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Frameline
The San Francisco International LGBT Film Festival
Our coverage of Frameline 2024 here
Founded in 1977, the San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival is the longest-running, largest, and most widely recognized queer film exhibition event in the world. As a community event with an annual attendance of more than 63,000 (89,000 virtual attendance in 2020), the Festival is the most prominent and well-attended LGBTQ+ arts program in the Bay Area. In 2021, Frameline's Festival was named by MovieMaker one of the 25 Coolest Film Festivals in the World. In 2023, Frameline was ranked #8 in USA Today's Readers Choice poll of the 10 Best Film Festivals in the US. Frameline is a BAFTA Qualifying Festival.
Frameline48: the San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival will return to the Bay Area with its signature showcase of the world’s leading queer cinema. Frameline unites diverse communities for 11 days of innovative and socially relevant content. Discover emerging talents and embrace an unparalleled community of festival-goers at the world’s largest celebration of queer media. The Festival pays tribute to LGBTQ+ experiences through pioneering documentaries, gripping features, delightful shorts, cinematic classics, engaging episodics, and more.
Each year, Frameline hosts 400 official Festival Guests, including directors, producers, actors, programmers, distributors, and buyers that range from small, independent entities to studios such as A24, Neon, Strand Releasing, Wolfe Video, The Film Collaborative, TLA Releasing, HBO, Showtime, and Warner Bros. The Festival is one of the largest annual business meeting places for theatrical and educational film and video buyers in Northern California.
Committed to showcasing the best and most diverse work by, about, and of interest to the LGBTQ+ community, we strongly encourage applications from women, people of color, transgender people, intersex people, asexual people, non-binary people, disabled people, and other underrepresented people and communities. The Festival is produced by Frameline, a non-profit arts organization dedicated to the exhibition, distribution, funding and promotion of LGBTQ+ media arts.
Frameline48 will be presented safely at venues around the Bay Area.
Frameline48 will be a competitive film festival with three juried awards for Outstanding First Feature (Narrative), Outstanding Documentary Feature, Outstanding Narrative Short, and Outstanding Documentary Short. Frameline48 will also have cash prizes attached to the two Audience Awards for Best Narrative Feature and Best Documentary Feature. Introduced in 2022, the Out in the Silence Award is an annual honor conferred to an outstanding film project that highlights brave acts of visibility, especially in places where such acts are rare and unexpected because of the dominant systems that make it difficult for LGBTQ+ people to live authentic lives.
Frameline47 introduced The Colin Higgins Youth Filmmaker Grants which are presented by Frameline centered on providing LGBTQ+ youth filmmakers with financial support to continue their work. Eligible applicants must be LGBTQ+ filmmakers under the age of 25 who currently reside in the United States. Up to three cash prizes of $15,000 each will be awarded in conjunction with the Frameline Film Festival. Frameline will curate up to 10 short films from which the Colin Higgins Foundation (CHF) Board will select up to three grantees.
Since 1983, our audience has been responsible for selecting the Best Narrative Feature and Best Documentary Feature of the Festival. Putting the power in the audience's hands, the Frameline Audience Awards offer cash prizes to the awarded titles.
2024 films...
Across Time & Space: Black Queer Stories
The Birth of Naikee
20 mins
The film follows the trajectory of Naikee, a black transwoman activist, in her quest for identity and freedom. By re-interpreting Boticceli’s painting "The Birth of Venus," Naikee asserts her right to exist differently.
Chimera
18 mins
Haunted by the past, a brilliant tech-addicted developer faces an impossible dilemma: recreate her ex-girlfriend in virtual reality or hold onto the crumbling relationship with her current one.
Grace
13 mins
Sixteen-year-old Grace prepares for her baptism in the rural 1950s South. When she learns she must repent before the ritual, Grace contemplates her romantic feelings toward her best friend Louise.
If I’m Here It Is by Mystery
22 mins
New Rio, 2054. Renowned witch Dahlia arrives at the port with a mission: to found the most powerful Clan that has ever existed and thus defeat the Order of Truth. In the future, many people are trans — but only a few are witches.
Saturn Risin9
10 mins
Saturn Risin9 returns home to the Bay Area to share their journey of perseverance centering self discovery, healing and creative expansion poetically told through dance, visual narrative, performance, and documentary.
Any Other Way: The Jackie Shane Story
Come to My Window: Date Night Shorts
¡salsa!
12 mins
Between sounds of congas and bongos, Margarita seeks freedom in a place that judges those outside the norm. Her path crosses with Liana’s, a deaf tourist, at a seaside kiosk. Their difficulty to communicate is what makes way for their bodies to fall in love and speak by themselves through dance.
Euphoric
16 mins
Sam brings Olivia back to their place during the heated extension of a first date gone *very* well. After a few stumbling blocks getting into the rhythm, the two find their way back after confronting something that could make or break a burgeoning queer romance… comfort in your own body.
Halfway
9 mins
A turbulent couple finds themselves at opposing entrances of the Juhu beach, compelling them to walk towards each other and meet in the middle.
Queen Size
19 mins
This morning, Marina has an appointment with Charlie to sell her a mattress. This evening, she will cancel her plane for Reunion. But they don’t know that yet.
Ripe!
18 mins
Nothing says "it's complicated" like breaking your crush's arm.
T-Minus
12 mins
T-Minus tells the story of Andrew, a trans mechanic, and a drag queen named Lex as they roadtrip from Ohio to Detroit to obtain an abortion.
You can’t get what you want but you can get me
13 mins
A unique slideshow documenting two long-haired transmen falling in love. A sweet and steamy celebration of T4T love with life and art all tangled up, set to music from Beach House, Alex Cameron, and The Strokes.
Beach Logs Kill
9 mins
At a high school football game, the star quarterback promises her lucky number to the deserving girl teammate. During the game things go wrong. An awkward girl in detention tries to prove herself worthy of quarterback's regard and legacy.
Bold Eagle
16 mins
Bold Eagle is about an “alter,” a person who anonymously posts nudes and performs lascivious acts in the nether regions of the Internet. Trapped at home with hallucinogenic drugs and his talking cat, BOLD seeks refuge in the strong arms of strange men from the internet as they masturbate their way to true happiness.
Cucumber/Knife
16 mins
Joana, a non-binary person with a vagina, meets Xtopher, an effeminate gay man, in the FKK area (aka the nudity-permitted area) of a Berlin lake. Then, they decide to go to the cruising area together, where they experience new sensations.
Paradise Europe
17 mins
On the day thousands of people are protesting against unaffordable rents in Berlin, a Brazilian who was just kicked out of his place struggles to find a new room while his personal life falls apart.
RAT!
17 mins
When a disgruntled music journalist accuses a global pop star of queerbaiting, the singer’s devoted fans descend on his remote cabin to wreak havoc and seek retribution.
Stink
11 mins
Transfixed by the smell of his victims, a stalker takes his obsession to the limit.
100 Boyfriends Mixtape
14 mins
Relying on his punk rock aesthetic to give the world a peek into his singularly unique perspective, local dancer/musician/author Brontez Purnell takes us on an unforgettably horny cruise around SF.
Alley of the Tranny Boys
50 mins
Alley of the Tranny Boys is a groundbreaking film directed by SF activist/director Christopher Lee, which re-imagines sexual liberation for today’s outlaws, claiming an erotic space for transmasculine individuals.
Birthday
7 mins
A night out, an old friend, and a special treat coalesce in this poetic short film by Shine Louise Houston.
Loads
19 mins
Underground San Francisco filmmaker Curt McDowell offers a cinematic account of his “adventures with straight boys and the hospitality he extends to them” in a new restoration of Loads by the Academy Film Archive.
Score
3 mins
Bring someone you want to excite! Radley Metzger's legendary erotic masterpiece Score! gets an update from some frisky San Francisco queers.
Transit
5 mins
Hotel guests discover a room for two. Trans superstar Vanniall and non-binary porn icon Jiz Lee join forces in a short romp that combines safer sex and juxtaposed edits to celebrate the joy in queer sex.
The Deep Queer Massacre
29 mins
Mamántula
48 mins
A lesbian detective duo investigating a web of ooey-gooey murders within the queer cruising scene quickly learn their killer might not be entirely human (or from this planet).
Stink
11 mins
Transfixed by the smell of his victims, a stalker takes his obsession to the limit.
The Dinner
12 mins
There are some issues which cannot be left for later!
Foraging
12 mins
A bored gay couple go cruising for the first time, but when they get lost in the woods, the cracks of their relationship become chasms.
ILY, BYE
13 mins
Unemployed and down on her luck, Siobhan (the hilarious Meg Stalter) is presented with a life changing job opportunity. Unfortunately, she can't get her foot out of her mouth long enough to get her foot in the door.
The Pansy of Pickadee
8 mins
The Pansy of Pickadee tells the story of a queer young man and a town on the verge of destruction. When all else fails, the young man uses his special skills to save his friends and family and becomes the hero he was born to be.
Spookable
15 mins
Two trans best friends (Alexandra Gray and Marval Rex) venture into the woods on a cabin getaway vacation only to end up a part of a horny supernatural world.
Stan Behavior
15 mins
A drag queen embarks on a quest for better workplace rights, but finds herself in a dicey situation when her new lawyer, a tone-deaf straight woman, is revealed to be a drag super stan. Starring Drag Race comic divas Ginger Minj and Heidi N Closet.
Stories from My Gay Grandparents: Episode 1
9 mins
After a near-death experience lights a flame within Grandma and Grandpa, they decide to grab life by the boas and tell the world their deepest secret: They're both gay. First stop: the big city... to learn “how to be gay” from the best gay people they know: their grandchildren!
Well, I Should Be Going
11 mins
Mariah is desperate to leave a party.
After All
27 mins
A broody, yet clever teen is on the rocks with her long-distance girlfriend when she discovers she can touch a photograph and travel back to the moment it was taken.
The Barman’s Daughter
4 mins
Queer maximalist meets drag meets trans power in Shawna Virago's latest music video. Themes of split consciousness and proliferating doubles set against Virago's glitter twang snarl.
Falling Up
5 mins
A gaggle of glittery drag artists gather for a rumpus frolic evoking unapologetic queer joy.
Kings
6 mins
Two drag kings fall in love during a bathroom quickie.
Mother
23 mins
In San Francisco, a city known for its queer community and bustling gay nightlife, there hasn't been a lesbian bar for almost a decade. Driven by nostalgia for a time when queer women had spaces, self-identified dyke Malia Spanyol sets out to build one for the next generation of women and femmes.
OUTCRY: Alchemists of Rage
32 mins
Artist and activist Whitney Bradshaw photographs womxn mid-scream during transformational gatherings where participants reclaim the power of their voices. Facing an onslaught of hostile legislation, Whitney works to spread OUTCRY’s radical empathy and community-building nationwide.
Saturn Risin9
10 mins
Saturn Risin9 returns home to the Bay Area to share their journey of perseverance centering self discovery, healing and creative expansion poetically told through dance, visual narrative, performance, and documentary.
Life Is Not a Competition, But I’m Winning
After Hours
6 mins
Two transwomen chance encounter in the club bathroom, one at the end of her rope, one at the end of her break working at the bar. Multidisciplinary artist Star Amerasu directs and stars opposite local performing artist Muñeca in this San Francisco tale produced by Elliot Page.
Burrow
14 mins
Believing himself to be one of the last survivors left in the wake of human extinction, an ex-war soldier finds unexpected comfort with the arrival of a weary traveler.
Bust
10 mins
A trans girl cop with the NYPD goes undercover to make a drug bust. Starring Lux Pascal and Cole Doman, Bust had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival.
Kai Hali’a (Sea of Memory)
9 mins
Through layers of space, time and memory across the ocean and ʻāina (land) on Maui, a diasporic Kānaka (Hawaiian) remembers how to connect back to themselves, their family and their lover.
Kasbi
12 mins
A middle-aged Pakistani housewife, in search of herself, hires a young, self-assured sex worker to keep her company for the night.
The Robbers
15 mins
Three trans women meet in a country house to plan a robbery. The trick of the heist is that, in order to create a false trail, they disguise themselves as men.
Stranger
18 mins
For the past 548 days, A has been absent from her own life, unable to feel anything. One night, J appears and takes her along with her, looking for ways to make her heart beat again. Starring Jehnny Beth and Agathe Rousselle, Stranger is a musical tale, the story of an awakening.
The White Crows
17 mins
Vlad, a young closeted Russian homosexual, returns to his small hometown from Moscow. His brother Liokha has arranged a surprise for him: an evening in the sauna with a female sex worker.
Mad About the Boy: The Noël Coward Story
Queer Places, Spaces, & Shorts
Mother
23 mins
In San Francisco, a city known for its queer community and bustling gay nightlife, there hasn't been a lesbian bar for almost a decade. Driven by nostalgia for a time when queer women had spaces, self-identified dyke Malia Spanyol sets out to build one for the next generation of women and femmes.
One Night at Babes
29 mins
At a rural Vermont dive bar called BABES, Cribbage tournaments overlap afternoons of karaoke and nights of raucous queer dance parties. When the aging conservative townsfolk and the younger queer leftists begin sharing the same watering hole, a delicate allegiance flourishes.
Stud Country
11 mins
Stud Country, the largest queer country western line dancing event in America, was created to preserve Los Angeles' little known 50+ year queer line dancing tradition. Despite its success and fiercely committed community, the event is set to lose its venue due to gentrification.
Trans Heaven, Pennsylvania
12 mins
In the 1970s and 1980s, the small Pennsylvania town of New Hope was among a few safe havens outside of major cities for gay men to find community. Over 30 years later, the town’s legacy remained, but now for a different community: transgender women.
Vollúpya
21 mins
In a post-apocalyptic future, an intergalactic explorer lands at an abandoned museum on a quest to find traces of his long-lost ancestors, and ends up being teleported to the dance floor of a Brazilian queer nightclub in the 1990s.
Alok
19 mins
A compelling portrait of Alok, acclaimed non-binary author, poet, comedian, and public speaker. Executive produced by Jodie Foster, Alok is directed by Alex Hedison (The L Word) and features appearances from fellow queer influencers Dylan Mulvaney and Chani Nicholas.
The Callers
20 mins
The Callers combines anonymous testimony with imagined creative scenes to tell the story of those who have called the oldest queer support line in the UK. Since 1974, listening volunteers at LGBT Switchboard have been taking anonymous calls and messages from queers across Britain.
The Device That Turned Me Into a Cyborg Was Born the Same Year I Was
3 mins
Through visual metaphors and circumstantial installations, Chella Man explores his cyborg identity and personal relationship to the freedom and constraints cochlear implants created.
Seat 31: Zooey Zephyr
14 mins
When Zooey Zephyr was expelled from the Montana House of Representatives for speaking on a bill banning transgender medical care, she made a nearby bench her “office.” Director Kimberly Reed’s cameras land next to Zooey, capturing shocking, funny, and joyous events.
There Are Things to Do
18 mins
Urvashi Vaid, an outspoken immigrant, lesbian, and woman of color was an LGBTQ+ superhero helped shape the modern day gay rights movement. Her vision for the movement serves as a roadmap of initiatives & tools for generations of activist as they face anti-LGBTQ+ backlash.
Volver
17 mins
A group of artists from the LGTBQ+ collective return to their hometowns aboard a pride float. A road movie that travels through the Spanish geography making visible the cultural clash with the most intransigent past.
Wouldn’t Make It Any Other Way
20 mins
Having built a colorful queer life in an American prairie town, an aspiring costume designer visits their island homeland of Guam to make costumes for a children’s theatre and reconnect with distanced parents.
Scarecrow in a Garden of Cucumbers
Wild Combination Streaming Shorts
Dream Burger
9 mins
Luke and Simon always go for burgers together after tennis. But this time, Luke wants to tell Simon how he really feels about him. How will Simon react? Luke's vivid imagination leads us into some intense scenarios, only to reveal a surprising truth.
Goodbye Tango
14 mins
The sudden death of Ruth's beloved hamster reveals a decaying marriage with her curmudgeon wife, Connie. Ruth can either accept the death of things or keep spinning the wheel.
Like You
16 mins
A late-night encounter and a summer romance merge when a small-town teenager named Smith sneaks out to meet a man in his twenties.
MASC4MASC
9 mins
In a world of masculinity, Rafael and friends reign supreme. When he meets Alex, an intimate moment forces Rafael to confront desires and fears, torn between two worlds.
My Best Friend
18 mins
Clara is reeling from a breakup and goes on a staycation with her best friend Léa. The two friends unexpectedly sleep with each other, challenging the constraints of platonic friendship and the true depths of intimacy.
Threshold
17 mins
It's been thirty years since Joan & Susie stood before their closest friends to celebrate at a small wedding, decades before their union would become legally recognized. Now, in front of children and chosen family, they cross a different threshold.
The World According to Allee Willis