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ANDER (2009) dir. Roberto Castón The valley of Arratia in August 1999. Ander, a farmer well into his forties, lives with his sister Arantxa and his old mother in a remote part of rural Basque country. His is a monotonous life filled with nothing but farm work and a job at the local bicycle factory. It won’t be long before Arantxa gets married and leaves home and then Ander will be left to look after their stubborn mother on his own. Then one day Ander has an accident and breaks his leg. His limb will be in a plaster cast for two months. Against his mother’s wishes, the family decides to employ a Peruvian immigrant, José, in order to help out, and the arrival of the new farm hand has an influence on interpersonal relationships within the family. The old woman, who barely speaks any Spanish, refuses to communicate with José, but Arantxa and Ander soon get to know José quite well. The two men in particular become firm friends. (link in title)

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DESHONRA (1952) dir. Daniel Tinayre Framed and convicted for the murder by negligenceof her paraplergic boss, nurse Flora is locked up while pregnant by the woman’s rich husband. Inside the harsh and bleak environment of prison, she meets Roberta, another inmate, who becomes her protector and lover. (link in title)

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NEXT GOAL WINS (2014) dir. Mike Brett & Steve Jamison In 2001, American Samoa lost 31–0 to Australia, the worst loss in international football history, and have been dogged by defeat ever since. They want to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, but continue to lose on the pitch. To help turn their luck around, the Football Federation American Samoa hire Dutch-born, America-based coach Thomas Rongen. Over the next three weeks, Rongen trains the team, and introduces some players based overseas, until they can acquit themselves with pride at the qualifiers at the OFC World Cup Qualification. Jaiyah Saelua, a member of the squad since 2003, is a fa'afafine and is the first transgender player to compete in a FIFA World Cup qualifier. (link in title)

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FILIBUS (1915) dir. Mario Roncoroni Baroness Troixmonde, infamously known as Filibus, the mysterious air pirate, commits her thefts then retreats to the safety of her zeppelin. Filibus’ airship is manned by a staff of mask-wearing lackeys who instantly obey her every command. The esteemed detective Hardy sets out on her trail, and Filibus attempts to frame him as the daring villain– all the while slipping in between male and female disguises to romance the detective’s sister. (link in title)

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FLESH AND THE DEVIL (1927) dir. Clarence Brown Two childhood friends, Leo and Ulrich, grow up to be soldiers in Germany. Leo becomes infatuated with Felicitas, the wife of a powerful count. Said count discovers the affair and calls for a duel of honor, where Leo kills him and is then punished by the military by being sent to Africa for five years. Due to Ulrich’s intervention, Leo only serves three years before being recalled home. On his return journey, he focuses on his dream of being reunited with Felicitas. Before he left for Africa, Leo had asked Ulrich to take care of Felicitas’s needs while he was away. Ulrich — unaware that his friend is in love with Felicitas — falls in love with her and marries her. Upon his return, Leo finds himself torn between Felicitas and Ulrich. (link in title)

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人在紐約 | FULL MOON IN NEW YORK (1989) dir. Stanley Kwan Lee Fung-jiau is from Hong Kong, a closeted lesbian who runs a Chinese restaurant in New York and also dabbles in real estate. Wang Hsiung-ping is from Taiwan, and has come to New York to become an actress, spending much of her time and money on acting lessons. Zhaohong comes from mainland China and has just gotten married to a husband of Chinese descent, but who, along with his family, have been utterly assimilated by American culture, to the point that Zhaohong finds it difficult to adapt. Sharing a common ancestry, the three girls eventually become friends, meeting regularly at Fung-jiau’s restaurant and getting drunk together while trying to find their own identity in the alienating, inhospitable setting that is New York. (link in title)

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TINTENFISCHALARM (2006) dir. Elisabeth Scharang When Alex was only two years old, he was subjected to a procedure meant to ‘correct’ his intersex status and that led to him being raised as a girl for the next two decades. Now, after coming out as a trans man, Alex takes a trip through his own past alongside the director, introducing friends and creating new memories along the way. (link in title)

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ΜΑΎΡΟ ΛΙΒΆΔΙ | BLACK FIELD (2009) dir. Vardis Marinakis In 1654 in Greece under Ottoman rule, a solitary janissary collapses from his wounds outside an isolated Orthodox nunnery. The nuns take him in and medically skilled Areti tends to him with the help of another, the young and shy Anthi. Both are fascinated by the presence of a man and, as he recovers, Areti starts an affair with the janissary while Anthi has conflicting emotions. Learning that the man is a deserter with a price on his head, the nuns dare not hide a fugitive and inform the authorities. As a contingent of soldiers arrives to collect him, Anthi escapes with the janissary and the two go on the run. In the woods, a long-hidden secret comes out. (link in title)

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BECOMING JULIA (2003) dir. Ruth Cullen In this intimate and personal portrait, we follow Julia, a single, straight bus driver of 37, as she undergoes her gender transition. Filmed over a two year period, this documentary explores the stereotypes about what makes a man and what makes a woman. (link in title)

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WO WILLST DU HIN, HABIBI? (2015) dir. Tor Iben Ibrahim, a young German of Turkish descent, leads a double life, living with his tradition-bound family and spending his days looking for a respectable job. But outside his parent’s apartment, Ibo (as he’s called by his family and friends) is a confident gay man who works in a sex shop and is on the hunt for Mr. Right. Unforunately, he ends up falling in love with Alexander; blond, blue eyed, German, criminal, show wrestler, and straight. (link in title)

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櫻の園 | THE CHERRY ORCHARD (1990) dir. Shun Nakahara The annual production of The Cherry Orchard has become a firm fixture at Oka Academy – even more so this year as it marks an important anniversary for the school. Yuko, who is playing a maid, arrives at the school looking a little different – she’s had a giant perm. Yuko’s hair is less about self-expression than it is about catching the attention of a crush – not a boy, but a fellow student, Chiyoko who has the leading role in the play. Yuko keeps her crush to herself but unexpectedly bonds with delinquent student Noriko who has correctly guessed the direction of Yuko’s desires. Yuko’s hair is very much against school regulations but she figures they’ll get over it, yet, fortunately or unfortunately, Yuko’s hairdo is the least of their problems. Based on the manga of the same name. (link in title)

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THE HOURS AND TIMES (1991) dir. Christopher Munch A fictional account of what might have happened in April 1963, when John Lennon and Beatles manager Brian Epstein traveled to Barcelona for an extended weekend getaway. In the four days they spend together, the men reflect on their lives, both private and professional, as they explore the unique bond they share. (link in title)

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MANGUE BANGUE (1971) dir. Neville d'Almeida The quasi-fictional story of transgender sex workers living in Rio de Janeiro’s swampy red light district, who are joined by a group of hippies defying the system and a runaway stockbroker looking to reconect with his animalism, in a paradigmatic expression of the post-1968 spirit of hedonism. (link in title)

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THE SUM OF US (1994) dir. Geoff Burton & Kevin Dowling Widower Harry Mitchell lives with his gay son Jeff, with both men struggling in their searches for true love. Harry is completely comfortable with his son’s sexuality, and is almost over-eager in his support for his son’s search for romance, but when Jeff takes a prospective boyfriend home and Harry meets an attractive but judgmental divorcee through a dating service, conflicts arise between the two. (link in title)

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AS BOAS MANEIRAS (2017) dir. Juliana Rojas & Marco Dutra Clara, a lonely nurse from the outskirts of São Paulo, is hired by mysterious and wealthy Ana as the nanny for her unborn child. The two women develop a strong bond, but soon Clara discovers a terrifying secret about the baby. (link in title)

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CLOUDBURST (2011) dir. Thom Fitzgerald Stella and Dotty are an older lesbian couple from Maine who embark on a Thelma and Louise-style road trip to Nova Scotia to get married after Dotty is moved into a nursing home by her granddaughter. Along the way they pick up Prentice, a hitchhiker travelling home to Nova Scotia to visit his dying mother, and the three bond as they travel together. (link in title)

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MI VACÍO Y YO (2022) dir. Adrián Silvestre Raphi from France fantasizes about romances with princes and about starting a traditional family. But in reality she works in a call centre in Barcelona, struggles with at times embarrassing dates, and is diagnosed by her therapist as having gender dysphoria. Raphi talks candidly with colleagues, queer friends, and the men she meets through apps. Despite all the advice she receives, it turns out that mostly time and experience will help her embrace her place in this world. (link in title)