Peccadillo Pictures are screening a trio of films that reflect the wide diversity of LGBTQ+ experiences at this year’s BFI Flare London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival that runs 16th – 27th March. There’s hopeful Olympian swimmers from Israel, awakening romance between rebellious two spirit youths in Canada, and budding rock star teenagers from Argentina. All three films will be released in UK and Ireland later this year. Full details for BFI Flare: www.bfi.org.uk/flare
Wildhood, Canada 2021
Public Screenings: Thurs 24 March (NFT1, 17.50) and Fri 25 March (NFT3, 15:20)
A film by Bretten Hannam, and starring Phillip Lewistski, Joshusa Odjick and Avery Winters-Anthony. Nominated for Best Picture at Canadian Screen Awards.
In a rural east-coast trailer park, Link (Phillip Lewitski) lives with his toxic father and younger half-brother Travis (Avery Winters-Anthony). When Link discovers his Mi’kmaw mother could still be alive, it lights a flame and they make a run for a better life. On the road, they meet Pasmay (Joshua Odjick), a powwow dancer drawn to Link. As the pair journey across Mi’kma’ki, Link finds community, identity, and love in the land where he belongs.
Bretten Hannam told QX, “WILDHOOD is a story ripped from the scars of my youth. I’ve been searching for family and heritage since I was little. The pain and anger of growing up as a two-spirit person without them was only eased by my relationship with the land, the animals, my grandmother, and other elders. I’ve spent three decades reconnecting, reclaiming, and healing. WILDHOOD is the culmination of that journey. Set mostly outdoors in rural Mi’kma’ki/Nova Scotia during the height of summer WILDHOOD reflects our collective need for adventure, building community, fighting for our freedoms, and healing through reconnecting with the land.”
THE SWIMMER, Israel 2021, 83 mins
BFI Flare screenings: Sun 20 March (NFT1, 20:50) and Tues 22 March (NFT3, 13:50)
Available on Pecaddillo Pod from 9 May, DVD and Stream.
Directed by Adam Kalderon and starring Omer Perelman, Striks, Asaf Jonas and Nadia Kusher.
Having earned himself a coveted spot at an elite training camp, swimmer Erez finds himself thrust into an unforgiving world of sporting rivalry, battling against his peers for a place on the Olympic team. With his goal in sight Erez is single-minded in his athletic ambition that is until he meets handsome fellow swimmer Nevo. A thrilling blend of sports movie and love story, Adam Kalderon’s THE SWIMMER is fraught with heady drama and smouldering sexual tension – not to mention a healthy dose of men in speedos.
SUBLIME, Argentina 2022.
BFI Flare screenings: Tues 22 March (NFT1, 20:45) and Wed 23 March (NFT1, 13:50)
Directed by Mariano Baisin and starring Martin Miller, Two Inama Chiabrando and Azul Mazzeo.
Best friends Manuel and Felipe live in a coastal town in Argentina. They spend all their time together playing in their rock band and working on converting an old van into a secret love nest to entertain their respective girlfriends. A talented songwriter, Felipe pours his soul into his lyrics evoking thwarted desire. With their gig debut just around the corner things come to a head and suddenly everything is at stake: friendship, love, and the band. Mariano Biasin’s vibrant drama, SUBLIME, vividly captures the heartache of adolescent angst and longing.
