VR & Interactive Exhibition
2019-10-03 17:30 - 19:30 UTC | Glasgow Women’s Library, 23 Landressy Street, Glasgow, G40 1BP, United Kingdom
Our VR & Interactive Exhibition showcases stories from around the world told using the latest technology and innovative techniques. Experience the lives of trans people in Japan through the nostalgic style of early gaming, share eight LGBTQI+ individuals in Australia’s intimate memories of their mother’s kitchens via an interactive documentary, observe a mother and son discuss homophobia in Russia in 360 degree video, and lots more. No prior knowledge required – the SQIFF team will be on hand to guide your experience!
The exhibition will launch with a special event on Thursday 3 October 5.30- 7.30pm and will be open Friday 4 October 12-5pm and Saturday 5 October 12-3pm.
Click here to sign up for the Exhibition Launch on Thursday 3 October. Free and unticketed for other Exhibition days. Please note you may need to join a waiting list to try out some projects when you come along.

ACCESS
The projects have different age recommendations but the exhibition will have experiences suitable for ages 12+.
We will have full details online soon of the accessibility of the different projects featured in the exhibition. A portable induction loop is available in the library – please let a member of staff know if you require this when you visit the Library or send us an email to info@womenslibrary.org.uk to arrange this in advance.
Large print versions of handouts available.
Glasgow Women’s Library has good access for wheelchair users, gender neutral toilets, and welcomes assistance animals. Click here for Glasgow Women’s Library’s Accessibility Guide.
Programme content notes will be available. Click here for a list of content notes for the 2019 Festival.
We have a limited travel fund to assist people to come to the Festival for those who could not otherwise afford to attend. If you would like to apply for this, please contact access@sqiff.org.

Black History Month: Fabulous + Father Figure
2019-10-03 18:30 - 20:15 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
In partnership with Coalition for Racial Equality and Rights (CRER) for Black History Month, we look at the thriving ballroom culture of contemporary Europe. In Fabulous (2019), international legend Lasseindra Ninja returns to her home of Guyana to introduce voguing to its LGBTQ community. Father Figure follows Guilliano, founding father of The Kiki House of Angels, and his friends as they share experiences of homophobia and racism in the Netherlands.
Curated and hosted by artist and researcher Claricia Parinussa, co-founder and organiser of Vogue Scotland. Followed by an introduction to the history of House Ball culture and discussion with guest from the London Ballroom scene, Elijah 007, including on the necessity of prioritising the QTIPOC community in these spaces.
Free. To book, please use the button below or call CCA box office on +44 (0)141 352 4900.

ACCESS
This screening has an age recommendation of N/C 15+.
Films have Dutch, English, and French audio with English language subtitles/captions. If you would like to attend this event and require BSL interpretation for the discussion, please email access@sqiff.org at least 2 weeks in advance. Hearing loop available.
Films are not very accessible to English-speaking blind and partially sighted audiences with a lot of visual storytelling and mostly non-English language. Large print versions of handouts available.
CCA has good access for wheelchair users, gender neutral toilets, and welcomes assistance animals. Click here for CCA’s Accessibility Guide.
A Quiet Space and programme content notes will be available. Click here for a list of content notes for the 2019 Festival.
Comfy seating (bean bags) are available. If you would like to reserve this, please contact access@sqiff.org.
We have a limited travel fund to assist people to come to the Festival for those who could not otherwise afford to attend. If you would like to apply for this, please contact access@sqiff.org.
Tickets
In order to make SQIFF more accessible to those on a low income, we use a sliding scale ticket price of £0-£8 for our events. 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! Our ticket sales go towards supporting the vital work of LGBTQ+ filmmakers, artists and organisers. If you have a free ticket and can no longer use it, please contact the relevant venue box office to let them know so it can be used by someone else. For more info on what you should pay, click here.

Filmmaker Social
2019-10-05 17:00 - 18:00 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Are you queer filmmaker working in Scotland or beyond? Come and join us for some networking, schmoozing, and boozing (non-alcoholic options also available).
A chance to meet others who are LGBTQIA+ and interested or already working in film and related media. Share ideas, discuss your projects, or just hang out and have a nice time.
In case anyone is anxious or nervous about coming along to this by themselves, please feel welcome to get in touch via info@sqiff.org and someone can meet you beforehand. A BSL interpreter will be available at the event.
Free. To book, please use the button below or call CCA box office on +44 (0)141 352 4900.

ACCESS
This event has an age recommendation of 18+.
BSL interpretation is available for socialising.
CCA has good access for wheelchair users, gender neutral toilets, and welcomes assistance animals. Click here for CCA’s Accessibility Guide.
A Quiet Space will be available.
Comfy seating (bean bags) are available. If you would like to reserve this, please contact access@sqiff.org.
We have a limited travel fund to assist people to come to the Festival for those who could not otherwise afford to attend. If you would like to apply for this, please contact access@sqiff.org.
Tickets
In order to make SQIFF more accessible to those on a low income, we use a sliding scale ticket price of £0-£8 for our events. 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! Our ticket sales go towards supporting the vital work of LGBTQ+ filmmakers, artists and organisers. If you have a free ticket and can no longer use it, please contact the relevant venue box office to let them know so it can be used by someone else. For more info on what you should pay, click here.

Black History Month: Portrait of Jason
2019-10-15 19:00 - 21:00 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Portrait of Jason shows sex worker and entertainer, Jason Holliday, recounting his life story for filmmaker Shirley Clarke.
Jason is the sole on-screen presence in the film. He narrates his life story to the camera, behind which Clarke and her partner at the time, actor Carl Lee, provoke and berate Jason with increasing hostility as the film progresses. The film alleges to employ avant-garde and cinéma vérité techniques to reach the tragedy underlying Jason’s performative persona. However, Portrait of Jason is one of if not the first documentation of black queer experiences and trauma exploited by white ‘gatekeepers’ for the sake of the artist’s cultural and financial capital gains.
Although Portrait of Jason is a landmark film, there is a need here to discuss the fuzzy problem of ‘visibility’ within the white/capitalist domination of visual culture. Are the lines between exposure and exploitation blurred in Portrait of Jason?
Curated and hosted by Sequoia Barnes, an art/design scholar and doctoral candidate at The School of Design with Edinburgh College of Art. Presented as part of Black History Month in partnership with Coalition for Racial Equality and Rights (CRER).
Free. To book, please use the button below or call CCA box office on +44 (0)141 352 4900.

ACCESS
This screening has an age recommendation of N/C 15+.
Film has English audio with English language subtitles/captions. If you would like to attend this event and require BSL interpretation for the introduction/discussion, please email access@sqiff.org at least 2 weeks in advance.
Film is moderately accessible to English-speaking blind and partially sighted audiences with a lot of visual storytelling but some explanatory dialogue and all English language. Large print versions of handouts available.
CCA has good access for wheelchair users, gender neutral toilets, and welcomes assistance animals. Click here for CCA’s Accessibility Guide.
Programme content notes will be available. Click here for a list of content notes for the 2019 Festival.
Comfy seating (bean bags) are available. If you would like to reserve this, please contact access@sqiff.org.

Black History Month: Calalai: In Betweenness + shorts
2019-10-22 19:00 - 20:30 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Calalai: In Betweenness by filmmaker Kiki Febriyanti depicts women in South Sulawesi Bugis culture, which for centuries has accepted gender diversity as implicit, believing humans consist of 5 genders, one of them being calalai. The film takes a closer look at the definition of femininity and masculinity in the Bugis culture. What or who is calalai? What are the dynamics of gender, spirituality, and performance? How do these dynamics define the everyday life of the Bugis people?
Screening with accompanying short films and discussion on queerness in Indonesian cultures outside of white, colonialist impositions.
Curated and hosted by artist and researcher Claricia Parinussa. Presented as part of Black History Month in partnership with Coalition for Racial Equality and Rights (CRER).
Free. To book, please use the button below or call CCA box office on +44 (0)141 352 4900.

ACCESS
This screening has an age recommendation of N/C 15+.
Film languages tbc with English language subtitles/captions. If you would like to attend this event and require BSL interpretation for the discussion, please email access@sqiff.org at least 2 weeks in advance.
Accessibility of films to English-speaking blind and partially sighted audiences tbc. Large print versions of handouts available.
CCA has good access for wheelchair users, gender neutral toilets, and welcomes assistance animals. Click here for CCA’s Accessibility Guide.
Programme content notes will be available. Click here for a list of content notes for the 2019 Festival.
Comfy seating (bean bags) are available. If you would like to reserve this, please contact access@sqiff.org.

Sqifflix: Fighting for Justice
2020-04-27 17:30 - 2020-05-27 17:30
Click here to access the full programme.
In our very first Sqifflix outing we showcase activist short films in which people fight for their right to exist and against oppressive forces. The movies cover identities including Deaf, Disabled, and Two Spirit, battle against patriarchy, white supremacy, and ableism, and feature hip-hop, a robot, and superhero finger puppets.
All films have English language subtitles or captions. See notes below for each film’s language/s, level of accessibility for blind and partially sighted people, age recommendation, content notes, and if the film contains flashing lights or sound levels that might be disturbing for some. These notes are also found on each film’s page on vimeo.
The films are all free to watch with thanks to the filmmakers. Click here to donate to LGBT Unity Scotland to support LGBTQIA+ refugees, asylum seekers, and other migrants.

Regalia: Pride in Two Spirits (5m) [click here to watch]
Dir: David Ng, Jen Sungshine, Country: Canada, Year: 2016
The story of Duane and his journey as someone who identifies as Two Spirit – a queer Aboriginal person.
Language/s: English

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Lots of voiceover; mostly bright images.
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Discussion of homophobia.

Like a Riot (2m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Krissy Mahan, Country: USA, Year: 2016
“Like anyone who grew up with the Muppets and Fraggle Rock, I have always wanted to have a puppet self. And of course I want my puppet self to hang out with Campbell X’s puppet self. Krissy Mahan has made it happen!” So Mayer
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Only song lyrics with lots of onscreen text and visual storytelling; mostly bright images
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: None

Trans*march (2m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Simon Schultz von Dratzig, Country: Germany/Canada, Year: 2013, Language/s: English
As the most politicized of the three marches during Pride week in San Francisco, trans*march, which had been running for ten years at the time this film was made, has a tradition of raising visibility of a marginalised group within queer culture. This documentary records queer voices during the 2013 march and reflects political discussions concerning trans* and LGBT movements.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Lots of voiceover/dialogue; bright images.
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Discussion of transphobia and racism.

Amar: Deaf is an Identity (4m) [click here to watch]
Dir: David Ng, Jen Sungshine, Country: Canada, Year: 2016
Amar shares his journey as a queer South Asian activist, and explains how it intersects with his identity and culture as a Deaf person.
Language/s: ASL
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: No spoken sound, all in ASL with subtitles; mostly bright images.
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: None

Tax on Me (4m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Kiana Kalantar-Hormozi, Country: UK, Year: 2017
Local authorities in Scotland charge people for their care costs, obliging people with disabilities to pay more than others to achieve the same basic human rights. Tax on Me is a hip-hop music video by filmmaker Kiana Kalantar-Hormozi and media coop responding to the Care Tax and the effect it has on people who need support.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Quite a lot of voiceover and dialogue; mix of bright and dark images.
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Discussion of ableism.

Until Justice Rolls (4m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Krissy Mahan, Country: USA, Year: 2013
Faggotgirl, a butch dyke superhero action figure, and her friend Robot want to meet for a drink. But the New York City public transportation system is barely accessible for people with different kinds of bodies and their journey is thwarted by stairs, gaps, and poorly maintained curbs.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Only song lyrics with lots of onscreen text and visual storytelling; mix of bright and dark images
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Discussion of ableism.
Disability Justice for Palestine (1m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Sins Invalid and Micah Bazant, Country: USA, Year: 2014
Disability Justice for Palestine is a Public Service Announcement created by Sins Invalid during the extended attacks on Gaza in the Summer of 2014. “We add our words and faces to a movement for global solidarity with the people of Palestine, articulating the struggle for Palestinian liberation as a disability justice issue.”
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Lots of voiceover/dialogue; mix of bright and dark images.
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Discussion of violence.

Sqifflix: Funny Stuff
2020-04-28 17:30 - 2020-05-27 17:30
Click here to access the full programme.
Funny Stuff features comedy shorts with queer narratives and musings involving love potions, a mystery trail of takeaway food, Fisher Price characters brought to life, cyborgs, and zombies!
All films have English language subtitles or captions. See notes for below for each film’s language/s, level of accessibility for blind and partially sighted people, age recommendation, content notes, and if the film contains flashing lights or sound levels that might be disturbing for some. These notes are also found on each film’s page on vimeo.
The films are all free to watch with thanks to the filmmakers. Click here to donate to LGBT Unity Scotland to support LGBTQIA+ refugees, asylum seekers, and other migrants.

Floozy Suzy (25m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Otavio Chamorro, Country: Brazil, Year: 2015
A hilarious-love-potion-gone-wrong tale where the aim is to win the love of the hottest guy at school.
Language/s: Portuguese
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: All in Portuguese; bright images.
Sound design access notes: Loud music and sound effects.
Age recommendation: 18+
Content note: Depiction of misogyny, homophobia, ableism, and mild violence.

The Usual (5m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Ruth McNally, Country: Ireland, Year: 2014
In a small country pub, three Irish farmers are enjoying an afternoon’s drink when an unusual stranger walks in. His curious behaviour entertains them for a while but they won’t want someone like him hanging around their local for too long.
Language/s: English (Irish dialect)

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Limited dialogue with lots of visual storytelling; mostly bright images.
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Reference to homophobia.

Big Queer Failure (7m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Rebecca Tritschler and Ellie Fawcett, Country: UK, Year: 2017
A DIY film celebrating and asserting our right to fail at life as individuals and communities.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Lots of voiceover and bright images.
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: None
My Aunt Mame (9m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Krissy Mahan, Country: USA, Year: 2015
A funny/sad dramatization of a woman’s childhood visits to her working-class butch great aunt, and what happened when she came out to her mom, told through Fisher-Price people in homemade sets.
Language/s: English with one line in Irish Gaelic
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Lots of voiceover/dialogue and bright images.
Sound design access notes: Some loud music
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Discussion of sex, the AIDS crisis, and hospitalisation; depiction of hospitalisation.

Mymy (14m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Anna Helme, Country: Australia, Year: 2014
In a mythic cyberfeminist universe, a frustrated young man yearns for affinity and connection. In an age of digital avatars, he crafts a version of himself that is far more corporeal – by stitching together parts of himself to become his own cyborg twin. However, his new clone has been corrupted by a techno-magick virus…
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Little spoken dialogue, mostly image-based storytelling; mix of light and dark images.
Sound design access notes: Some loud and abrasive sound effects
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Depiction of sex and nudity.

The Deaf vs The Dead – Episode 1: “Outbreak” (7m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Dickie Hearts, Country: USA, Year: 2017
When the undead apocalypse breaks out in Los Angeles, an out Deaf man must find a way to survive and protect his loved ones, even if it means teaming up with some unlikely people.
Language/s: ASL and English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Limited spoken dialogue, lots of visual storytelling; quite bright images.
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Depiction of ableism and comedy violence.

Sqifflix: Gender Revealing
2020-05-07 17:00 - 2020-06-07 17:00
Click here to access the full programme.
In our programme Gender Revealing filmmakers and characters play with and question gender norms and expectations. A genderqueer AFAB person experiments with male-pattern baldness, Exa Zim narrates their life growing up trans, ‘faux’ drag queens Sergina and Venus Dimilo strut their stuff, and trans and genderless bodies float and move in unusual ways.
All films have English language subtitles or captions. See notes for below for each film’s language/s, level of accessibility for blind and partially sighted people, age recommendation, content notes, and if the film contains flashing lights or sound levels that might be disturbing for some. These notes are also found on each film’s page on vimeo.
The films are all free to watch with thanks to the filmmakers. Click here to donate to LGBT Unity Scotland to support LGBTQIA+ refugees, asylum seekers, and other migrants.

Jean (6m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Anna Stypko, Country: USA, Year: 2013
A delightful eccentric has a haircut that transcends age and gender expectations. Set in the run-down Kensington neighbourhood of Philadelphia, local artist Jean talks about her shoes, hairstyle choices, and why she changed her name.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Limited voiceover/dialogue and mixture of bright and dark images.
Sound design access notes: Some loud and abrasive music.

Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Depiction of misogyny, homophobia, ableism, and mild violence.

Phone Me Don’t Write (3m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Elly Clarke, Country: USA/Germany, Year: 2013-15
A short film (and song) about love, sex, loneliness, and relationships in the era of instant communications.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Only song lyrics, otherwise all visual, mix of bright and dark images.
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Discussion of sex

Alexa to Exa (17m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Exa Zim, Christian Marsh, Country: USA, Year: 2015
A very personal documentary film about about transcending assigned identity.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Lots of voiceover; mostly bright images.
Sound design access notes: Sudden loud music and abrasive sound effects.

Age recommendation: 15+
Content note: Discussion of homophobia, illness, mental health issues, and suicide.

I Want to See You from a Different Perspective (3m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Elly Clarke, Country: Canada/UK, Year: 2014
A song about trying and failing to change a person you are in a relationship with.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Only song lyrics, otherwise all visual, mix of bright and dark images.

Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: None
Venus (6m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Faye Carr-Wilson, Magenta Sharp, Country: UK, Year: 2016
Venus is a short documentary exploring gender roles within the drag community.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Some voiceover/dialogue and some visual ideas and storytelling; mixture of bright and dark images.
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Discussion of ableism

Instantaneous Culture (3m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Elly Clarke, Country: Germany, Year: 2013-14
A ballad about love in a time of mobile phones, about wanting, longing, desiring but not really getting. Talk versus action, song versus stillness, and some great lingerie to go with it.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Only song lyrics, otherwise all visual, mix of bright and dark images.

Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: None
Leg, Arm, Head (11m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Scout Stuart, Country: UK, Year: 2016
A highly controlled dancer moves away from the discipline and uniformity of ballet to explore her own identity.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: No dialogue – just sound effects and music; bright images.
Age recommendation: 15+
Content note: Depiction of sex.

Float (5m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Sam Berliner, Country: USA, Year: 2015
Float is a celebratory experiment shot completely underwater and depicting trans and genderqueer folk swimming naked set to music by musician Rae Spoon.
Language/s: No spoken language

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: No spoken language, only music and sound effects; quite bright images.
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Depiction of nudity

The Race (4m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Soyoon Kim, Country: South Korea, Year: 2015
Tiny, genderless figurines dance to J S Bach as their environment gives way and glitches out.
Language/s: No spoken language

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: No spoken language, only music and sound effects; bright images.
Sound design access notes: Some abrasive sound effects.

Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Depiction of homophobia, misogyny, biphobia, butchphobia, and classism.

Sqifflix: Queer Horror Stories
2020-05-15 17:00 - 2020-06-15 17:00
Click here to access the full programme.
In Queer Horror Stories we showcase provocative, bizarre, sometimes gory, sometimes scary films that delve into the terror of queerness and oppression. In a dystopian 2064, a federation of African States initiate an annual cull of men; a young gay man in Russia has a surprise in store for the ultranationalists who attack him; the unbearable weight of family expectations and difficulty of being stuck in unhealthy relationships are explored through formal film experiments; the movies of horror director Kang-Chien Chui are given a queer reading; and two queer feminist crews tackle violent forces in a surreal present.
All films have English language subtitles or captions. See notes for below for each film’s language/s, level of accessibility for blind and partially sighted people, age recommendation, content notes, and if the film contains flashing lights or sound levels that might be disturbing for some. These notes are also found on each film’s page on vimeo.
The films are all free to watch with thanks to the filmmakers. Click here to donate to LGBT Unity Scotland to support LGBTQIA+ refugees, asylum seekers, and other migrants.

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

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

Sound design access notes: Some abrasive sound effects.

Age recommendation: 15+
Content note: Discussion and depiction of death and suicide.

Cheat (2m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Ania Urbanowska, Country: UK, Year: 2015
At what cost to ourselves are we complicit in our families’ expectations for us? This is a film about breaking that unspoken contract; about the moment when cheating them of the person they want us to be stops feeling like a choice.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Small amount of surreal and poetic voiceover; dark images.
Sound design access notes: Loud and abrasive sound effects.
Age recommendation: 15+
Content note: Discussion of suicide.

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

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: All Russian language with some dialogue and some image-based filmmaking; quite dark images.
Sound design access notes: Abrasive horror sound effects.

Age recommendation: 18+
Content note: Discussion of sex including BDSM; depiction of homophobia, xenophobia, and graphic, degrading, and gory violence.

Stuck (11m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Ania Urbanowska, Country: UK, Year: 2013
Have you ever been in relationship where you can’t see its problems…?
Language/s: No spoken language

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

Age recommendation: 15+
Content note: Depiction of drug-taking.

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

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: All in Mandarin, poetic voiceover; dark images.
Sound design access notes: Abrasive sound effects.
Age recommendation: 15+
Content note: Suggestion of distress and violence.

Swarm of Selenium (23m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Maude Matton & SJ Rahatoka, Country: Germany, Year: 2015
In the surreal dystopian present, two queer feminist crews cohabit the shells of an abandoned malt factory. As a troubling pattern begins to emerge from their mouths in the form of shattered glass, all are shaken, but some are hit harder than others. Through dance, visual work, and anti-work, they merge forces to try to care for one another and combat the insidious violent process which seems to increasingly come from within.
Swarm of Selenium is a queer sci fi short film about collective healing, trauma, and other world-making. It was shot in Berlin in spring 2016 by a crew of more than 40 women, nonbinary, and trans artists.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Sparse and surreal dialogue; relatively dark images.

Sound design access notes: Lots of loud and abrasive sound effects and music.
Age recommendation: 15+
Content note: Depiction of violence.

Sqifflix: Sexual Content Warning
2020-05-26 17:00 - 2020-06-26 17:00
Click here to access the full programme.
For anyone after some slightly xxx-y content to make lockdown more pleasureable, we bring you Sexual Content Warning. A sweet night cleaner has his work cut out in Canada’s busiest gay bathhouse. Disability activist Andrew Gurza reflects on his first sexual encounter and how the event shaped his identity. Scottish filmmaker John Walter addresses cruising and sexual risk, in particular around the ‘cottage,’ a public toilet that is repurposed as a space of sex. Gustavo is a photographer who captures the bodies of naked men in public spaces in Sao Paulo. And writer and poet Aurora Levins Morales, a.k.a. The Gimp Gourmet, prepares a very special recipe!
All films have English language subtitles or captions. See notes for below for each film’s language/s, level of accessibility for blind and partially sighted people, age recommendation, content notes, and if the film contains flashing lights or sound levels that might be disturbing for some. These notes are also found on each film’s page on vimeo.
The films are all free to watch with thanks to the filmmakers. Click here to donate to LGBT Unity Scotland to support LGBTQIA+ refugees, asylum seekers, and other migrants.

The Night Cleaner (5m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Blair Fukumura, Country: Canada, Year: 2016
As the night cleaner in Canada’s busiest gay bathhouse, Travis has his work cut out for him. With good humour he shyly takes us on an amusing and sometimes harrowing tour through his nightly duties.
Language/s: English

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Lots of voiceover/dialogue and bright images.

Sound design access notes: Some abrasive sound effects.

Age recommendation: 18+
Content note: Discussion of sex, bodily fluids, and brief reference to sexual harrassment; depiction of sex and bodily fluids.

Bedding Andrew (5m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Blair Fukumura, Country: USA, Year: 2014
On the eve of his 30th birthday, Andrew, a man with Cerebral Palsy, reflects on his first sexual encounter and how the event shaped his identity as a gay man.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Lots of voiceover/dialogue and bright images.
Sound design access notes: Loud and abrasive sound effects.
Age recommendation: 15+
Content note: Discussion of sex and ableism.

Courtship Disorder (5m) [click here to watch]
Dir: John Walter, Country: UK, Year: 2015
Courtship Disorder addresses cruising and sexual risk, in particular around the ‘cottage,’ a public toilet that is repurposed as a space of sex. Cruising for sex in real space has not disappeared despite the development of online cruising apps. ‘Courtship Disorder’ refers to a controversial term used by sexologists such as John Money to describe a spectrum of human behaviours, especially in men, including exhibitionism, voyeurism, toucherism, rubbing, and sexual assault.
Language/s: English

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Film is mostly visual with surreal monologues; bright images.
Sound design access notes: Some abrasive sound effects.

Age recommendation: 18+
Content note: Discussion of sex; depiction of sex and nudity.

Lightrapping (22m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Marcio Miranda Perez, Country: Brazil, Year: 2016
Gustavo is a photographer who captures the bodies of naked men in public spaces in Sao Paulo. One night, young Pedro follows him, curious and undecided about participating in the project.
Language/s: Portuguese

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: All in Portuguese with sparse dialogue; very dark images.

Age recommendation: 18+
Content note: Discussion of sex; depiction of possible sexual violation.

Pussy Vinaigrette (3m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Patty Berne, Country: USA, Year: 2011
The Gimp Gourmet prepares a very special recipe! Starring, written by and with fruit carving by Puerto Rican Jewish writer and poet Aurora Levins Morales. Does activist filmmaking have room for this much sexiness…?
Language/s: English

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Poetic monologue with some visual ideas. Not very bright images.
Age recommendation: 15+
Content note: Depiction of sexual imagery and suggestiveness.

Sqifflix & Chill
2020-06-12 17:00 - 2020-07-12 17:00
Click here to access the full programme.
Our shorts programme Sqifflix & Chill, as the title suggests, includes a varied bunch of films about romantic love, its joys, pain, and complexities. Sweet stories of intense connection are found in Selina Robertson’s Couple Time and Dickie Heart’s Passengers. Some of the painful and problematic aspects of love and dating are considered in Sam Berliner’s Dating Sucks about seeking love whilst trans, and Rob Eagle’s Harding & his camera, which investigates traces of illicit love in archives and the white gaze. Violent and oppressive structures that try to curtail who gets to be with who are the core of Adrian Garcia Gomez’s Mikveh about governments refusing to recognise certain relationships, and Kiana Kalantar-Hormozi’s Poly Amour, which decontructs conventional romantic structures. For a dark comedy approach to the madness that sometimes interferes with people’s love life, Netflix & Chips is about a woman with a hot date who can’t get her chip shop job off her mind.
All films have English language subtitles or captions. See notes for below for each film’s language/s, level of accessibility for blind and partially sighted people, age recommendation, content notes, and if the film contains flashing lights or sound levels that might be disturbing for some. These notes are also found on each film’s page on vimeo.
The films are all free to watch with thanks to the filmmakers. Click here to donate to LGBT Unity Scotland to support LGBTQIA+ refugees, asylum seekers, and other migrants.

Couple Time (6m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Selina Robertson, Country: UK, Year: 2015
A suitcase full of Super 8 memories from Berlin.
Language/s: English (not spoken) and German

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: No spoken English; mostly visual ideas and onscreen text; mix of bright and dark images.

Sound design access notes: None

Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: None

Dating Sucks: A Genderqueer Misadventure (13m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Sam Berliner, Country: USA, Year: 2013
Dating Sucks: A Genderqueer Misadventure is Episode 1 of an animated documentary webseries about the successes, failures, and incredible confusion of trying to date as a genderqueer/trans person.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Lots of voiceover; bright images.
Sound design access notes: None
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Discussion of sex and queerphobia.

Mikveh (6m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Adrian Garcia Gomez, Country: USA, Year: 2016
In this reinterpretation of the mikveh – a purifying ritual bath performed by Jewish brides about to marry – the filmmaker and his husband’s immersions are disrupted by a government which refuses to recognise their marriage.
Language/s: No spoken language

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: No dialogue – just sound effects; quite bright images.
Sound design access notes: Some abrasive and repetitive sound effects.

Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: None

Harding & his camera (12m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Rob Eagle, Country: Palestine, Israel, Year: 2017
An ambiguous ‘love story’ documentary told through the 1930s archive of a British archaeologist who took a camera on his digs in the British Mandate for Palestine and fell in love with his Bedouin assistant.
Language/s: English

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Lots of voiceover/dialogue and bright images.

Sound design access notes: None
Age recommendation: 18+
Content note: Discussion of racism.

Poly Amour (7m) (version with audio description integrated) [click here to watch]
Dir: Kiana Kalantar-Hormozi, Country: UK, Year: 2016
How capable are we to love boundlessly? This film explores polyamory, deconstructing conventional stereotypes of the romantic relationship structure.
Language/s: English

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Lots of voiceover/dialogue and quite bright images. Version with integrated audio description.

Sound design access notes: Loud, abrasive sound effects at start of film.
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Depiction of anti-polyamory sentiments.
Passengers (5m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Dickie Hearts, Country: UK, Year: 2015
A cab driver puts up with a series of irksome hearing passengers before picking up a cute guy more on his wavelength.
Language/s: American Sign Language and English

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Limited dialogue, mostly in ASL with subtitles; mostly bright images.

Sound design access notes: None
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Depiction of ableism.
Netflix & Chips (6m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Lock Up Your Daughters, Country: UK, Year: 2015
A woman who works in a chip shop has a hot date but can’t get her job off her mind.
Language/s: English

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Limited dialogue with lots of visual storytelling; mostly bright images.

Sound design access notes: None
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: Depiction of mental health issues.

Sqifflix: More Love from Neelu
2020-06-22 17:00 - 2020-07-22 17:00
Click here to access the full programme.
Our special shorts programme More Love from Neelu showcases films by award-winning artist and filmmaker Neelu Bhuman, whose feature film TRANSFINITE we are screening online 25 – 28 June. Neelu’s work explores social and political themes as they play out in close relations. Playfully evoking insights into the workings of difference in intimacy, their films blend viewpoints ranging from race, gender, sexuality, culture, class, and romance.
In FU377, the dignity of queer people in India is under attack through Section 377, which the Supreme Court had recently re-introduced, re-criminalising ‘gay sex,’ when the film was made in 2014. Meanwhile, an adorable Indian mother is totally down with gay sex and wheels out some choice lines for her heartbroken queer daughter in an effort to cheer her up.
More Love. Less Prepackaged Bullshit. (2017) is set to the soul beat of Assata Shakur, and features a trio resisting dystopia with a bowl of joy, intimacy, and love.
Neelu’s 2016 short ṣadāqa is a kaleidoscopic view of friendship transcending borders.
All films have English language subtitles or captions. See notes for below for each film’s language/s, level of accessibility for blind and partially sighted people, age recommendation, content notes, and if the film contains flashing lights or sound levels that might be disturbing for some. These notes are also found on each film’s page on vimeo.
The films are all free to watch with thanks to Neelu Bhuman. Click here to donate to LGBT Unity Scotland to support LGBTQIA+ refugees, asylum seekers, and other migrants. Click here to donate to the Wahala Film Fund, a film completion fund for Queer, Transgender and Intersex People of Colour filmmakers based in UK, Europe and the Global South co-founded by Neelu Bhuman.

FU377 (5m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Neelu Bhuman, Country: UK, Year: 2014
Basic dignity of queer people in India is under attack, yet again. The scorching IPC Section 377 is re-unleashed to police to criminalise “gay sex” in India. While the law and the Supreme Court dated themselves back a few hundred years, an adorable Indian mother has her knowledge of “gay sex” in mint condition, wheeling out a tidbit or two for her heartbroken queer daughter in an effort to cheer her up. The pair are shocked into action by the Supreme Court’s latest rejection.
Language/s: English

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Quite a lot of dialogue with some visual ideas; bright images.

Sound design access notes: None

Age recommendation: 15+
Content note: Reference to sex.

More Love. Less Prepackaged Bullshit. (1m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Neelu Bhuman, Country: USA, Year: 2017
Set to the soul beat of Assata Shakur, a trio resists dystopia with a bowl of joy, intimacy and love.
Language/s: English
Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: No dialogue – only music lyrics and sound effects; quite bright images.
Sound design access notes: None
Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: None

ṣadāqa (5m) [click here to watch]
Dir: Neelu Bhuman, Country: UK, Year: 2016
A kaleidoscopic view of friendship transcending borders.
Language/s: English and Arabic

Accessibility for blind and partially sighted people: Small amount of English dialogue and some Arabic but mostly visual ideas; quite bright images.
Sound design access notes: None

Age recommendation: 12+
Content note: None

SQIFF Shorts: A is for Asexual
2020-07-15 10:00 - 2020-07-17 10:00
We are taking part in DIVE IN Cinema, a two-week online screening series in collaboration with other film festivals and exhibitors in Scotland.
DIVE IN Cinema will offer a mixture of features and short films across fiction, documentary and experimental work, as well as a few filmmaker conversations. Each screening will be programmed by one of the contributing exhibitors and will be available on demand for 48 hours from its start time, with a new programme released at 10am every day.
SQIFF’s programme is called A is for Asexual and will be available to view online for 48 hours from 10am on Wednesday 15 July.
Highlighting new work around perhaps the most under-represented identity in queer cinema, this programme celebrates films by and about asexual people of colour. Garima Kaul’s documentary Desire? explores the wide range of experiences of asexual individuals and communities in India, whilst multi-award-winning Brazilian film Infinite While It Lasts follows the budding relationship between asexual Danny and allosexual Seiji.
Click here to register to access all the films in DIVE IN Cinema for free. All screenings are FREE to view, however DIVE IN are collecting donations for Scottish charities The Unity Centre and Ubuntu Women Shelter. The Unity Centre provides advice and support to asylum seekers and migrants in Scotland. Ubuntu Women Shelter is a Glasgow-based charity that provides emergency accommodation needs for women with no recourse to public funds. There is a payment link to donate when you enter the hub.
Screenings are captioned for d/Deaf and Hard of Hearing audiences. Content notes per film will be listed on the online platform as appropriate.
Desire? (30m)
Dir: Garima Kaul, Country: India, Year: 2019
The everyday realities of some people who identify as asexual, creating small ruptures in the homogenising culture of hyper and heteronormative sexuality.
Language/s: English, Hindi

Content note: Depiction of asexual denial and acephobia; discussion of asexual denial, acephobia, homophobia, sexual/emotional abuse, masturbation, and caste discrimination.

Fixers – Asexuality (3m)
Dir: Fixers, Country: UK, Year: 2013
Fixers are young people using their past to fix the future.
Language/s: English
Content note: Depiction of asexual denial; discussion of asexual denial and suicide.

Infinite While It Lasts (17m)
Dir: Akira Kamiki, Country: Brazil, Year: 2019
After falling in love at a party, Danny and Seiji just want to be together, but their differences might prove stronger than their feelings.
Language/s: Portuguese

Content note: None

All The Feels!: Ultimate Queer Fanvid Playlist
2020-10-05 00:00 - 2020-10-18 23:30
Fanvids are short films using music, edited by fans in an expression of all the feels around their favourite fandoms. Even with today’s films and television bursting with more queer characters than ever, we still fight for true recognition, representation, and stories that go beyond the sometimes disappointing and limiting storylines we are given. Every fanvid is a DIY work of art, combining music and clever edits to celebrate favourite shows, rework plots, commiserate in collective sadness, and whatever feels there are to be had!
Curated by Tara Brown, queer crip Black fat femme and Fringe! Queer film & arts fest and freelance film curator.
Click here for Tara’s YouTube playlist.
ACCESS
This playlist has an age recommendation of N/C 12+.
The fanvids have English audio. Some have English language captions or a transcript. Transcript of the other vids coming soon. With apologies for the lack of captions on all videos thanks to YouTube removing the option for community captions. Click here to sign a petition for YouTube to reverse this decision.
The playlist is 34 minutes long.
Content notes: Discussion of homophobia, biphobia, and racism; depiction of brief nudity, sex, violence, and blood.

The videos in All the Feels!: Ultimate Queer Fanvid Playlist include some loud music and fast editing.

We have a limited access fund to assist people with no or limited internet access to attend the Festival. If you would like to take this up, please contact info@sqiff.org.
If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2020, please contact info@sqiff.org.

Many Black Moons Ago, To Go...
2020-10-05 00:00 - 2020-10-18 23:59
Time as it is Queer.
Blackness as it is Queer.
What comes next after the end of the world?
A digital exhibition programme of Afrofuturist films and writings in response to the re/imagining of Black alternative future(s). Curated by Scottish-Zimbabwean artist, researcher, and curator Natasha Thembiso Ruwona. Sign up to receive a link to access the exhibition website during the festival dates, 5th to 18th October.
Short films available as part of the exhibition across the 2 weeks include NEGRUM3 (2018) by Diego Paulino, Reifying Desire 5 (2012) by Jacolby Satterwhite, and Time Travel Experiments Pt. 2 (2017) by Black Quantum Futurism. Born in Flames (1983), depicting a future where a socialist government gains power and a group of women decides to organize and rebel, will be available to view as part of the exhibition on our Vimeo on Demand channel 12th to 13th October. Please note all films will screen with English language captions. Further access information will be available on the film’s Vimeo on Demand pages.

There will be artists’ responses to the programme by Sequoia Barnes and Naomi Gessesse.
Sequoia Barnes’ work is predominately centered around making processes, rituals, and modes of fashioning. Trained in semiotics, she deploys research through praxis often in her artistic explorations of black diasporic symbolisms, storytelling as performance, and positioning the creative process as a performance/ritual. Her scholarly work currently explores the design techniques and aesthetic semiotics of late fashion designer, Patrick Kelly. Her most recent artistic works include her artist responses to Senga Nengudi (Fruitmarket Gallery) and Nick Cave (Tramway) with performative works entitled Sew Me A Quilt. Tell You A Story. (2019) and The Burden I Bear Is Heavy (2019), respectively.
Naomi Gessesse is a movie watcher and Aries sun from Glasgow. They have written for several publications and wrote an undergraduate thesis on the politics of space at the lgbtqia+ film festival. Naomi now works for Berwick Film And Media Arts Festival while continuing to write.
A reading group led by Martha Williams on Sunday 18 October will conclude the series. Click here to book a free ticket to the reading group event, Call & Reponse. The event will have BSL interpretation, live captioning, and live audio description. The films in the exhibition all have English language captions.
Born in Flames is preserved by Anthology Film Archives with restoration funding from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and The Film Foundation. Distributed by Cinenova.

Dream Access Focus Group SOLD OUT
2020-10-10 14:00 - 16:00
**Please note this event is now sold out. You can join a waiting list by clicking Buy Tickets below and we will contact you if a space becomes available**
Disability provision is almost always a second thought even in places that are all about radical inclusivity – this is the case with queer spaces as well. This workshop is an opportunity to listen to advocates experiencing diverse disabilities, and to find solutions for radical access provisions in a collaborative way. Documentation of the event, in the form of a zine to share with SQIFF and other festivals, will provide a community-based, co created list of problems and suggested solutions, prioritising input from excluded communities rather than theoretical ‘best practices.’
Event led by Disabled activist Luke Murphy. Zine created by Dr of medieval queer+trans theology, storyteller, and zine-maker, Jonah Coman.
Please note this workshop is intended for Deaf and Disabled participants.

Tickets are free. To book, click the button below. You can book a ticket up to one hour before the start time. We will send out a Zoom link for the event to ticket holders a day or two beforehand.

ACCESS
BSL interpretation, live captioning, and live audio description are provided for the workshop. We will send instructions on how to access the live AD to all ticket holders before the event. Contact us by emailing info@sqiff.org if you would like any more information about live AD during the Festival.
The workshop is 2 hours long with a comfort break in the middle.
We have a limited access fund to assist people with no or limited internet access to attend the Festival. If you would like to take this up, please contact info@sqiff.org.
If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2020, please contact info@sqiff.org.

Party: LGBTI+ Elders Social Dance Club
2020-10-11 14:00 - 15:30
Calling all LGBTI+ Elders and allies – Dust off your dancing shoes, charge your glasses and get ready for the LGBTI+ Elders Social Dance Club – Online!
We might not be able to meet in person but we can use the magic of technology to connect, chat, and boogie. Just like regular Dance Clubs you can join in however feels right for you.
We think it’s more important than ever right now that we celebrate our community and come together in any way we can.
So please join us online so we can talk, laugh and dance together. Presented in partnership with SQIFF.
This event is FREE to attend. To receive the Zoom link and password to attend, please email thecomingbackoutball@nationaltheatrescotland.com.
The LGBTI Elders Social Dance Club is a National Theatre of Scotland and All The Queens Men co-production, in partnership with Eden Court, Luminate and in association with Glasgow City Council.

ACCESS
This event is open to all ages.
This event will have live captioning, BSL interpretation, and live audio description. We will send instructions on how to access the live AD to all ticket holders before the event. Contact us by emailing info@sqiff.org if you would like any more information about live AD during the Festival.
The event will have hosts with everyone able to join in with your camera and microphone switched on. However, you can leave these switched off if you prefer. The National Theatre of Scotland will record parts of the event for research, development, and publicity purposes only. Everyone will have the opportunity to opt out if they do not want to be recorded by turning off their camera. You will be told when recording is about to happen and see a red ‘recording’ symbol in the top left hand corner. No dance club members will record or screenshot the session, and by joining the group we assume that you agree to this.

We have a limited access fund to assist people with no or limited internet access to attend the Festival. If you would like to take this up, please contact info@sqiff.org.
If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2020, please contact info@sqiff.org.

Watch Party: Online Filmmaking Project
2020-10-11 17:00 - 18:30
A screening of one minute short films made by participants of our online filmmaking workshops taking place in September. We will invite the filmmakers to take part in a Q&A after the screening of their films. Hosted by filmmaking workshop facilitator Yasmin Al-Hadithi. Hadithi is co-founder of DOCMA_ docs – a global platform for the playful exploration of different doc-filmmaking styles – and DocKlub, “Scotland’s Support Group for Documentary Filmmakers”. Yasmin also works as a creative producer – most recently developing an international ‘film exchange’ for young people in Scotland and the Arctic called, Breaking The Ice.

Tickets are free. To book, click the button below. You can book a ticket up to one hour before the start time. We will send out a Zoom link for the event to ticket holders a day or two beforehand.

ACCESS
This screening has an age recommendation of N/C 15+.
Films’ languages tbc with English language captions. BSL interpretation and live captioning provided for introduction and Q&A.
Content notes tbc.
We have a limited access fund to assist people with no or limited internet access to attend the Festival. If you would like to take this up, please contact info@sqiff.org.
If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2020, please contact info@sqiff.org.

Q&A: Game on: queer disruptions in sport
2020-10-12 18:00 - 18:45
Game on: Queer Disruptions in Sport is a documentary which shines a light on the experiences of those with diverse identities within grassroots sport. The film features the stories of gay runners Csaba and Benjamin from Hungary; Natalie, a Scottish lesbian boxer; Pol, an intersex rower from Bulgaria, and a German trans woman footballer called Jessi. Join us for a live Q&A with the film’s director Maria Takacs, protagonists from the film, and LEAP Sports.
Presented in partnership with LEAP Sports Scotland, promoting LGBTI participation and ending LGBTI-phobia in sport. The Q&A will also be live-streamed to Facebook.

Free event. To book, click the button below. You can book a ticket up to one hour before the start time. We will send out a Zoom link for the event to ticket holders a day or two beforehand.

ACCESS
The event has BSL interpretation and live captioning.
The event is 45 minutes long.
We have a limited access fund to assist people with no or limited internet access to attend the Festival. If you would like to take this up, please contact info@sqiff.org.
If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2020, please contact info@sqiff.org.

Discussion: Film Programming for QTIPOC
2020-10-15 18:30 - 20:00
A conversation with QTIPOC film programmers from across the UK. We’ll be tackling questions such as: What does it mean to programme for us, by us? What unique and specific challenges are we facing? How do we curate safe and nourishing spaces for our communities? How do we take care of our selves while doing this grassroots work? Guest speakers include queer crip Black fat femme and Fringe! Queer film & arts fest and freelance film curator, Tara Brown, Director of CineQ and Festival Manager of SHOUT Festival, Rico Johnson-Sinclair, and Scottish-Zimbabwean artist, researcher, and curator, Natasha Thembiso Ruwona.
This event is only open to QTIPOC (queer, trans, and intersex people of colour).

Tickets are free. To book, click the button below. You can book a ticket up to one hour before the start time. We will send out a Zoom link for the event to ticket holders a day or two beforehand.

ACCESS
BSL interpretation, live captioning, and live audio description provided for the event. We will send instructions on how to access the live AD to all ticket holders before the event. Contact us by emailing info@sqiff.org if you would like any more information about live AD during the Festival.
We have a limited access fund to assist people with no or limited internet access to attend the Festival. If you would like to take this up, please contact info@sqiff.org.
If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2020, please contact info@sqiff.org.

Party feat FRAN.K & guests
2020-10-16 20:30
This year SQIFF X Vogue Scotland’s party features a performance by Vogue Scotland member FRAN.K alongside;
PURINA ALPHA
DAVID RONAN
SEQUOIA BARNES
MELE BROOMES
This live 3 hour virtual club is a collision of bodies on the dance floor in a rotating duet, mimicking our fleeting interactions in the club. Featuring four guest dancers, FRAN.K takes us on a journey through a three and a half hour soundtrack from DJ RyanAir broadcast on Zoom.
Participant videos will be set to off and mics muted on entry, so you can watch from the zoom or opt to turn on your camera to join the dance-floor. You can also join us in the chatroom, and once you’ve entered feel free to come and go through the night! Chatroom will be facilitated by our virtual host NUSSATARI.
Live Stream filmed by Daniel Hughes.
Lighting Design – Jazz Hutsby
Sound Mixing – Simon Howard / DJ RyanAir
Outfit Design Cover Image/ Pop /Techno – Asia Apolonia Przytarska
Content warning: The performance includes flashing lights and explicit language
House Rules: We are a club space that does not condone any discrimination of any kind. Anyone displaying such behaviour will be ejected. If you feel uncomfortable at any time please message in the chat to reach our security staff.
Tickets are free. To book, click the button below and you will receive a Zoom link for the event. When you enter the Zoom waiting room, please open the chat so we can say hello before you join the event.

ACCESS
The event will be captioned.
We have a limited access fund to assist people with no or limited internet access to attend the Festival. If you would like to take this up, please contact info@sqiff.org.
If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2020, please contact info@sqiff.org.

Workshop: Documentary Filmmaking with Lana Lin SOLD OUT
2020-10-17 16:00 - 18:15
**Please note this event is now sold out.**
Join us for a workshop in collaboration with Scottish Documentary Institute with Lana Lin, a filmmaker, artist, and writer whose creative practice concerns embodied vulnerabilities. Lana’s most recent film The Cancer Journals Revisited is a brave feature prompting the question of what it means to re-visit and re-vision Black lesbian feminist poet Audre Lorde’s classic 1980 memoir of her breast cancer experience today.
The workshop will be broken down into two one-hour sessions. In the first hour Lana will give an overview of her practice, particularly focussing on ethics of documentary filmmaking. For the second half of the session, Lana will workshop a couple of selected projects from submissions. Attendees are welcome to join with or without a film project in the making.

Tickets are free. To book, click the button below. We will send out a Zoom link for the event to ticket holders a day or two beforehand.

ACCESS
This workshop has an age recommendation of 18+.
BSL interpretation and live captioning are provided for the workshop.
The workshop is 2 hours long with a 15 minute break in the middle.
We have a limited access fund to assist people with no or limited internet access to attend the Festival. If you would like to take this up, please contact info@sqiff.org.
If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2020, please contact info@sqiff.org.

Call & Response: Reading and Writing for the Future
2020-10-18 14:00 - 16:00
A workshop and reading group led by Martha Williams. The discussion and activities will be based around one or more of the texts selected for the Many Black Moons Ago, To Go programme. Texts will be sent to participants prior to the workshop.
The workshop is for Black people only.
Martha Adonai Williams is a writer, facilitator, and community organiser. She is a coordinator for the Black Feminist Bookshop and runs the Black womxn/non-binary writing space, Call+Response.

Free event. To book, click the button below. You can book a ticket up to one hour before the start time. We will send out a Zoom link for the event to ticket holders a day or two beforehand.

ACCESS
The event has an age recommendation of 18+.
BSL interpretation, live captioning, and live audio description provided for the event. We will send instructions on how to access the live AD to all ticket holders before the event. Contact us by emailing info@sqiff.org if you would like any more information about live AD during the Festival.
The workshop is 2 hours long with a comfort break in the middle.
We have a limited access fund to assist people with no or limited internet access to attend the Festival. If you would like to take this up, please contact info@sqiff.org.
If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2020, please contact info@sqiff.org.

Unsettled: Seeking Refuge in America
2021-02-03 - 2021-02-18
Unsettled: Seeking Refuge in America is a feature-length documentary revealing the untold stories of LGBT refugees and asylum seekers who have fled intense persecution from their home countries and who are resettling in the United States. As leadership in America continues to demonize immigrants and drastically restrict the flow of refugees and asylum seekers into the U.S., Unsettled follows Subhi, a gay Syrian refugee, Cheyenne and Mari, a lesbian couple from Angola, and Junior, a gender non-conforming gay man from the Congo, struggling to create new lives for themselves.
Click here to rent Unsettled on our Vimeo on Demand channel up until 17 February. You can rent the film on our pay what you can sliding scale of free to £8. Please note the film is only available to rent within the UK.
We are holding two free online events to discuss the themes of the film and the situation for LGBTQ+ asylum seekers in the UK on 4 and 11 February. To book for our discussion 7-8pm on Thursday 11 February with Leni Candan from UK Lesbian & Gay Immigration Group and Solomon Adebayo LGBT Unity Scotland responding to the film, click the button below. We will send out a Zoom link for the event to ticket holders on the day.

Presented in partnership with LGBT Unity Scotland, a community-led group providing essential support to LGBTQIA+ refugees, asylum seekers, and other migrants, and Scottish Borders LGBT Equality for LGBT History Month. Supported by Film Hub Scotland, part of the BFI’s Film Audience Network, and funded by Screen Scotland and National Lottery funding from the BFI.

ACCESS
The film and events have an age recommendation of N/C 12+.
The film has English audio with English language captions. Live captioning provided for online discussions.
The film has quite a lot of dialogue and voiceover, all English language, and mostly bright images.
The film is 84 minutes long. Each discussion event is 1 hour long.
Content notes: Discussion and depiction of homophobic violence, honour-based violence, trauma, emotional distress, and substance abuse.

If you have any questions about accessibility for the film and events, please contact info@sqiff.org.
Film rental price

Rental of the film on our Vimeo on Demand is on a sliding scale of FREE, £2, £4, £6, or £8. Our sliding scale allows you to choose what to pay based on what you feel you can afford. No evidence or proof of circumstances is required. If you can afford to pay more, we really appreciate it as we rely on this income to pay queer people fairly for their work and keep the festival going.

Sanctuary shorts in association with SQIFF + Q+A
2021-10-03 18:00 - 20:00 | Online
This community-curated programme* explores the acceptance of identity, self, and of the world around us, while highlighting the universal experience of being queer–with a special focus on being lesbian. The films’ instinctive narratives show the lows of being ‘othered’, and the highs of finding a safe space within that, no matter what age, country, or time period. Join us for powerfully diverse stories, told with heart, honesty, and a perfect amount of humour. You’ll leave the event with a new community of queer film-lovers: your very own sanctuary.
*Back in July, Sanctuary collaborated with SQIFF producer and co-founder Helen Wright to offer 2 online workshops for LGBTQIA+ people, aged 18+, to learn about film programming. Participants worked together to watch a selection of queer short films and make decisions about a final shorts programme. Thanks to Ewan McPherson, Kate Hammer, Liam Rees, JD Stewart, Merik Tiz, Ben Cave, Beth Cooper, Jonathan McLean, Vee Smith and Sand Owsnett.
This is a free event. Book tickets using the button below.

ACCESS
We’ll be using Zoom Webinar for this screening event and Q&A. Audience members will be able to interact with the discussion through the chat function. Once you book a ticket you’ll be sent a link to access the event, 24 hours before the event starts.
The films are in a mixture of spoken languages with English language captions and the Q&A will have live captions and BSL-English interpretation available. The event is suitable for ages 16+. If you have any questions or access requests for this event, please get in touch by emailing info@sqiff.org.
The total films running time is 1 hour 25 minutes.
This film and discussion may include reference to: mental health breakdown, homophobia, transphobia, alcohol or substance addiction. We appreciate this list is not comprehensive and encourage you to confidentially get in touch if there is a particular subject matter not listed you wish to avoid: hello@sanctuaryqueerarts.com.
PROGRAMME
The Way We Are (16m)
Dir: Amanda Ann-Min Wong, Country: Canada, Year: 2020, Language/s:
English
“The Way We Are” shares excerpts of stories from audio interviews with 4 queer Asian women: Katherine Chun, Wenda Li, Tamai Kobayashi, and Nancy Seto. Told in the present-tense, these stories are arranged in a way that explores the past as the present, and in doing so, immersing viewers into the real-lived experiences from a different generation.

A Story of Wedding (27m)
Dir: Wei Zhao, Country: France, Year: 2021, Language/s: Mandarin
To satisfy their families, Huanlin, a gay man, and Ziqiao, a lesbian, have agreed to have a marriage of convenience, which will be held online due to the pandemic. In addition, they have also agreed to have and raise a baby together. However, this decision is changing their lives before they know it.

Fora de Época | Out of Place (13m)
Dir: Drica Czech, Laís Catalano Aranha, Country: Brazil, Year: 2020,
Language/s: Portuguese
2018: Brazil’s general election. Emotionally shaken by the possibility of Bolsonaro being elected, a young lesbian takes refuge in her family’s farm. As she tries to understand why her mother spent the last days of her life alone in the old house, she is faced with revelations about her own story.

Subjekträume (Subject Spaces) (29m) Dir: Kat Voss, Country: Germany, Year: 2020, Language/s: German
Leather, metal, fur: Pelze Multimedia, West Berlin 1981-1996, provided a space for art, musix, sex parties, experiments. A glimpse into an almost forgotten site of lesbian/queer history.

SQIFF 2021 Access Information Session
2021-10-04 17:00 - 18:00 | Online
Before this year’s in person festival starts on Wednesday 6 October, we’re holding a session for people to find out more about how to come along and access support.
Join our Access & Engagement Coordinators Charlotte and Kiana at an online session on Zoom to find out more about the festival and ask any questions you have.
BSL-English interpretation and live captioning will be available at the session. If you have any other access requirements to attend, please email info@sqiff.org.
The session is free and open to all. Book a ticket below to receive the Zoom link, which will be sent out one day before.

SQIFF 2021 takes place 6-10 October in person at CCA in Glasgow. Click here for Accessibility information including accessible versions of the brochure. You can also email info@sqiff.org to ask a question or get individual support to come along to the festival.

Workshop: Identity & Documentary with Scottish Documentary Institute
2021-10-10 12:00 - 14:00 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Join us to explore the notion of identity through the medium of short documentary, with guest filmmakers working in animation, broadcast, and creative documentary.
Organised in partnership with Scottish Documentary Institute, this workshop is aimed at emerging filmmakers and artists who are developing projects around identity and are keen to get inspired in an informal, collaborative, and safe environment. Participants will be invited to submit their own short documentary project for feedback if they would like to.
We are delighted that documentary filmmakers Inma de Reyes and Steven Fraser will discuss their work during this session.
Application to this event is FREE. To apply, click the button below.

ACCESS
Ages 16+.
BSL interpretation by Katy Smillie and Chloe Elder and live captioning provided.
120 minutes long.
We have an Audience Access Fund for travel and internet data top-up costs. If you would like to take this up, please contact info@sqiff.org.
If you have any questions about accessibility at SQIFF 2021, please contact info@sqiff.org.

Inma de Reyes
Inma is a queer Spanish filmmaker based in Edinburgh, where she graduated in Film Directing. Her debut documentary short ‘To Be a Torero’ premiered in Sheffield Doc/Fest in 2018 and she is currently developing its feature version, ‘El Niño y el Traje de Luces / The Boy and the Suit of Lights’, co-produced with Aconite Productions (UK) and Rustic Canyon (USA) and due to premiere in 2022. She also recently directed a mid length documentary, ‘Isabel’s Independence’, commissioned by BBC Scotland and Creative Scotland. Inma is a Chicken & Egg Pictures grantee and her work has featured in The Skinny, MUBI and Screenskills.
Steven Fraser
Steven is an animator, artist and writer who creates short films, comics, zines, performances and installations. Steven makes inventive use of animation, illustration, puppetry and kinetic art to present unique and interesting stories. Steven identifies as queer and autistic and his animation and performance work has been screened and staged at many international film and arts festivals.
Scottish Documentary Institute (SDI)
Established in 2004 to nurture documentary filmmakers and audiences in Scotland and beyond, SDI specialises in documentary training, production and distribution, supporting filmmakers through its diverse programme of international activities and high quality training programmes.
SDI has produced over a hundred and fifty films, screening in eighty countries worldwide, garnering international recognition as being at the cutting edge of the documentary sector. Bridging art and industry, SDI is committed to supporting authored films driven by content and emotional experience.
Click here to find out more about Scottish Documentary Institute.

SQIFF Queer Filmmakers Group
2023-07-01 16:00 - 18:00 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
Are you a queer filmmaker wanting to meet other queer filmmakers and develop project ideas together?
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. These sessions will be facilitated by a SQIFF member. We aim to grow the group in the future to become a collective of queer filmmakers in Glasgow.
The group is open for any level of filmmaking and we really encourage people just starting out in the medium to come along.
We got enough funding to run the monthly SQIFF Queer Filmmakers Group sessions until June 2024, hope to see you all in every single session. Moreover, during one of the sessions later this year, we will run a short films pitch contest and we will be giving £500 to contribute towards the production of two films.
Session (1/12)
Supported by the National Lottery Community Fund.
Tickets are FREE. To book, click here

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.
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. Surgical masks will be available for free by the Quiet Space.
If you have any other access needs you would like to discuss with us, please get in touch with us at info@sqiff.org.

SQIFF Queer Filmmakers Group
2023-08-12 16:00 - 18:00 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
Are you a queer filmmaker wanting to meet other queer filmmakers and develop project ideas together?
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. These sessions will be facilitated by a SQIFF member. We aim to grow the group in the future to become a collective of queer filmmakers in Glasgow.
The group is open for any level of filmmaking and we really encourage people just starting out in the medium to come along.
We got enough funding to run the monthly SQIFF Queer Filmmakers Group sessions until June 2024, hope to see you all in every single session. Moreover, during one of the sessions later this year, we will run a short films pitch contest and we will be giving £500 to contribute towards the production of two films.
Session (2/12)
Supported by the National Lottery Community Fund.
Tickets are FREE. To book, click here

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

SQIFF Queer Filmmakers Group
2023-09-02 16:00 - 18:00 | Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD, United Kingdom
Listen to this Event Page
Are you a queer filmmaker wanting to meet other queer filmmakers and develop project ideas together?
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. These sessions will be facilitated by a SQIFF member. We aim to grow the group in the future to become a collective of queer filmmakers in Glasgow.
The group is open for any level of filmmaking and we really encourage people just starting out in the medium to come along.
We got enough funding to run the monthly SQIFF Queer Filmmakers Group sessions until June 2024, hope to see you all in every single session. Moreover, during one of the sessions later this year, we will run a short films pitch contest and we will be giving £500 to contribute towards the production of two films.
Session (3/12)
Supported by the National Lottery Community Fund.
Tickets are FREE. To book, click here

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