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A Second Life follows a day in the life of Elisabeth as she scrambles to meet Airbnb guests visiting Paris for the Summer Olympic Games. Battling both depression and hearing loss, she makes for a rather inhospitable host, but also meets a new and most unexpected friend at exactly the right moment in time. Agathe Rousselle and Alex Lawther glow as a platonic duo, riffing off of each other’s polar opposite personalities on screen. The urban rumblings of Paris are swathed in—and then stripped of—sound, plunging us deep into the protagonist’s plight of impaired hearing, as well as work visa precarity, with the constant feeling of uneven ground captured through handheld camera techniques and the crowded visual frames of a hurried city. A theme of escape permeates the film, whether by the removal of hearing aids, the contemplation of too many pills, or a spontaneous night out, blowing off steam with friends and beer. A sudden sapphic kiss under watchful eyes and a panic attack in the metro are just a few small moments of an eventful evening that culminate in poignant memories of connection alongside the Olympics opening ceremony.

MADE AU CANADACOMPETITIONDocumentaryIN-CINEMAVIRTUAL

Explore the unique voice of queer, contemporary, Canadian country music. Critically acclaimed director Colette Johnson-Vosberg sits down with Amanda Rheaume, Shawnee Kish, Bobby Dove, Drake Jensen, and Patrick Masse to talk about their individual journeys in the music industry, many of whom emerged from humble, small town origins. Calling all music fans: whether you’re a musician yourself, or the music in your headphones helped you survive high school, there is plenty to take away from this ninety-minute tell-all featuring some fascinating Canadian talent. From one artist’s very necessary mention of Canadian rock icon Alanis Morissette (as well as KD Lang) to the moody music videos of another artist facing his darkest demons, Don’t Fence Me In remains down-to-earth, relatable, tender, and courageous in the ongoing battle against industry censorship. Whether it’s a question of identity, or who is waiting for you at home, persistence, personal growth, self-acceptance, and healing take the place of silence and shame, allowing the voices of these inspiring queer artists to resonate more loudly, and authentically, than ever.

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Christine, Alexander, and Stéphane are a polyamorous, bisexual throuple who live in downtown Toronto. Before long, their unconventional relationship with its ever-shifting dynamics, is threatened by the heteronormative foils of marriage and pregnancy. Can the three of them stand stronger than two would be able to? Glenn Wood presents a film that looks at alternative relationships in a novel way. I Come Home is tender and fearless in its portrayal of the fragility of human relationships, with support, loyalty, and communication—all required three-fold for this queer polyamorous couple—working hard to outweigh the judgementalness of conventional society. An invitation to Christine’s sister’s wedding, in her small hometown nearby, then puts the three to the ultimate test as they navigate an environment that (barely) tolerates their lifestyle. Questions of parenthood and accountability also come into play alongside the cold shoulder treatment that eventually erupts into outbursts of long-held resentments. In the aftermath, and all throughout the film, bird’s-eye view angles capture quiet moments of ‘coming home’ to oneself, and to one another in the enduring acts of choosing, trusting, and showing up.

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Iván is a “very handsome” trans man. Hadoum the Spanish-Moroccan woman who captures his attention. Neither wants to fall in love. In this Teddy Award-winning romance filmed in the southern Spanish province of Almería, capitalist constrictions and familial imperatives are pressed up against the contractions of intense connection. Iván (Silver Chicón) helps run a flourishing business with strict quality standards. Hadoum (Herminia Loh Moreno) is a seasonal worker well-versed in exploitation. With a looming make-or-break audit and a possible life-altering promotion to Warehouse Manager, Iván cannot afford to slip up. Fall in love with an agitator with “quite a reputation” and his golden opportunity might implode. Yet, the two are magnetised. Caught up in intense mutual pleasure: making love beside the ceaseless sea; their greenhouse tryst captured by a plant xray. Lost in post-coital daydreaming about a life in which they could be together. The union action brewing putting Iván’s passion and intrinsic empathy in conflict with his professional aspirations. With Iván & Hadoum, trailblazing trans filmmaker Ian de la Rosa has crafted a film that is both capacious and taut. A captivating cry for humanity in an immoral time.

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Furtive glances, sexy fashion, the alcohol-fuelled excuse to flirt, dance and sneak past the fences: rodeo culture offers more than bull riding. In intimate profiles of queer Michoacáns—from a free and femme church leader to a hypermasculine cowboy—Efraín Mojica attempts to deconstruct the traditions and contradictions of their roots. For as long as Mojica can remember, Mexico’s jaripeo bull-riding events have been part of their life—from bored childhood trips to teen cowboy fantasies to the present, lost in the packed crowd on a hot Christmas Day. The masculinized events are seeped in religion and booze, but within and often because of the strict codes, queer subcultures flourish. Mojica and Rebecca Zweig’s documentary lassos together these complexities, doing so in kinetic and sensual ways, fingers slipping down ropes, hips bucking on top of a bull. Together, the two directors maximize the filmic medium, combining frank, beautifully lensed conversations with mesmeric Super 8 footage, pulse-pounding music, and dreamy sequences: red lights flashing among dried corn stalks; a red-eyed mechanical bull, nose steaming. The film acting as a bridge between the vivid external and internal lives of a region and its defining rituals.

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The life of a young queer Brazilian man living with a degenerative neurological condition, who works nights as a fetish master in an S&M club. Raw and unflinching yet unexpectedly tender, this debut feature explores marginalisation, the fierce will to live, and the search for one’s true self. London moves between the S&M club where he works as a fetish master, the hospital he visits reluctantly, and occasional visits to his mother and younger sister, who lives with the same condition. He finds a sense of kinship with a disabled colleague and, from time to time, connects with men and women, sexually or otherwise. Following a series of short films, directing duo Victor di Marco and Márcio Picoli deliver a deeply affecting debut feature, awarded the Queer Lion at the Venice Film Festival. Eschewing sentimentality, the camera stays close to its anti-hero as he struggles to understand who he is, driven by a restless, almost desperate energy. Di Marco, who shares London’s condition, gives a powerful, nuanced performance in the title role. A striking portrait of creativity, freedom, and resilience.

FRISSONS QUEER: FANTASIA x IMAGE+NATIONCOMPETITIONDocumentaryIN-CINEMAVIRTUAL

In late-70’s NYC’s “slummy and fabulous” West Village, a serial murderer dismembered victims and “exploitive” Exorcist-director William Friedkin ripped a page from the headlines, inciting the community to action. As anarchy raged, an unexpected jouissance permeated the hot-blooded summer of ‘79. Addison Verrill, a 36-year-old Variety reporter, split time between his live-in lover, splashy premieres with the likes of Streisand, and exploring “eroticized fears” in pitch black container trucks. His shocking murder convinced crusading journalist Arthur Bell to dedicate himself to the case—a mission that inadvertently inspired Cruising. Helmed by a straight director and his straight superstar, Al Pacino, the film attempted to infiltrate the hedonistic, “leather and Levis” world of the notorious Mineshaft bar. Gay extras flocked while gay activists turned the set into a battlezone as two competing visions of representation clashed. The results would be felt for generations. Jeffrey Schwartz, the Emmy Award-winning filmmaker of Vito (I+N24, 2011) and I am Divine (I+N26, 2013), guides this graphic, gripping documentary. In it, Dan Savage joins historians, journalists and leathermen alike to trace Cruising’s makings and cultural mark all the way to the youth culture of today.

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With smoldering toughness, Veneno navigates sexual exchanges and drug deals in the harsh desert truck stops of Northern Mexico. He melts only for the enigmatic Muñeco, who alternates between fatherly and flirty, and promises protection for Veneno’s drug-running—for a price. Though neither are prepared for the coming menace. An exchange gone awry brings Veneno (Victor Prieto Simental) under the wing of the adamantly straight Eduardo (Osvaldo Sanchez), a truck driver nicknamed Muñeco. This term of endearment also implies ‘pawn’ or ‘puppet,’ which is a fitting resonance when it is clear both men are in over their heads. Flashes of Veneno doused in gasoline and an ominous, smoky shadow underscore how they are at the whims of an insidious power. Like the Kerouac novel whose title it borrows, and which culminates in Mexico, writer-director David Pablos’ dusty, dangerous road movie chronicles an episodic cross-country journey, centering a nomadic lifestyle punctuated by drugs and self-discovery—the battered sedan switched for a tractor-trailer and Kerouac’s oblique references to gay sex traded for Pablos’ lingering, no-holds-barred sequences. Visually dazzling, this heated thriller (Mexico’s official Oscars selection) offers tendernesses and twists you will never see coming.

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The lives of three sex workers become intertwined in the crowded corners of Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside—and even more so with the workers in question being young, queer, and indigenous. Housing, citizenship, and family are just a few pressing issues weighing on the trio’s minds, sparking heartfelt conversations and crucial decisions. Tamara has lost her passport and needs to find it for a safe return to the US, while Aiden needs to find enough money to put down a deposit on an apartment. December is holding everything and everyone together, but in doing so, she hopes to avoid a daunting phone call back home to her family on the reserve. Not the issues of your average seventeen year old, same with grieving the death of your father, or resenting your dependence on your sugar daddy (who happens to be hooked on cocaine). Nonetheless, hope and resilience find their places in these young people’s lives, in moments of connection—seeing each other, being seen and supported, helping each push through their hectic day to the possibility of a brighter future.

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In an Ohio town where “Jesus Is the Answer,” bodybuilder Eddie scrapes by on cam work, determined to go pro backed by the ultimate momager. But when an alluring older coach offers to mould him, Eddie is tempted by success and his nascent bisexuality to shred the ties that bind. Hype woman, tan technician, co-dependent—Eddie’s boozing, pill-popping mom (Tony nominee Tammy Blanchard) fiercely champions her son (Brock Yurich). But she’s never led him to victory. Coach Mike (Mike Edward) guarantees he can. Under his tutelage, Eddie gains confidence, technique, and access to free performance-enhancing drugs, as well as a crush, every muscle graze the prelude to an explosive awakening. Unbeknownst to Mike, Eddie is also mastering finesse through ballet lessons with the ex-girlfriend (Paloma Garcia-Lee) he’s still enamoured with. A combination that may be enough to conquer his cocky rival—the estranged son Mike desperately wants back in his life—or cause Eddie to crucify himself in the process. Featuring Glee’s Matthew Morrison as a dictatorial pastor, Test is fascinating filmmaking unafraid to wrestle with tough conversations and thorny themes, from religion to body image, steroid use to economic desperation.