French Films at the 31st Mardi Gras Film Festival
Established in 1993, Queer Screen is now one of Australia’s largest film festivals of any kind, and one of the top five queer film festivals in the world.
It is highly regarded by filmmakers all over the world, and is the most important platform for promoting LGBTIQ titles to distributors and exhibitors in this territory.
Offering a diverse international selection, here are this year’s French films:
Queendom
Filmed over four years, queer director Agniia Galdanova captures the vulnerability and incredible bravery of Gena as she stages breathtaking performances in otherworldly costumes on the streets of Moscow. These performances become a new form of art and activism aiming to change people’s perception of queerness in Russia. Filmed amidst the invasion of Ukraine, life becomes all the more urgent and precious as Gena battles acceptance from her grandparents in small town Magadan and the increasing risk of conscription.
2023 L.A Outfest – Special Mention Documentary
2023 Zurich Film Festival – Winner Audience Award
A remarkable film that weaves empowerment with unsettling tension and artistry with pure barbarism. It is by far the most affecting documentary of the year. – The Pink Lens
Along Came Love
Madeleine is a single mother working as a waitress when she meets writer Francois, and in desperate pursuit of a nuclear family, they wed quickly. Soon the cracks start to show, as Madeleine comes to grips with her husband’s hidden desires. This sumptuously shot film showcases how love can exist beyond social norms, and how deeply the ties can bind between two lost souls.
Quillévéré weaves a Sirkian tale of guilt and unsuccessfully repressed desires that takes in homosexuality, race and polyamory. – Screen Daily
Sydney Premiere
2023 Festival du Film Francophone – Winner Best Film and Best Actor
Power Alley
17-year-old volleyball player Sofia is on the cusp of being scouted for a Chilean scholarship, and is in a new relationship with teammate Bel. When she finds out she’s pregnant, she’s determined to terminate the pregnancy, but abortion is a crime in Brazil. Once the local community finds out, she becomes the target of fundamentalist groups out to stop her at any cost. A gripping film about women’s bodily autonomy and fighting back against inequality, it showcases the power of queer community in the face of adversity.
A punchy, confrontational energy infuses this celebration of queer sisterhood in the face of Brazilian conservatism. – Screen International
Australian Premiere
2023 Cannes Film Festival – Winner FIPRESCI Prize, Nominee Queer Palm
2023 Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival – Winner Best Director and Best Editing
Split
When stuntwoman Anna meets the magnetic famous actress Eve, she unlocks a part of her she’d always kept hidden. What starts as an innocent exchange of glances soon ignites into a turbulent, sensual love affair. Directed by a French feminist author and filmed with an 80% female crew, Split explores the queer female gaze and its transformative impact. Shown in its entirety, the five episode series is a daring, innovative and genre-bending unpacking of power and trauma through the feminist lens.
Australian Premiere
The Lost Boys
17-year-old Joe is preparing to return to society after being in juvenile detention. Just before his release William enters the facility, and the boys find the passion and affection they had been yearning for, leading Joe to question what kind of freedom he truly desires. Khalil Gharbia and Julien de Saint Jean (Lie with Me, QSFF23) are electric as two boys finding each other in an environment designed to keep them apart.
Sydney Premiere
Graton’s film rests on Gharbia and Jean’s wondrous performances. A movingly intertwined tale of longing, loss, and liberation. – Attitude UK
