#queer documentaries

[wttnblog]

5 Documentaries To Watch This LGBTQ+ History Month

It’s LGBTQ+ History Month in the United States, and so I want to share some of my favorite queer documentaries with you all. Queer people are more likely to have to find their own roots—the majority of us grew up with straight parents and surrounded by straight community. Our queer culture is still a part of us, though, and connecting with older queer people as well as watching movies and reading…

[cinematicmasterpiece]

paris is burning (1990)

[one-time-i-dreamt]

I was watching a Hobbit/Lord of the Rings documentary and they said Bilbo Baggins is canonically queer.

[filmsoftheflesh]

Emily St. James on Frankenstein, specifically the 1931 James Whale movie, in Queer for Fear: the History of Queer Horror episode two.

[filmauteur]

Gay Power (2012) Directed by Sharon Hayes & Kate Millett

[celluloidrainbow]

SOUTHERN COMFORT (2001) dir. Kate Davis The final year in the life of Robert Eads, a transgender man from the back hills of Georgia. "A hillbilly and proud of it," he cuts a striking figure: sharp-tongued, bearded, tobacco pipe in hand. Though his home is nestled among tranquil hills dotted with hay bales, Robert confronts a world hostile to him. He was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, then turned away by more than two dozen doctors who feared that taking on a trans patient might harm their practice. Beginning in spring, he falls deeply in love with Lola, a trans woman. That summer, his mother and father drive ten hours to visit their "lost daughter," a trip they know may be their last. His final dream is to make it to the Southern Comfort Conference in Atlanta, the nation's preeminent transgender gathering. Beating the odds, he addresses a crowd of 500 and takes Lola to "The prom that never was". (link in title)

[philsdrivinglicence]

Phagenda predictions

Realistic:

- Joint memoir

- Merch

- Feature length video project (could be fiction, could be non-fiction)

- Podcast

Unrealistic:

- Tour (not enough planning time)

- Re-brand (this much hype for something like that is not like them)

- A Dan and Phil Sims pack (lowkey could realistically be this but feels wild to actually put it in that category)

- Video series about what it's been like behind the scenes all this time/the reality of what it's like to be some of the first youtubers to go mainstream (while closeted).

- Wedding anouncement/video

Demon:

- V-day vid reaction

- The Vegas video

[fiercynn]

queer short film: "راكب راكب إنترنت | wifi rider"

queer short cuts is a biweekly newsletter where i share queer & trans short film recommendations. i'm featuring some of my favorite films on tumblr because why not

jordan | 13 minutes | 2020 | documentary short audio in arabic; english subtitles embedded

راكب راكب إنترنت | wifi rider, directed by roxy rezvany, introduces us to shukri lawrence, a young, queer palestinian-armenian fashion designer and photographer. shukri, who was born in east jerusalem and now lives in jordan, came to fame through his instagram account @wifirider, which he created as a teenager to share his style, fashion, and takes on pop culture. the film, shot on 16mm, also integrates footage from shukri’s early life as well, with shukri’s voiceover to tell us about his story and the clothing label named trashy clothing that he founded with his co-designer omar braika, who is also palestinian. the displacement and threat of state violence that shukri faces is felt throughout the docu-short; he begins by telling us how as a child he dreamed of moving to france, where he thought he would find freedom from his experience in israel. however, over the course of his adolescence, shukri began to understand that while he, like all palestinians currently, has no real home, he prefers his life to still be grounded in the arab world where he still has community in the palestinian diaspora. - deepa's full review, including content notes at the end

you can also find more of director roxy rezvany's work on her website!

[numnum-num]

Queens at Heart, 1967

[disease]

QUEERCORE: HOW TO PUNK A REVOLUTION [2017]

i highly recommend a watch. aside from opinions/stories sourced directly from monumental queer figures—it addresses some of the ‘philosophical’ disconnects between the younger vs older generation within the culture. overall an essential watch for a multitude of reasons.

[AVAILABLE ON TUBI]

[queerism1969]

[regulusrules]

Yo, I saw your post about orientalism in relation to the "hollywood middle-east" tiktok!

How can a rando and university dropout get into and learn more about? Any literature or other content to recommend?

Hi!! Wow, you have no idea how you just pressed a button. I'll unleash 5+ years on you. And I'll even add for you open-sourced works that you can access as much as I can!

1. Videos

I often find this is the best medium nowadays to learn anything! I'll share with you some of the best that deal with the topic in different frames

• This is a video of Edward Said talking about his book, Orientalism. Said is the Palestinian- American critic who first introduced the term Orientalism, and is the father of postcolonial studies as a critical literary theory. In this book, you’ll find an in-depth analysis of the concept and a deconstruction of western stereotypes. It’s very simple and he explains everything in a very easy manner.

• How Islam Saved Western Civilization. A more than brilliant lecture by Professor Roy Casagranda. This, in my opinion, is one of the best lectures that gives credit to this great civilization, and takes you on a journey to understand where did it all start from.

• What’s better than a well-researched, general overview Crash Course about Islam by John Green? This is not necessarily on orientalism but for people to know more about the fundamental basis of Islam and its pillars. I love the whole playlist that they have done about the religion, so definitely refer to it if you're looking to understand more about the historical background! Also, I can’t possibly mention this Crash Course series without mentioning ... ↓

• The Medieval Islamicate World. Arguably my favourite CC video of all times. Hank Green gives you a great thorough depiction of the Islamic civilization when it rose. He also discusses the scientific and literary advancements that happened in that age, which most people have no clue about! And honestly, just his excitement while explaining the astrolabe. These two truly enlightened so many people with the videos they've made. Thanks, @sizzlingsandwichperfection-blog

2. Documentaries

• This is an AMAZING documentary called Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Villifies A People by the genius American media critic Jack Shaheen. He literally analysed more than 1000 movies and handpicked some to showcase the terribly false stereotypes in western depiction of Arab/Muslim cultures. It's the best way to go into the subject, because you'll find him analysing works you're familiar with like Aladdin and all sorts.

• Spain’s Islamic Legacy. I cannot let this opportunity go to waste since one of my main scopes is studying feminist Andalusian history. There are literal gems to be known about this period of time, when religious coexistence is documented to have actually existed. This documentary offers a needed break from eurocentric perspectives, a great bird-view of the Islamic civilization in Europe and its remaining legacy (that western history tries so hard to erase).

• When the Moors Ruled in Europe. This is one of the richest documentaries that covers most of the veiled history of Al-Andalus (Muslim Spain). Bettany Hughes discusses some of the prominent rulers, the brilliance of architecture in the Arab Muslim world, their originality and contributions to poetry and music, their innovative inventions and scientific development, and lastly, La Reconquista; the eventual fall and erasure of this grand civilization by western rulers.

3. Books

• Rethinking Orientalism by Reina Lewis. Lewis brilliantly breaks the prevailing stereotype of the “Harem”, yk, this stupid thought westerns projected about arab women being shut inside one room, not allowed to go anywhere from it, enslaved and without liberty, just left there for the sexual desires of the male figures, subjugated and silenced. It's a great read because it also takes the account of five different women living in the middle east.

• Nocturnal Poetics by Ferial Ghazoul. A great comparative text to understand the influence and outreach of The Thousand and One Nights. She applies a modern critical methodology to explore this classic literary masterpiece.

• The Question of Palestine by Edward Said. Since it's absolutely relevant, this is a great book if you're looking to understand more about the Palestinian situation and a great way to actually see the perspective of Palestinians themselves, not what we think they think.

• Arab-American Women's Writing and Performance by S.S. Sabry. One of my favourite feminist dealings with the idea of the orient and how western depictions demeaned arab women by objectifying them and degrading them to objects of sexual desire, like Scheherazade's characterization: how she was made into a sensual seducer, but not the literate, brilliantly smart woman of wisdom she was in the eastern retellings. The book also discusses the idea of identity and people who live on the hyphen (between two cultures), which is a very crucial aspect to understand arabs who are born/living in western countries.

• The Story of the Moors in Spain by Stanley Lane-Poole. This is a great book if you're trying to understand the influence of Islamic culture on Europe. It debunks this idea that Muslims are senseless, barbaric people who needed "civilizing" and instead showcases their brilliant civilization that was much advanced than any of Europe in the time Europe was labelled by the Dark Ages. (btw, did you know that arabic was the language of knowledge at that time? Because anyone who was looking to study advanced sciences, maths, philosophy, astronomy etc, had to know arabic because arabic-speaking countries were the center of knowledge and scientific advancements. Insane, right!)

• Convivencia and Medieval Spain. This is a collection of essays that delve further into the idea of “Convivencia”, which is what we call for religious coexistence. There's one essay in particular that's great called Were Women Part of Convivencia? which debunks all false western stereotypical images of women being less in Islamic belief. It also highlights how arab women have always been extremely cultured and literate. (They practiced medicine, studied their desired subjects, were writers of poetry and prose when women in Europe couldn't even keep their surnames when they married.)

4. Novels / Epistolaries

• Granada by Radwa Ashour. This is one of my favourite novels of all time, because Ashour brilliantly showcases Andalusian history and documents the injustices and massacres that happened to Muslims then. It covers the cultural erasure of Granada, and is also a story of human connection and beautiful family dynamics that utterly touches your soul.

• Dreams of Trespass by Fatema Mernissi. This is wonderful short read written in autobiographical form. It deconstructs the idea of the Harem in a postcolonial feminist lens of the French colonization of Morocco.

• Scheherazade Goes West by Mernissi. Mernissi brilliantly showcases the sexualisation of female figures by western depictions. It's very telling, really, and a very important reference to understand how the west often depicts middle-eastern women by boxing them into either the erotic, sensual beings or the oppressed, black-veiled beings. It helps you understand the actual real image of arab women out there (who are not just muslims btw; christian, jew, atheist, etc women do exist, and they do count).

• Letters of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu. This is a feminist travel epistolary of a British woman which covers the misconceptions that western people, (specifically male travelers) had recorded and transmitted about the religion, traditions and treatment of women in Constantinople, Turkey. It is also a very insightful sapphic text that explores her own engagement with women there, which debunks the idea that there are no queer people in the middle east.

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With all of these, you'll get an insight about the real arab / islamic world. Not the one of fanaticism and barbarity that is often mediated, but the actual one that is based on the fundamental essences of peace, love, and acceptance.

[365filmsbyauroranocte]

Ocaña (Ventura Pons, 1978)

[that-butch-archivist]

Another incredible short documentary (13 minutes) about butches by S.D. Holman, an incredible Canadian photographer, artist, and butch (among other things.)

This is SD Holman's website, where you can peruse SD Holman's other art series and projects.

[annoyingthemesong]

SUBLIME CINEMA #681 -KOKOMO CITY

D. Smith was homeless when she started shooting this documentary about the sex industry, and we can sense the fury and rawness of the conditions under which this film was made. Art can sometimes be a savior.

But not for everybody. Koko, one of the main subjects of this movie was murdered soon after filming - the victim of a hate crime. The film is dedicated to her.

[alexjcrowley]

Met Jason Schwartzman today, at the Venice Film Festival. I think at least 20 people completely surrounded him after the showing of Pavements (2024). He ws so incredibly kind with every single one of us, very soft-spoken, took the time for an autograp or a picture with everybody, and I mean, l EVERYBODY (security had to tell him numerous times to get put of the cinema because they had to show another movie). And even outside the cinema, he kept chattering with us and taling pictures and singing photos and programs of the Festival. He thanked us numerous times for coming to see him, seeing his movies, paying him compliments. He seemed almost as happy to see us as we were to see him. I got to tell him that one of my favourite movie characters of all time was Max Fischer, from Rushmore (his first movie ever). He was pleasantly surprised, a little endeared dare I say, thanked for that and I think he paid me a compliment as well but I kinda blacked out from the emotion. I just remember that at some point I said "Thank you for being you" and he said "Thank you for being you" and I still think I died on the spot and I am currently in heaven. It was such a nice moment, I wanted to share.