Frameline

A queer, colourful, experimental galaxy of new filmmaking. Join us for a voyage into alien aesthetics, cosmic glamour, genderfluid and pluralistic futures. Curated by Nelly Ben Hayoun-Stépanian in partnership with the London Short Film Festival.

Working with LGBTQ+ activists, poets, dancers, rappers, and in connection with community, queer, Black visual artist Rashaad Newsome’s new immersive work serves as both salve and lifeline to those daring to exist outside the margins. Through personal stories and tributes, odes to ballroom culture, live music, and Afro-futurist AI, Newsome transforms an NYC armory into a performance, art, and resistance sanctuary for the queer community.  

Baby is in trouble. Fresh out of juvenile detention and with nowhere to go, 17-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) — nicknamed “Baby” for his youth and vulnerability — hits the streets of São Paulo alone. His parents have vanished, and the system is waiting to pull him back in, when boundaries begin to blur with a magnetic street hustler named Ronald (Ricardo Teodoro). 

Chosen as Croatia’s official submission to the Oscars, this stunning historical epic follows a quartet of gay artist friends in Communist Yugoslavia. As ideological litmus tests increasingly determine social standing, career opportunities, and even personal relationships, Lovro, Nenad, Stevan, and Ivan find themselves the target of the vengeful eyes of party loyalists and are forced to risk everything. The film serves as a haunting reminder of the danger of systems that demand unquestioning allegiance. 

This tender and deeply personal documentary explores the complexities of identity, belonging, and reconciliation. Executive produced by Alex Gibney, Between Goodbyes tells the story of Mieke, a queer Korean adoptee raised in the Netherlands, and her birth mother, Okgyun, who was forced to give her up under South Korea’s harsh one-child policy, cultural stigma, and economic hardship. 

Angelo Madsen’s sophomore feature dives into Fakir Musafar’s groundbreaking “Modern Primitives” movement, which took off through the punk magazine Re/Search. Fearless and unbiased, the film’s striking editing combines archival visuals and personal stories to reveal the complex life of Musafar and how his body modification practices reshaped queer identity and influenced alternative culture. 

From Juno MacGuff’s front-yard recliner to Alex Owens’ water-soaked prop in Flashdance, cinema loves a good chair. But not as much as Camille (Juliette Lewis) loves the chair at the center of the new film from visionary writer-director Amanda Kramer. By merging performance art, absurdism, and memorable narration from a disembodied Melanie Griffith, this singular body-swap film views the idea of what it means to be desired through a definitively queer lens. 

A trans sex worker attempting to pursue motherhood, a cis man dangerously spiraling into inceldom, and all of their assorted friends, clients, DL partners, exes, and black market HRT dealers are just some of the characters you’ll meet in this first 4.5 hour installment of writer/director/star Louise Weard’s fearlessly DIY epic film about trans life in our modern world. 

Winner of the Festival Favorite Award at Sundance, Come See Me in the Good Light is a poignant and funny portrait of poet and activist Andrea Gibson following a terminal cancer diagnosis. Gibson and partner Megan Falley unearth a profound sense of resilience in small, everyday joys as they discover what it means to really live. 

This collection of rare, newly-preserved original movie trailers provides a fascinating — and very entertaining — look at the way that gay porn of yore was marketed and sold, filled with lurid taglines, false promises, personal messages from the stars, and surprisingly creative editing. As one trailer notes, “It’s Rated X, so come with a grownup.” Preceded by GANGBANG. 

Drag Race star Peppermint takes center stage in this up close and personal documentary about her journey with fame, identity, and the art of drag. Sharing her story alongside a close network of trans individuals, one of the world’s favorite drag performers takes you inside her rise from humble beginnings to her current reign as outspoken trailblazer for the trans community. 

Driven by the bold visual flare you’d expect from a protégé of Luca Guadagnino, Giovanni Tortorici makes a striking directorial debut with Diciannove. Aided by an engrossing central performance by Manfredi Marini, the film offers an unconventional not-quite-coming-of-age portrait of a 19-year-old bisexual with wavering academic pursuits, a body that refuses to process alcohol, and a libido with unusual triggers. 

When Isio, an undocumented Nigerian fleeing homophobia, meets Farah, her roommate at a UK detention center, she finds an unexpected chance at happiness by allowing herself the luxury of dreams. Writer/director Joy Gharorro-Akpojotor’s timely, tender look at the migrant experience gives voice to oft-unnamed asylum seekers navigating an unjust system. 

Three college friends embark on a cross-country road trip/rescue mission in search of missing fourth, confronting the choices that increase — or sacrifice — their joy along the way. Celebrating the complex interior lives and loves of Black queers across a spectrum, Dreams in Nightmares is expertly helmed by director Shatara Michelle Ford and a cast of majority queer and trans Black actors.  

In this heartwarming tragi-comedy, a stoic plumber is forced to drive his estranged, gay brother home from jail in 1970s Canada. With Alan Cumming in a standout role, Drive Back Home is a funny, tender road movie about queer resilience, family baggage, and finding common ground across a snowy thousand-mile journey. 

With dizzying cinematography and break-neck suspense, director Simon Bouisson plunges the audience into the paranoid world of surveillance stalking. Architecture student by day, camgirl by night, a young queer woman’s new life in Paris is rattled when she realizes she’s being stalked by a mysterious drone. 

Finding true love is hard but falling in love with these shorts is easy. This program brings the romance with stories of queer angels coaxing together the perfect match and awkward first dates that bloom into relationships. 

In this bawdy and heartwarming story of mothers and sons, the trials of juggling self-care and caring for a loved one are told through Edward (James McArdle), a gay novelist looking after his non-verbal mother (Fionnula Flanagan). A chaotic weekend starts to unfold when his three best friends impulsively dump their elderly mothers onto him for a Pride getaway. 

In writer/director/star Annapurna Sriram’s bold debut, AP seeks a cosmic reset after a tarot reading by Big Freedia demands $1,000 and a lamb to lift her curse. With best friend Danni (Sadie Scott) in tow, AP dives headfirst into their own Fool’s Journey through Trashtown, USA’s neon dystopia, as Sriram blends gorgeous 16mm, DIY spirit, and rule-smashing anarchy. 

Laugh out loud with the classic Fun in Shorts program as this collection of films finds humor in dating, birthing alien babies, scamming your business to success, and cheesy baby gender reveal parties. 

In Italy, Dr. Maurizio Bini is viewed as an unconventional practitioner — but that’s exactly what makes him a vital healthcare provider. With the conservative government attempting to interfere in a person’s medical care, this unsung hero fights for his patients. 

A salient document of our current moment, Disclosure director Sam Feder’s Sundance standout centers on ACLU attorney Chase Strangio, the first out trans person to argue before the Supreme Court. While Strangio fights a high-stakes legal battle to overturn Tennessee's ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth (United States v. Skrmetti), he and other leading activists, like Laverne Cox and Elliot Page, examine how media bias influences the public’s perception of trans rights.  

Celebrate queer stories from the Bay Area with the Homegrown program. This program features sci-fi, heists, gay stuff, elder stories, and more. 

“I’m happy, I’m carefree, and I’m gay. I was born this way.” Carl Bean’s anthem ignited disco dancefloors, fading into novelty until Lady Gaga’s 21st-century tribute. Star-studded with testimonies from Gaga, Dionne Warwick, and Billy Porter, this documentary traces Bean’s journey of liberation from hardscrabble childhood through music industry success to his influential AIDS activism. Uplifting and inspirational, Frameline49’s official Juneteenth celebration sings a song of love and pride for today’s dark times. 

The iconic Venus Xtravaganza was immortalized in Paris Is Burning. But this arresting documentary from director Kimberly Reed further explores her story: from her beginnings in the ballroom scene, to the efforts made by her birth and house families to preserve her legacy and demand justice for her murder. 

Winner of the Teddy Jury Award at the 2025 Berlinale, this beautiful film meets the present moment with its novel coming-of-age story. Anchored by a poignant parent-child bond and effortlessly populated by LGBTQ+ characters, this feature debut is told through a refreshing queer lens that rearranges misplaced shame into a deeply felt sense of pride. 

Presented in a new digital restoration, this groundbreaking, award-winning film “about who lesbian mothers and their children really are” portrays the diversity of experience, race and class among eight families and their challenges with custody, the children's fathers and the courts. Preceded by Lesbian Custody. 

This program looks at the relationships we have with our families and with ourselves. From self-love to the love of your deceased grandma, this collection of shorts will have you in your feels. 

Dorothy Gale is one of the most recognizable and influential characters in pop culture history. But how did she become a stand-in for the outcasts of the world? Featuring interviews with pop culture icons including John Waters, Lena Waithe, Amber Ruffin, and Margaret Cho to name a few, It's Dorothy explores the origins and legacy of the character, from the ways she has been subverted and reimagined, to her impact on LGBTQ+ culture. 

Gay poet, novelist, filmmaker, and artist Jean Cocteau was a visionary whose influence shaped the 20th century and continues to resonate today. Through rare archival footage, personal interviews, and clips from his groundbreaking work, Jean Cocteau offers a vivid portrait of an artist who defied convention at every turn. 

In this beautifully impressionistic reverie of a 24-year-old James Baldwin in France, director Yashaddai Owens and actor Benny O. Arthur capture the wondrous, profound impact the Paris years had on the legendary writer’s life. Bring your blankets, chairs, and picnic baskets for this free outdoor screening on Sunday, June 22 at 8:30 pm at PROXY, an outdoor theater located in the heart of Hayes Valley. 

John Lithgow and Oscar winner Olivia Colman star in Sophie Hyde's funny and heartfelt tale of a queer family reunion, as three generations of an Australian family reconvene in Amsterdam. Lithgow plays the titular Jimpa, an HIV-positive academic at the end of his tenure in the Netherlands, whose filmmaker daughter (Colman) and non-binary grandchild (Aud Mason-Hyde) come to visit in this Sundance standout. 

For his feature directorial debut, Sergio de León weaves surreal imagery, offbeat humor, and a ton of birds into one of the most vivid and original queer coming of age films in recent memory — about an 18 year old who receives a cursed inheritance. 

A restful turned reckless retreat with a group of queer women reuniting for a weekend to celebrate a divorce, new loves, and old flings. With humor and grace, Lakeview navigates power dynamics in messy but loving relationships while questioning what happens when lessons learned don’t lead to patterns broken. 

In this Teddy Award-winning animated comedy, The Pitt’s breakout star Shabana Azeez voices the painfully introverted Saira. But when the Straight White Maliens kidnap her ex, the titular sapphic monarch-to-be finds herself embarking on a truly zany journey through space. Filled with laugh-out-loud gay in-jokes, carabiner-tapping musical numbers, and offbeat characters, the lovably frenetic sci-fi comedy is a must-see. 

Executive produced by Sarah Jessica Parker, The Librarians examines the book bans threatening schools and libraries throughout the United States. As legislators take aim at works that center on race and queerness, a group of librarians dubbed the FReadom Fighters put their lives at risk to ensure that our stories aren’t removed from shelves — or erased from culture at large.  

In a quiet Seoul apartment, two women fight to save their relationship. Heeseo suffocates under the weight of silence, secrecy, and survival while Seonwoo becomes consumed by a mysterious, unbearable odor seeping from the apartment below.  After exclusively making documentaries, Lucky, Apartment is the striking narrative feature debut from Kangyu Garam, exploring queer love in South Korea. 

Lisette Marie Flanary’s documentary explores the Native Hawaiian concept of gender fluidity by interweaving intimate interviews with multimedia stage performance. A live performance by hula master Patrick Makuakāne will follow the screening. 

A young bisexual hustler sells his body to whomever is willing to pay — and in his new home of San Francisco, it’s usually men. But when he finally finds himself in a happy relationship, will the baggage of his profession cause him to lose everything? Quite possibly the first gay feature film shot in SF, The Meatrack is a newly-restored landmark of early queer cinema. 

A Mother Apart follows acclaimed spoken word artist and queer activist Staceyann Chin as she embarks on a deeply personal journey to understand her estranged mother — the woman who abandoned her in Jamaica at the age of nine. With brutal honesty, Chin asks the painful question: “Why would a mother leave her child?” 

In this stunning feature debut, director Rafaela Camelo creates an intimate, lyrical, and often-humorous story of two 10-year-old girls who meet over the course of a summer holiday. Phenomenal acting from a host of memorable characters and a dash of magical realism bring to life the story of that first friend who truly sees you. 

In 1981 in Odessa, Texas, the nude body of a beloved Catholic priest was found bound and mutilated in a seedy motel room. Cops had no leads until a young gay Apache man named James Reyos suddenly confessed and was swiftly convicted. Though Reyos quickly recanted his confession, it wasn't until four decades later that previously buried evidence emerged, sending shockwaves through the small Texas town that had sentenced him to prison. 

Meeting somewhere at the intersection of Before Sunrise and Weekend, this charming feature debut centers on two star-crossed but seemingly disparate men over the course of a single, chilly night in London. With palpable onscreen chemistry, Alexander Lincoln and Jack Brett Anderson ignite the screen as spoiled entrepreneur Oliver and struggling actor Lukas in this thoughtful meet (not so) cute. 

A casual one night stand between an aspiring young actor and a high profile political hopeful opens a Pandora's box of power play, erotic dares, and dangerous encounters. For their scorching third feature, directing duo Filipe Matzembacher and Marcio Reolon boldly mix the themes of Fassbinder with the style of DePalma to resurrect the lost art of the erotic thriller for our contemporary queer era. 

Exploring what it means to be a queer teen in the 2020s, Niñxs turns the transition narrative and the coming-of-age portrait on their heads, as director Kani Lapuerta lets Karla Bañuelos — who is always playfully aware of the camera — shape the project into a cinematic diary. 

Bold and defiant, romantic and horny, the sophomore narrative feature from the director of Dry Wind begins in rural Brazil in 1984. An isolated farmer nurses a wounded motorcyclist back to health, setting off a turbulent love story that continues into the present day. 

In a San Francisco losing its soul to rapid gentrification, nonbinary newbie Cass barely scrapes by nannying for wealthy kids, waiting tables, and dealing just enough party drugs to cover rent on a small apartment. A one-night stand with co-worker Kalli sparks something real, but when Kalli disappears — leaving her 11-year-old daughter, Ari, in Cass’ hands — the seams start to come undone. 

For the first time, this special presentation will celebrate the Colin Higgins Youth Filmmaker Grants program and the success of its recipients by showcasing films from past and present grantees. 

Some men are literal dogs! And Juan just so happens to find one in the wilderness while on vacation. He takes him in, bathes him, feeds him, and shows him much-needed affection. However, his girlfriend warns against becoming too attached… perhaps, this is because the dog is a naked man. Director Marco Berger is back with a boldly absurdist fairy tale where animal desires and instincts turn strangely literal. 

A young hustler escapes the harsh realities of street life into a lushly erotic dream world in this newly-restored underground classic. Famously hand-constructed and shot over the span of seven years in beefcake photographer James Bidgood’s New York apartment, Pink Narcissus is a cornerstone of queer visual aesthetic whose influence can still be felt over 50 years since its original release.  

In this provocative Sundance award winner, a closeted undercover cop (Tom Blyth) is tasked with being the bait to entrap gay men cruising the mall when he falls for one of his targets (Russell Tovey). In this restless, paranoid erotic drama set in the 1990s, Plainclothes unfolds through a fragmented timeline with VHS-spliced visuals, dissolving the boundaries between secrecy and desire, watcher and watched. 

Following Goodbye Gauley Mountain: An Ecosexual Love Story (2014) and Water Makes Us Wet: An Ecosexual Adventure (2019), Bay Area icons and longtime partners Annie Sprinkle and Beth Stephens present Playing with Fire: An Ecosexual Emergency, the third chapter in their queer environmental documentary explorations. 

When two young boys are kidnapped in Nepal, butch lesbian Detective Inspector Pooja is called in to investigate and solve the case. After teaming up with a younger female detective, what begins as a straightforward case quickly spirals into something far more complex in this tense and gripping film inspired by real political events. 

Check your inhibitions at the door (and throw your hang-ups out as well) for this collection of erotic shorts from the past, present, and future that are playful, surprising, and explicit. 

Shot in stark black and white, this provocative film from actor-turned-director Jun Li follows a young gay man (Jayden Cheung, in a remarkable, daring debut) on an erotic travelogue of Hong Kong, moving from hookup to hook-up while quietly assuming the persona of his latest sexual encounter. Preceded by Carpobrotus. 

When a promising audition goes sideways, rising musical theatre star Z questions everything — from his career to his trans masc identity. With the help of a wise vocal coach and a new friend behind the bar, he begins to find his true voice. A joyful, intimate story of self-discovery, starring a standout Breton Lalama as Z. Preceded by Tessitura. 

To celebrate the 25th anniversary of one of the definitive literary portraits of queer San Francisco, Michelle Tea’s Valencia, Frameline49 is hosting a screening of its radical, community-made 2013 film adaptation, followed by a walking tour of old haunts and dyke destinations of The Mission with Tea serving as your guide. 

Filmmaker Sasha Wortzel returns to Frameline with a glorious and impassioned tribute to the Florida Everglades. Drawing inspiration from the work of writer and activist Marjory Stoneman Douglas, the film beautifully summons regional history to serve as a call to action to preserve the local ecosystem and fight the systemic threats of the climate crisis. 

In the desert of southern California, every year a family dutifully works to convert their prefabricated home into a haunted house spectacle for neighbors to explore. But as the mundane slowly gives way to the macabre, the family's own personal problems are laid bare as the father's infatuation increasingly begins to take its toll on everyone. 

Former Marine, three-time Paralympian, and 14-time Guinness World Record setter Angela Madsen is a renowned ocean rower. By chronicling the year leading up to Madsen’s unsupported solo row from Los Angeles to Hawai’i, Row of Life captures both the everyday beauty of a lesbian love story and an athlete’s fearless tenacity in the face of harrowing adversity. 

Known for being the first American woman to fly in space, astronaut and physicist Sally Ride kept her personal life private until her death — where it was revealed she had a long-term partnership with science writer and professor Tam O'Shaughnessy. This Sundance Award-winning documentary seamlessly blends archival footage and intimate interviews for a complete portrait of Earth’s first known lesbian space traveller.   

A small town arm-wrestling champion’s world is upended when his secret teenage love returns, resurfacing the passion he had long since buried. With the threat of an incoming flood on the horizon as their love slowly rekindles, he begins to question the future he had planned for himself in this keenly observed coming-of-age drama. 

Don’t let the name fool you. From stories about queer erotic encounters to lusting over carrots, these animated shorts are strictly for adults. 

Amidst his vibrant Copenhagen gay nightlife, young bathhouse attendant Johan finds himself unexpectedly falling for William, a charming trans man. What starts as a torrid romance quickly becomes a turning point for Johan. This forces him to confront the pressure of social norms that still persists in the gay community today and just how much he has to learn about the complexities of queer relationships. 

From devious revenge plots to invoking a demon to eat your ex boyfriends, this program of dark comedy films is designed for those that find joy in the demise of others. 

This year’s recipient of the Out in the Silence Award asks a daunting question. “What if everything you were told about yourself from the people you trusted was a lie?” Through the story of Jim Ambrose, who didn’t know he was born intersex until he looked into his medical history in college, the film exposes the truth about the harms caused by a bogus and bigoted medical study that lead to the normalization of a systemic practice which forced gender designations onto thousands of intersex children. 

Twentysomething Anna finally leaves her small, transphobic hometown for good and quickly begins dating goth tattoo artist Gen after the two discover they share supernatural powers. But before Anna can call up the U-Haul, the sick neck tattoo Gen gives one of her clients inadvertently summons a demon that begins feeding off of their friends. Preceded by The Age of Flowering Plants. 

If you’ve ever wondered what gender-swap teen comedies like She’s the Man would look like if they were actually made by trans and nonbinary folks, look no further! In She’s the He, two best friends concoct a plan to finally dispel the rumors that they’re gay: by coming out as trans women! 

Effectively fusing romance into a slick neo-noir, Silent Sparks spins a tale of deep longing in an unexpected milieu, capturing a sumptuous beauty in the night streets where the possibility of risk and romance go hand-in-hand. Preceded by Like What Would Sorrow Look. 

Bisexual content creator Emilý’s relationship with Katinka is everything she could ask for: sexy shopping cart make-out sessions, handsy hikes through the forest, and bringing their own heat to the hot tub. And the best part? Katinka lives abroad, while Emilý is in Iceland. When Katinka decides to move closer to take their relationship to a new level, free-spirited Emilý reevaluates what it means to be sexually liberated and financially secure. 

In the heart of Manila's neon underbelly, a young group of hustlers make a home for themselves around a seedy bus stop, turning tricks to make ends meet. One night when a member of the gang tragically dies from a drug overdose, the rest of the group bands together to return the body to his rural village, setting them on an unforgettable journey. 

When The Rocky Horror Show opened in 1973, no one could have imagined the impact that the subversive rock musical would have on culture. As the movie turns 50, the original cast, creatives, and other pop culture icons (including Richard O’Brien, Tim Curry, Susan Sarandon, and Trixie Mattel) reminisce about the process of bringing it to life, as audiences around the world continue to do the time warp again and again. 

Known for her unrestrained and debaucherous lifestyle, a successful trans actress (Camila Sosa Villada) defies every expectation that’s been placed upon her (both by her close friends and the conservative community of Argentina) when she decides to settle down and start a family with a new husband (Alfonso Herrera) — who happens to be gay. 

In 1990s Paris, long-term couple Emma and Sammy move into a new apartment, where they both find themselves drawn to their downstairs neighbor Cyril, a handsome young HIV-positive photographer. In director Gaël Morel’s beautiful and affecting drama, Victor Belmondo, Lou Lampros, and Théo Christine deliver astonishing performances as three young people navigating a bisexual love triangle in a not-so-long-ago era when AIDS was almost always a death sentence. 

When two codependent besties suddenly find their house uninhabitable, a possible answer to all their problems appears in the form of a narcissistic space alien named Brian who favors track suits and loves a dance interlude. One mere sensual touch from Brian makes all of your anxieties and past traumas melt away. But is Brian's ulterior motive world domination? 

In a work that spans several years and finds hope in questioning the nature of endings, this meditative and ethereal film finds filmmaker Victoria Verseau immersing herself in her own transgender history in order to find her path forward. With the company of two young women on their transition journey, Verseau recalls a lost friend, revisiting the stark past in order to contextualize her vivid present. 

At a time when so much of our queer culture is under attack, this program celebrates the archives and the memories of our ancestors and paves a path toward our future. 

Featuring Dylan O’Brien in a career-best turn, Twinless finds a charming odd couple pairing between straight Roman and gay Dennis, who meet at a support group for people who have lost their twin. A double prize winner at Sundance, James Sweeney's sophomore feature achieves a high-wire balancing act of laugh-out-loud comedy and gut-punching sadness, with filmmaking and storytelling sophistication to boot. 

Before it officially drops on Netflix, we’re hosting a free watch party for The Ultimatum: Queer Love season 2’s premiere at Rikki’s. Be among the first to see how the sophomore outing’s six different couples fare! 

After meeting at a border checkpoint, the flames of desire ignite between Indian border guard Karum and Kashmiri college student Faheem. A relationship seems impossible. Not only are both closeted, but opposing religions, ancient enmity, and current unrest stand between them. Still, neither can deny the erotic chemistry that burns with each encounter in this sensual and poignant romantic drama. 

Three decades ago, Saturday Night Live bravely dared to ask “Who’s he… or she?” and turned gender nonconformity into a punchline with its recurring It’s Pat sketch. Now, a who’s-who of trans comics are tasked with the ultimate challenge: creating a new Pat sketch in the year 2025, while also interrogating the boneheadedly problematic (yet nonetheless meaningful) representation of our past along the way. 

An eerie-yet-poignant ghost story from director Samuel Van Grinsven, this dramatic thriller centers on the grieving Jack (Dacre Montgomery), who returns to an isolated corner of New Zealand after his birth mother, Elizabeth, passes away. In addition to meeting Elizabeth’s grieving widow (Vicky Krieps), Jack has a series of  haunting, perspective-shifting encounters with his mother’s lingering spirit. 

Legendary Bboy Wicket, internationally renowned breakdancer, changed the game in the ‘90s. While Bboy Wicket seemed to be it all and have it all, the closeted gay man behind the persona, Gabriel Jaochico, struggled with the isolation of living a half-truth. This highly visual and intimate documentary is the energizing story of the transformative power of art, and of living as your whole self.