NIÑXS (Edinburgh) - SOLD OUT
2025-09-21 17:45 - 20:15 | Edinburgh Filmhouse, 88 Lothian Road, Edinburgh, EH3 9BZ
Listen to this Event Page
In the rural small town of Tepoztlán, Mexico, fifteen-year-old Karla gets to tell her own coming-of-age story as she navigates the joys and complexities of trans adolescence. Irresistibly warm and funny, NIÑXS bursts the seams of documentary convention by dissolving the distance between filmmaker and subject. Director Kani Lapuerta and Karla reflect together on their transness as they watch eight years’ worth of footage documenting this formative period of Karla’s life: from trying out for the cheer team, playing with makeup, to being embarrassed by her loving and supportive parents. In an era where trans kids are spoken over and spoken for, NIÑXS sparkles with confidence, wit, and magic: a joyous demand that trans youth get to narrate their own stories. Presented as part of Take One Action Film Festivals 2025!
Join Listen Gallery’s Riah for a sounding workshop where we will collectively create sounds and explore sonic inspirations drawn from the film Niñxs. Together, we’ll move through vocal exercises designed to open a shared space for auditory imagination in response to the film. This workshop welcomes people of all backgrounds and mobilities. If there’s anything that would help make it easier for you to take part, just let Riah know — no musical experience needed.

Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £5, £10, £15, or £20. To book your ticket for this event, click here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

Content Notes: Discussions of transphobia, gender dysphoria, death and surgery. Contains two brief depictions of fake blood.
Access Notes: Mix of explanatory dialogue (in Spanish) and visual storytelling. Mainly bright images, with a short sequence of darker images towards the end of the film.
Spanish audio with English language Descriptive Subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for introduction and workshop
Live Captioning for introduction

This screening is 86 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 15+.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: NINXS, Dir. Kani Lapuerta, 2025

NIÑXS (Glasgow)
2025-09-27 20:00 - 22:30 | GMAC Film, 103 Trongate, Glasgow, Scotland, G1 5HD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
In the rural small town of Tepoztlán, Mexico, fifteen-year-old Karla gets to tell her own coming-of-age story as she navigates the joys and complexities of trans adolescence. Irresistibly warm and funny, NIÑXS bursts the seams of documentary convention by dissolving the distance between filmmaker and subject. Director Kani Lapuerta and Karla reflect together on their transness as they watch eight years’ worth of footage documenting this formative period of Karla’s life: from trying out for the cheer team, playing with makeup, to being embarrassed by her loving and supportive parents. In an era where trans kids are spoken over and spoken for, NIÑXS sparkles with confidence, wit, and magic: a joyous demand that trans youth get to narrate their own stories. Presented as part of Take One Action Film Festivals 2025!
Grasping with both hands the joy, tenderness and tenacity that jumps through the screen in NIÑXS, stay on after the screening to learn all about the amazing trans mutual aid initiatives flourishing in Glasgow, how you can access their resources, and how you can get involved.

Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £5, £10, £15, or £20. To book your ticket for this event, click here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

Content Notes: Discussions of transphobia, gender dysphoria, death and surgery. Contains two brief depictions of fake blood.
Access Notes: Mix of explanatory dialogue (in Spanish) and visual storytelling. Mainly bright images, with a short sequence of darker images towards the end of the film.
Spanish audio with English language Descriptive Subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for introduction and workshop
Live Captioning for introduction

This screening is 86 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 15+.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: NINXS, Dir. Kani Lapuerta, 2025

NIÑXS (Inverness)
2025-10-12 17:30 - 20:00 | Eden Court, Bishops Road, Inverness, IV3 5SA, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
In the rural small town of Tepoztlán, Mexico, fifteen-year-old Karla gets to tell her own coming-of-age story as she navigates the joys and complexities of trans adolescence. Irresistibly warm and funny, NIÑXS bursts the seams of documentary convention by dissolving the distance between filmmaker and subject. Director Kani Lapuerta and Karla reflect together on their transness as they watch eight years’ worth of footage documenting this formative period of Karla’s life: from trying out for the cheer team, playing with makeup, to being embarrassed by her loving and supportive parents. In an era where trans kids are spoken over and spoken for, NIÑXS sparkles with confidence, wit, and magic: a joyous demand that trans youth get to narrate their own stories. Presented as part of Take One Action Film Festivals 2025!
Grasping with both hands the joy, tenderness and tenacity that jumps through the screen in NIÑXS, stay on after the screening for a celebration of trans life lived to its fullest.

Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £5, £10, £15, or £20. To book your ticket for this event, click here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

Content Notes: Discussions of transphobia, gender dysphoria, death and surgery. Contains two brief depictions of fake blood.
Access Notes: Mix of explanatory dialogue (in Spanish) and visual storytelling. Mainly bright images, with a short sequence of darker images towards the end of the film.
Spanish audio with English language Descriptive Subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for introduction and workshop
Live Captioning for introduction

This screening is 86 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 15+.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Image Credit: NINXS, Dir. Kani Lapuerta, 2025

Swipe Right on Your Next Film Collab
2025-10-27 17:00 - 19:00 | The Social Hub, The Social Hub, Candleriggs Square, Glasgow, G1 1TQ
Listen to this Event Page

Join SQIFF and Trans on Screen for an exciting speed-filmmaking event exclusively for queer and trans filmmakers. Designed in a fast-paced “speed dating” format, this session connects queer and trans directors, producers and HODs looking to spark new collaborations and bring fresh stories to life. Whether you’re an emerging filmmaker or already working in the industry, this is a unique opportunity to meet potential creative partners, share ideas, and build community in a focused, time-efficient setting.
Each short round of conversation allows participants to introduce their work, explore shared interests, and discover new possibilities for partnership. Expect a warm, welcoming space centred on creative exchange and mutual support, where trans voices lead the conversation.
Bring your project ideas, passion, and curiosity! This is your chance to connect with the next wave of queer and trans filmmaking talent and maybe even meet your next collaborator.
Curated by Trans on Screen.

Click here to book your ticket for this event
Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £4, £8, £12, £16, or £20, in order to make SQIFF more accessible to those on a low income. You can choose what you pay based on your circumstances – you won’t be asked for any proof/ID. We just ask that you are honest! Please find the ‘What Should I Pay?’ guidance here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

English-BSL interpretation throughout the event
Live Captioning throughout the event

If you require access seating please get in touch. Access seating includes: wheelchair spaces, bean bag seating, sitting in the front row / in the aisle / at the back. If you need any other provisions, please let us know by emailing info@sqiff.org with your name, ticket information and access request. If you are attending with companions and they need seating with you please also let us know. We will provide one free PA ticket for people who require any type of assistance (all tickets are pay what you can). We will do our best to work with you whilst also managing the capacity of each venue. Thank you for working with us on this.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2025 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2025, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Supported by Screen Scotland, the BFI Audience Projects Fund and Film Hub Scotland (part of the BFI Film Audience Network), all awarding National Lottery funding.

Image Credit: Tiu Makkonen

SQIFF 2025 Opening Night Scottish Shorts - SOLD OUT
2025-10-27 20:00 - 22:00 | The Social Hub, The Social Hub, Candleriggs Square, Glasgow, G1 1TQ
Listen to this Event Page

**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening. We are operating a waiting list for sold out events on the platform Ticket Tailor, where we sell our tickets for SQIFF 2025 – please add your name to the waitlist and you’ll be notified by Ticket Tailor if any tickets become available!**
We are once again back with an opening event celebrating Scottish queer cinema! This screening exclusively contains short films by artists based in Scotland. The selected short films highlight the diversity of LGBTQIA+ films being made right here in Scotland. Before we spend the week enjoying cinematic treats from across the globe, let’s take a moment to appreciate the talented and close-knit queer community we are so grateful to have right here. Expect bright colours, lovely creatures, big laughs and plenty of fun informal chat in our post-screening Q&A with the filmmakers.
All filmmakers in this screening and ‘Scottish Shorts 2’ are automatically entered into a competition to win the title of Best Scottish Short. The winner will be announced at the closing screening of SQIFF 2025.
Curated by Nat Lall and Huss.

Click here to book your ticket for this event
Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £4, £8, £12, £16, or £20, in order to make SQIFF more accessible to those on a low income. You can choose what you pay based on your circumstances – you won’t be asked for any proof/ID. We just ask that you are honest! Please find the ‘What Should I Pay?’ guidance here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

Audio Description
English audio with English language Descriptive Subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for introduction and panel discussion
Live Captioning for introduction and panel discussion

This screening is 75 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 15+.
If you require access seating please get in touch. Access seating includes: wheelchair spaces, bean bag seating, sitting in the front row / in the aisle / at the back. If you need any other provisions, please let us know by emailing info@sqiff.org with your name, ticket information and access request. If you are attending with companions and they need seating with you please also let us know. We will provide one free PA ticket for people who require any type of assistance (all tickets are pay what you can). We will do our best to work with you whilst also managing the capacity of each venue. Thank you for working with us on this.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2025 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2025, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Films in this programme include:
This Werewolf Complex, Dir. Heather E Andrews, 2024, United Kingdom, 15 min
Moving portrait explores brain auras through personal voices, examining seizure warnings, social stigma, and their positive impact on artistic expression.

TWISTED PAIR, Dir. Edward Gwyn Jones, 2023, United Kingdom, 13 min
Two characters engage in erotic, absurdist phone calls that invert power dynamics, sampling 1975-1985 queer cinema and pop culture.

Late Bloomers, Dir. Axel Gutapfel, 2024, United Kingdom, 6 min
Late Bloomers depicts a post-nature world where Glasgow’s queer community creates reality through mimicking wilderness they’ve never known.

Three Act Structure, Dir. Iona Rose Wheeler, 2025, United Kingdom, 3 min
Iona recounts and imagines experiences discussing gender with doctors.
Content notes: Discussion of difficulties in accessing trans healthcare, medical conversations, transphobia.

TAPS, Dir. Louis O. Utieyin, 2025, United Kingdom, 7 min
When Max unknowingly summons a demon on Grindr, he must do whatever it takes to survive.
Content notes: Discussion of drug use, sex.
Access notes: Flashing imagery.

Taxonomy, Dir. Ren Leverentz, 2025, United Kingdom, 11 min
Using a combination of movement art and conversation, Taxonomy is a short documentary that explores the relationship between language and gender for trans and non-binary people.
Content notes: Discussion of dysphoria, misgendering.

The Figure in the Carpet, Dir. Fibi Cowley, 2024, United Kingdom, 7 min
Personal reflection on living with hallucinations, told through experimental puppetry and informed by the director’s lived sensory experiences.

Well … Actually, Dir. Zyra Evangelista, 2025, United Kingdom, 13 min
When xeir best friend pulls a prank that goes terribly wrong, an agoraphobic doomsday pepper becomes the world’s last hope for survival… or so they think.
Content notes: Depiction of misgendering, strong language use. Discussion of climate change, genocide, homelessness, intense fears and phobias.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Supported by Screen Scotland, the BFI Audience Projects Fund and Film Hub Scotland (part of the BFI Film Audience Network), all awarding National Lottery funding.

Image Credit: TAPS, Dir. Louis O. Utieyin, 2025

Scottish Shorts 1 - SOLD OUT
2025-10-28 15:30 - 17:30 | The Boardwalk, The Boardwalk, 105 Brunswick St, Glasgow, G1 1TF
Listen to this Event Page

**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening. We are operating a waiting list for sold out events on the platform Ticket Tailor, where we sell our tickets for SQIFF 2025 – please add your name to the waitlist and you’ll be notified by Ticket Tailor if any tickets become available!**

We are once again back with an opening event celebrating Scottish queer cinema! This screening exclusively contains short films by artists based in Scotland. The selected short films highlight the diversity of LGBTQIA+ films being made right here in Scotland. Before we spend the week enjoying cinematic treats from across the globe, let’s take a moment to appreciate the talented and close-knit queer community we are so grateful to have right here. Expect bright colours, lovely creatures, big laughs and plenty of fun informal chat in our post-screening Q&A with the filmmakers.
All filmmakers in this screening and ‘Scottish Shorts 2’ are automatically entered into a competition to win the title of Best Scottish Short. The winner will be announced at the closing screening of SQIFF 2025.
Curated by Nat Lall and Huss.

Click here to book your ticket for this event
Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £4, £8, £12, £16, or £20, in order to make SQIFF more accessible to those on a low income. You can choose what you pay based on your circumstances – you won’t be asked for any proof/ID. We just ask that you are honest! Please find the ‘What Should I Pay?’ guidance here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

Audio Description
English audio with English language Descriptive Subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for introduction and panel discussion. The interpreter for this event is Lou Hanson.
Live Captioning for introduction and panel discussion

This screening is 75 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 15+.
If you require access seating please get in touch. Access seating includes: wheelchair spaces, bean bag seating, sitting in the front row / in the aisle / at the back. If you need any other provisions, please let us know by emailing info@sqiff.org with your name, ticket information and access request. If you are attending with companions and they need seating with you please also let us know. We will provide one free PA ticket for people who require any type of assistance (all tickets are pay what you can). We will do our best to work with you whilst also managing the capacity of each venue. Thank you for working with us on this.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2025 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2025, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Films in this programme include:
This Werewolf Complex, Dir. Heather E Andrews, 2024, United Kingdom, 15 min
Moving portrait explores brain auras through personal voices, examining seizure warnings, social stigma, and their positive impact on artistic expression.

TWISTED PAIR, Dir. Edward Gwyn Jones, 2023, United Kingdom, 13 min
Two characters engage in erotic, absurdist phone calls that invert power dynamics, sampling 1975-1985 queer cinema and pop culture.

Late Bloomers, Dir. Axel Gutapfel, 2024, United Kingdom, 6 min
Late Bloomers depicts a post-nature world where Glasgow’s queer community creates reality through mimicking wilderness they’ve never known.

Three Act Structure, Dir. Iona Rose Wheeler, 2025, United Kingdom, 3 min
Iona recounts and imagines experiences discussing gender with doctors.
Content notes: Discussion of difficulties in accessing trans healthcare, medical conversations, transphobia.

TAPS, Dir. Louis O. Utieyin, 2025, United Kingdom, 7 min
When Max unknowingly summons a demon on Grindr, he must do whatever it takes to survive.
Content notes: Discussion of drug use, sex.
Access notes: Flashing imagery.

Taxonomy, Dir. Ren Leverentz, 2025, United Kingdom, 11 min
Using a combination of movement art and conversation, Taxonomy is a short documentary that explores the relationship between language and gender for trans and non-binary people.
Content notes: Discussion of dysphoria, misgendering.

The Figure in the Carpet, Dir. Fibi Cowley, 2024, United Kingdom, 7 min
Personal reflection on living with hallucinations, told through experimental puppetry and informed by the director’s lived sensory experiences.

Well … Actually, Dir. Zyra Evangelista, 2025, United Kingdom, 13 min
When xeir best friend pulls a prank that goes terribly wrong, an agoraphobic doomsday pepper becomes the world’s last hope for survival… or so they think.
Content notes: Depiction of misgendering, strong language use. Discussion of climate change, genocide, homelessness, intense fears and phobias.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Supported by Screen Scotland, the BFI Audience Projects Fund and Film Hub Scotland (part of the BFI Film Audience Network), all awarding National Lottery funding.

Image Credit: TAPS, Dir. Louis O. Utieyin, 2025

How We Loved, How We Broke - SOLD OUT
2025-10-28 18:00 - 20:00 | The Boardwalk, The Boardwalk, 105 Brunswick St, Glasgow, G1 1TF
Listen to this Event Page

**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening. We are operating a waiting list for sold out events on the platform Ticket Tailor, where we sell our tickets for SQIFF 2025 – please add your name to the waitlist and you’ll be notified by Ticket Tailor if any tickets become available!**
Love arrives in many forms, and heartbreak rarely leaves without a trace. How We Loved, How We Broke brings together six short films that explore intimacy, longing, separation, and survival. Each story reveals a different facet of queer connection, from fleeting encounters and deep ruptures to surreal escapes and quiet acts of care.
Spanning cities, languages, and emotional landscapes, this programme offers a tender and vivid reflection on the ways queer people love, lose, remember, and move forward. Whether anchored in reality or slipping into fantasy, these films speak to the complexity of queer relationships and the echoes they leave behind.
Following the screening, join us for a live performance by Glasgow-based artists Simone Seales and Mele Broomes, sharing new music from their upcoming album inspired by experiences of first love.
Curated by Huss.

Click here to book your ticket for this event
Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £4, £8, £12, £16, or £20, in order to make SQIFF more accessible to those on a low income. You can choose what you pay based on your circumstances – you won’t be asked for any proof/ID. We just ask that you are honest! Please find the ‘What Should I Pay?’ guidance here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

Arabic, English, French, Mandarin Chinese, Persian, Tagalog, Yue Chinese (Cantonese) audio with English language Descriptive Subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for introduction and performance. The interpreter for this event is Lisa Li.
Live Captioning for introduction and performance

This screening is 98 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 18+.
If you require access seating please get in touch. Access seating includes: wheelchair spaces, bean bag seating, sitting in the front row / in the aisle / at the back. If you need any other provisions, please let us know by emailing info@sqiff.org with your name, ticket information and access request. If you are attending with companions and they need seating with you please also let us know. We will provide one free PA ticket for people who require any type of assistance (all tickets are pay what you can). We will do our best to work with you whilst also managing the capacity of each venue. Thank you for working with us on this.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2025 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2025, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Films in this programme include:
Aliens In Beirut, Dir. Raghed Charabaty, 2025, Lebanon, 17 min
A Lebanese immigrant returns to Beirut for the first time in a decade, only to find love and horror by the sea, in the alleyways, and on the elusive rooftops of the city – right before the 2020 Beirut Port Explosion.
Content notes: Depiction of cigarette use, destruction, explosion. Discussion of homophobia, war.

At Least We Had This Moment, Dir. Joshua de Vera, 2025, Philippines, 20 min
In his quest to capture the aged architecture of Manila, film photographer Dino seeks the company of a local stranger, Vince. But as the city noises grew, their stories stood out.
Content notes: Depiction of cigarette use.

Earworm, Dir. Ilias Merabiha, 2025, France, Germany, 11 min
Tormented Gaspard battles a parasitic worm feeding on his grief after romance ends, undergoing cathartic metamorphosis through healing rituals.

EDEN (باغ عدن), Dir. Rustin Zam-Zam Madadi, 2024, United States of America, 10 min
In the sun-soaked suburbs of Orange County, CA, Roya returns home seeking a fresh start, only to become entangled in a web of desire at an all-women’s yoga studio with their trans masculine counterpart. As loyalties shift and old wounds resurface, the studio transforms into a battleground where love and hate collide.

Fortune Favours the Fantabulous, Dir. Em Li, 2023, United Kingdom, 25 min
Non-binary fortune teller Fei Liu’s marsh tent becomes invaded by phantoms over three days, threatening their reality and future.

Purebred, Dir. Caleb J. Roberts, 2025, Ireland, United Kingdom, 15 min
During a heatwave in Belfast, transgender man Owen returns to the flat of his on-off-again lover Seán after taking a pregnancy test.
Content notes: Depiction of non-explicit nudity, sex scenes, strong language use. Discussion of pregnancy.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Supported by Screen Scotland, the BFI Audience Projects Fund and Film Hub Scotland (part of the BFI Film Audience Network), all awarding National Lottery funding.

Image Credit: Aliens In Beirut, Dir. Raghed Charabaty, 2025

Rookie - SOLD OUT
2025-10-28 18:30 - 20:30 | The Boardwalk, The Boardwalk, 105 Brunswick St, Glasgow, G1 1TF
Listen to this Event Page

**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening. We are operating a waiting list for sold out events on the platform Ticket Tailor, where we sell our tickets for SQIFF 2025 – please add your name to the waitlist and you’ll be notified by Ticket Tailor if any tickets become available!**

Ace is a tall, awkward teenager who moves to an all-girls Catholic high school in the Philippines. The volleyball coach spots Ace on her first day, and invites her to try out for the team. She is initially no good at the sport and socially ostracised, but things begin to change when she falls for the highly motivated team captain, Jana, who dislikes her because she sees her as a threat. But the girls and their teammates must nonetheless join forces: not only to successfully compete in competitions, but also to face up against a more disturbing, insidious threat. Powered by authentic performances, Samantha Lee’s heartfelt film captures the resilience of the young athlete as she struggles for acceptance, and the strength of female solidarity in a society rigged against women.
Curated by Queer East.

Click here to book your ticket for this event
Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £4, £8, £12, £16, or £20, in order to make SQIFF more accessible to those on a low income. You can choose what you pay based on your circumstances – you won’t be asked for any proof/ID. We just ask that you are honest! Please find the ‘What Should I Pay?’ guidance here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

Philippines, English and Tagalog audio with English language Descriptive Subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for introduction. The interpreter for this event is Lou Hanson.
Live Captioning for introduction
Content notes: Depiction of sexual assault. Discussion of distressing themes.

This screening is 94 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 15+.
If you require access seating please get in touch. Access seating includes: wheelchair spaces, bean bag seating, sitting in the front row / in the aisle / at the back. If you need any other provisions, please let us know by emailing info@sqiff.org with your name, ticket information and access request. If you are attending with companions and they need seating with you please also let us know. We will provide one free PA ticket for people who require any type of assistance (all tickets are pay what you can). We will do our best to work with you whilst also managing the capacity of each venue. Thank you for working with us on this.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2025 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2025, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Supported by Screen Scotland, the BFI Audience Projects Fund and Film Hub Scotland (part of the BFI Film Audience Network), all awarding National Lottery funding.

Image Credit: Rookie, Dir. Samantha Lee, 2023

Scottish Shorts 2 - SOLD OUT
2025-10-28 21:00 - 23:00 | The Boardwalk, The Boardwalk, 105 Brunswick St, Glasgow, G1 1TF
Listen to this Event Page

**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening. We are operating a waiting list for sold out events on the platform Ticket Tailor, where we sell our tickets for SQIFF 2025 – please add your name to the waitlist and you’ll be notified by Ticket Tailor if any tickets become available!**

Returning for another year at the festival, Scottish Shorts 2 is a bold and intimate programme of short films by queer filmmakers working across Scotland. This selection continues to explore the queer Scottish experience through stories shaped by displacement, desire, care, survival, and play.
These films move between personal documentary, narrative storytelling, and experimental textures. Some reflect on home and migration, others explore relationships, identity, and transformation. These films reveal queer lives in all their depth and nuance, telling stories with humour and heart.
At its core, this programme brings forward voices and perspectives too often absent from Scottish screens. It celebrates a growing queer cinema that is rooted, restless, and unapologetically present.
All filmmakers in this screening and in ‘Scottish Shorts 1’ are automatically entered into a competition to win the title of Best Scottish Short. The winner will be announced at the closing screening of SQIFF 2025.
Following the screening, we’ll be joined by the filmmakers for a Q&A to reflect on their work, share insights, and open up space for conversation.
Curated by Nat Lall and Huss.

Click here to book your ticket for this event
Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £4, £8, £12, £16, or £20, in order to make SQIFF more accessible to those on a low income. You can choose what you pay based on your circumstances – you won’t be asked for any proof/ID. We just ask that you are honest! Please find the ‘What Should I Pay?’ guidance here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

Chinese, English, Mandarin audio with English language Descriptive Subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for introduction and panel discussion. The interpreter for this event is Louise Rodgers.
Live Captioning for introduction and panel discussion

This screening is 76 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 18+.
If you require access seating please get in touch. Access seating includes: wheelchair spaces, bean bag seating, sitting in the front row / in the aisle / at the back. If you need any other provisions, please let us know by emailing info@sqiff.org with your name, ticket information and access request. If you are attending with companions and they need seating with you please also let us know. We will provide one free PA ticket for people who require any type of assistance (all tickets are pay what you can). We will do our best to work with you whilst also managing the capacity of each venue. Thank you for working with us on this.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2025 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2025, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Films in this programme include:
A Journey Of The Leaves, Dir. Yash Zhang, 2024, United Kingdom, 11 min
When memories of his father’s violence chase him from China, a queer filmmaker drifts into an autumn-touched Estonian town. There, a wandering traveler, a bookstore owner, a poet’s living statue, and another queer Chinese soul carrying similar wounds guide him through the scattered pieces of his past.
Content notes: Discussion of violence.

Be Honest!, Dir. Alice Harper, 2025, United Kingdom, 11 min
With a chance to win £100,000 for their ailing child, a couple enter a game show where they must face the most brutal challenge of all — being honest.

Before You Leave, Dir. Louise Thomas, 2024, United Kingdom, 12 min
On the day before her move to Australia, Innes, a veterinarian in her mid-twenties, grapples with mounting uncertainty as she and her sister, Saoirse, navigate the streets of Edinburgh. On this journey, they deliver the last of her belongings to a coworker, an ex-boyfriend, and a childhood friend. Each encounter becomes a poignant reminder of what she’s leaving behind.

Keith, Dir. Steven Fraser, 2024, United Kingdom, 8 min
A Glasgow filmmaker discovers a dead body behind bins and embarks on a phone-based investigation to identify the victim. Using animation techniques exploring social media, apps, and blogs, the film examines neurodiversity and autistic communication styles while building tension toward revealing the deceased person’s name.
Content notes: Depiction of animated nudity, drug use.

Bowl, Dir. John Kelbie, 2025, United Kingdom, 10 min
Arthur is an elderly, quick-witted, gay man who has recently been diagnosed with arthritis. Upon finding out that his old foe and competitor Norma is playing in the upcoming lawn bowls charity match, Arthur seeks the chance to prove himself. He faces many challenges along the way as he bickers with Norma and comes to terms with his illness and the losses he has faced, but with a little help from Norma’s granddaughter Jenn, he is able to confront his past and learn what is truly important to him.
Content notes: Discussion of death, grief, illness, loss.

Cahā, Dir. Chak Hin Leung, 2024, United Kingdom, 10 min
Intimate documentary capturing two immigrants—Indian and Bruneian—meeting in a London teahouse. Over tea (“cahā”), their casual conversation reveals profound stories of sacrifice, identity, and adaptation. The film explores immigrant experiences and colonial tea legacy, showing how this simple ritual creates unexpected connection and understanding across borders.
Content notes: Discussion of colonialism, transphobia.

Changing Homes, Dir. Mano Mandal, 2025, United Kingdom, 6 min
An Indian nonbinary transmasculine person goes to a European beach for the first time since their top surgery. As they sit and read about a historical trans person, they navigate the idea of being shirtless in public for the very first time. While doing so, they reflect on Eurocentric body standards and on their sense of home — in their own body and amidst bodies of water.

First Contact, Dir. James Crang, 2025, United Kingdom, 8 min
In isolation on the moon, a gardener tends to his small patch of life. When another person appears, he is forced to confront his fears of connection. Will he nurture a bond that could bring light to his lonely existence, or will his anxiety keep him in darkness?

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Supported by Screen Scotland, the BFI Audience Projects Fund and Film Hub Scotland (part of the BFI Film Audience Network), all awarding National Lottery funding.

Image Credit: Keith, Dir. Steven Fraser, 2024

NO PRIDE IN GENOCIDE - SOLD OUT
2025-10-29 15:30 - 17:30 | The Boardwalk, The Boardwalk, 105 Brunswick St, Glasgow, G1 1TF
Listen to this Event Page

**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening. We are operating a waiting list for sold out events on the platform Ticket Tailor, where we sell our tickets for SQIFF 2025 – please add your name to the waitlist and you’ll be notified by Ticket Tailor if any tickets become available!**

“I’ve always imagined you and me sitting out in the sun, hand in hand, free at last. We spoke of all the places we would go if we could. Yet you are gone now. If I had known the bombs falling around us would take you from me, I would have told the world how I adored you more than anything.  I’m sorry I was a coward.”  – Words of a queer Palestinian, submitted to Queering the Map
NO PRIDE IN GENOCIDE confronts a brutal truth. While queer lives are celebrated and marketed in some parts of the world, elsewhere they are being bombed, silenced, and erased.
As Palestine is reduced to rubble and its people fight for survival, this programme stands in unwavering solidarity. It amplifies queer voices that refuse to be erased by genocide, pinkwashing, or complicity.
Featuring urgent works from Palestine, the diaspora, and Lebanon, this programme gathers stories of queer love, loss, resistance, and survival. Each film defies erasure, insisting on presence over silence. These works reject the idea that queerness can be separated from the violence, displacement, and repression that shapes the lives of those it affects. Some of these stories emerge from exile, tracing the long shadows of conflict and the quiet resilience of those still carrying memory across oceans.
Rooted in the Palestinian struggle, NO PRIDE IN GENOCIDE also reflects broader realities of queer Arab life under occupation, exile, and authoritarian rule. Across borders and identities, these films speak to the endurance of those living under systems of state violence and to the radical imagination it takes to survive them.
In a time when visibility is weaponised, we refuse silence.  There is no queer liberation without the liberation of Palestine.  There is no pride in genocide.  Liberation for Palestine is liberation for us all.
Following the screening, there will be a discussion with No Pride in Genocide Glasgow and Solidarity Screenings Glasgow, inviting audiences to engage with these urgent issues and reflect on the power of solidarity.
Curated by Huss.

Click here to book your ticket for this event
Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £4, £8, £12, £16, or £20, in order to make SQIFF more accessible to those on a low income. You can choose what you pay based on your circumstances – you won’t be asked for any proof/ID. We just ask that you are honest! Please find the ‘What Should I Pay?’ guidance here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

Arabic and English audio with English language Descriptive Subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for introduction and panel discussion. The interpreter for this event is Lucy Niven.
Live Captioning for introduction and panel discussion

This screening is 74 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 18+.
If you require access seating please get in touch. Access seating includes: wheelchair spaces, bean bag seating, sitting in the front row / in the aisle / at the back. If you need any other provisions, please let us know by emailing info@sqiff.org with your name, ticket information and access request. If you are attending with companions and they need seating with you please also let us know. We will provide one free PA ticket for people who require any type of assistance (all tickets are pay what you can). We will do our best to work with you whilst also managing the capacity of each venue. Thank you for working with us on this.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2025 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2025, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Films in this programme include:
Blood Like Water, Dir. Dima Hamdan, 2023, Palestine, 13 min
When a Palestinian man is blackmailed with footage of him having sex with another man, he and his family are forced to make a terrible decision: collaborate with the Israeli occupation or be publicly shamed. Based on true stories.
Content notes: Depiction of homophobia, physical assault, strong language. Discussion of harassment, illegal Israeli occupation, murder.

I Never Promised You a Jasmine Garden, Dir. Teyama Alkamli, 2023, Canada, 20 min
Tara, a queer Arab woman in her late 20s, attempts to suppress her internal emotional turbulence during a phone call with her best friend Sarab, with whom she is in love.
Content notes: Depiction of cigarette use.

Cinema Fouad, Dir. Mohamed Soueid, 1993, Lebanon, 41 min
Documentary portrait of Oscar Al-Halabiye, a Syrian trans woman in Beirut working as domestic worker and belly dancer. Through intimate scenes of daily life, she reflects on gender reassignment desires, mourning her Palestinian lover’s death, and facing societal aggressions that echo even in the filmmaker’s provocative interview style.
Content notes: Discussion of transphobia, violence.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Supported by Screen Scotland, the BFI Audience Projects Fund and Film Hub Scotland (part of the BFI Film Audience Network), all awarding National Lottery funding.

Image Credit: Cinema Fouad, Dir. Mohamed Soueid, 1993

A Nova Era
2025-10-29 18:00 - 20:00 | The Boardwalk, The Boardwalk, 105 Brunswick St, Glasgow, G1 1TF
Listen to this Event Page

Curated in collaboration with Mostra Queer Brasil, this vibrant programme of short films offers a window into queer life and imagination across Brazil. From poetic documentary to sci-fi, magical realism to tender coming-of-age, the selection celebrates how fluidity, resistance, and reinvention shape queer identities and experiences in Brazilian contexts.
These stories reflect a country where transformation is constant and identity is expansive. Whether through ancient landscapes, futuristic visions, or intimate connections, the films explore how queer Brazilians carve out space to live, feel, and dream on their own terms.
The screening includes a surprise short, winner of Best Brazilian Short Film from Mostra Luminosa in Bahia, and will be followed by a conversation on Brazilian queer cinema between filmmaker and Mostra Queer Brasil founder Ricky Mastro and Amazônia EcoQueer curator Danilo Baraúna.
Curated by Indigo Korres and Ricky Mastro.

Click here to book your ticket for this event
Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £4, £8, £12, £16, or £20, in order to make SQIFF more accessible to those on a low income. You can choose what you pay based on your circumstances – you won’t be asked for any proof/ID. We just ask that you are honest! Please find the ‘What Should I Pay?’ guidance here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

Portuguese audio with English language Descriptive Subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for introduction and panel discussion. The interpreter for this event is Lou Hanson.
Live Captioning for introduction and panel discussion

This screening is 72 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 18+.
If you require access seating please get in touch. Access seating includes: wheelchair spaces, bean bag seating, sitting in the front row / in the aisle / at the back. If you need any other provisions, please let us know by emailing info@sqiff.org with your name, ticket information and access request. If you are attending with companions and they need seating with you please also let us know. We will provide one free PA ticket for people who require any type of assistance (all tickets are pay what you can). We will do our best to work with you whilst also managing the capacity of each venue. Thank you for working with us on this.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2025 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2025, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Films in this programme include:
How a river is born, Dir. Luma Flôres, 2025, Brazil, 9 min
Ayla wakes up in a mountainous landscape, surrounded only by vegetation and a river. Driven by curiosity and a desire to get to know the place, she goes on a journey of discovery and diving. As she discovers where she is, she also discovers herself.
Content notes: Depiction of animated nudity.

Telepathic Encounters, Dir. Henfil, 2025, Brazil, 5 min,
A love at first sight between two young girls unveils an unexpected telepathic community amid a silent library.

If I’m Here It Is By Mystery, Dir. Clari Ribeiro, 2024, Brazil, 22 min
New Rio, 2054. Renowned witch Dahlia arrives at the port with a mission: to found the most powerful Clan that has ever existed and thus defeat the Order of Truth. In the future, many people are trans — but only a few are witches.
Content notes: Depiction of blood, death, knife.

Vollúpya, Dirs. Éri Sarmet, Jocimar Dias Jr., 2024, Brazil, 21 min
In a post-apocalyptic future, an intergalactic explorer lands at an abandoned museum on a quest to find traces of his long-lost ancestors, and ends up being teleported to the dance floor of a Brazilian queer nightclub in the 1990s.
Content notes: Depiction of alcohol use, cigarette use, sensual dancing, sexual language use.
Access notes: Flashing imagery, flashing lights.

Kings, Dir. Juliana Pamplona, 2024, Brazil, 15 min
A poetic documentary on a diverse group, identified with the dyke-queer culture, that spends a day experimenting as drag kings at a bar in the borough of Santa Teresa, Rio de Janeiro.
Content notes: Depiction of alcohol use.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Supported by Screen Scotland, the BFI Audience Projects Fund and Film Hub Scotland (part of the BFI Film Audience Network), all awarding National Lottery funding. Also supported by Instituto Guimarães Rosa, via the Consulate General of Brazil in Edinburgh.

Image Credit: Kings, Dir. Juliana Pamplona, 2024

For Real? - SOLD OUT
2025-10-29 18:30 - 20:30 | The Boardwalk, The Boardwalk, 105 Brunswick St, Glasgow, G1 1TF
Listen to this Event Page

**Please note this event is now sold out – we may be able to release more tickets nearer the screening. We are operating a waiting list for sold out events on the platform Ticket Tailor, where we sell our tickets for SQIFF 2025 – please add your name to the waitlist and you’ll be notified by Ticket Tailor if any tickets become available!**

Did that really happen? What kind of world are we living in? ‘For Real’ explores sci-fi worlds, dark fantasies, technological possibilities and shocking but real science and history. Expect alienesque costumes, body scanners, crocodile chromosomes and lesbian telepathy.
This screening will be followed by a performance from Carle Gent and Linda Stupart exploring the world of Ecco the Dolphin.
Curated by Nat Lall.

Click here to book your ticket for this event
Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £4, £8, £12, £16, or £20, in order to make SQIFF more accessible to those on a low income. You can choose what you pay based on your circumstances – you won’t be asked for any proof/ID. We just ask that you are honest! Please find the ‘What Should I Pay?’ guidance here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

English, Mandarin Chinese, Spanish, Yue Chinese (Cantonese), Japanese audio with English language Descriptive Subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for introduction and performance. The interpreter for this event is Lisa Li.
Live Captioning for introduction and performance

This screening is 81 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 18+.
If you require access seating please get in touch. Access seating includes: wheelchair spaces, bean bag seating, sitting in the front row / in the aisle / at the back. If you need any other provisions, please let us know by emailing info@sqiff.org with your name, ticket information and access request. If you are attending with companions and they need seating with you please also let us know. We will provide one free PA ticket for people who require any type of assistance (all tickets are pay what you can). We will do our best to work with you whilst also managing the capacity of each venue. Thank you for working with us on this.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2025 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2025, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Films in this programme include:
Skinless, Dirs. Estibaliz Villa, Erik Campos, 2024, Spain, 11 min
After an environmental catastrophe, the only survivors left live sheltered wearing the biodermis, a suit they can survive with but doesn’t allow them to feel touch. After years of lockdown, Nora and Dani go outside.
Content notes: Depiction of nudity. Discussion of loss.

Just above the tear duct on each side, Dirs. Cáit McClay, Éiméar McClay, 2024, United Kingdom, Ireland, 20 min
Using St. Conal’s Hospital archives, this film examines Ireland’s 1950s psychiatric institutions and their carceral, therapeutic, and socioeconomic influences.
Content notes: Discussion of death, hospitalisation, mental health.
Access notes: Flashing imagery.

The Xenogender, Dir. Masataka Ishizaki, 2025, United Kingdom, United States of America, 15 min
Japanese immigrant Kenzo in New York confesses his crocodile identity to date Jack, but becomes more absorbed in videos afterward.
Content notes: Depiction of racism.

The Martial Forest, Dir. J Triangular, 2025, Colombia, Taiwan, 9 min
Exiled Kung Fu master Big Sister 13 leads trans fighters in creating the Martial Forest, where care equals combat power.
Content notes: Discussion of death.

The Generators, Dir. Georgie Cowan-Turner, 2024, Ireland, 14 min
In a future drained of colour, Oscar and his ailing husband struggle with a medical system where energy credits are the new currency. When a hospital visit reveals a zero credit balance, Oscar must join the human generators and physically power Alex’s treatment himself. But as his energy fades, so does the possibility of a future together.
Content notes: Depiction of hospitalisation.
Access notes: Flashing lights.

Hide and Seek, Dir. Junjie Xu, 2024, United Kingdom, 6 min
Hide and Seek is a 3D animated short film that takes viewers on a bittersweet journey. It presents a story of a person hiding their queer identity from their parents at different stages of life. The film highlights the struggles faced by the queer community as they grow up and explores the fantasy of queer spaces with queer phenomenology.
Access notes: Flashing lights.

Clear, Dir. Hogan Seidel, 2024, United States of America, 6 min
Clear is a visceral confrontation with the illusion of “safety,” where altered 16mm footage and layered audio reveal the quiet violence surveillance imposes on trans and gender-nonconforming bodies.
Content notes: Discussion of bodily surveillance.
Access notes: Light strobing images.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Supported by Screen Scotland, the BFI Audience Projects Fund and Film Hub Scotland (part of the BFI Film Audience Network), all awarding National Lottery funding.

Image Credit: Hide and Seek, Dir. Junjie Xu, 2024

Squad Goals
2025-10-29 21:00 - 23:00 | The Boardwalk, The Boardwalk, 105 Brunswick St, Glasgow, G1 1TF
Listen to this Event Page

There’s strength in numbers, packs, families, squads or whatever you call them. Squad Goals celebrates chosen families with a vibrant sense of identity and culture. The screening consists of three films documenting some very different squads. These are trans footballers, Brazilian beach vendors and leather gays.
The screening will be followed by an informal Q&A with local trans football team Gender Goals and Glasgow Leather Dykes.
Curated by Nat Lall.

Click here to book your ticket for this event
Tickets are on a pay what you can sliding scale of FREE, £4, £8, £12, £16, or £20, in order to make SQIFF more accessible to those on a low income. You can choose what you pay based on your circumstances – you won’t be asked for any proof/ID. We just ask that you are honest! Please find the ‘What Should I Pay?’ guidance here.

Accessibility
This programme has:

English and Portuguese audio with English language Descriptive Subtitles
English-BSL interpretation for introduction and panel discussion. The interpreter for this event is Louise Rodgers.
Live Captioning for introduction and panel discussion

This screening is 79 minutes long and has an age recommendation of N/C 18+.
If you require access seating please get in touch. Access seating includes: wheelchair spaces, bean bag seating, sitting in the front row / in the aisle / at the back. If you need any other provisions, please let us know by emailing info@sqiff.org with your name, ticket information and access request. If you are attending with companions and they need seating with you please also let us know. We will provide one free PA ticket for people who require any type of assistance (all tickets are pay what you can). We will do our best to work with you whilst also managing the capacity of each venue. Thank you for working with us on this.
You can find out more information about accessibility at SQIFF 2025 here. If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2025, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org or by phone on 07873 331 036.

Films in this programme include:
We’ll Go Down In History, Dirs. Cameron Richards, Charlie Tidmas, 2025, United Kingdom, 25 min
We’ll Go Down In History tells the story of TRUK United, a grassroots, proudly trans football club. Filmed over two years, it captures the team’s highs and lows on and off the pitch as they create a safe haven for their community in the face of rising transphobia.
Content notes: Discussion of death, transphobia, violence.

Three Vendors of Ipanema, Dir. Jonathan S. Lee, 2024, United States of America, 25 min
Three street vendors from Rio’s favelas sell homemade food on Ipanema Beach, embodying dignity and beloved by LGBTQ+ community.
Content notes: Depiction of alcohol use.

The Backstreet, Dir. Romain Beck, 2024, United Kingdom, 29 min
London’s legendary leather club The Backstreet faces closure after 37 years. Regulars share intimate memories while curators preserve relics of this secret haven’s legacy.
Content notes: Depiction of sex. Discussion of death, HIV stigma, homophobia, sex, sexual fantasy.

Donate:
Donate to SQIFF via PayPal or sign up to one of our four Patreon tiers to support our work and show us you’re a big SQIFF fan 🌈✨

Supported by Screen Scotland, the BFI Audience Projects Fund and Film Hub Scotland (part of the BFI Film Audience Network), all awarding National Lottery funding.

Image Credit: We’ll Go Down In History, Dirs. Cameron Richards, Charlie Tidmas, 2025
