32nd Connecticut LGBTQ Film Festival

This is a harrowing and erotic tale of 22-year-old Leo, a male prostitute who searches for love while trading in sex. Constantly in danger and frequently taken advantage of, he wanders through his life without rules or restrictions and manages to survive on the streets. After stumbling through a series of encounters, he thinks he has found his soul mate and protector, his hustler friend Ahd. But Ahd prefers the stability he finds in the arms of a wealthy, older client. Will Leo also follow the same path and choose stability, security and comfort when it comes along, or will he choose freedom – and danger – on the streets?

After his mother’s sudden death, 15-year-old Socrates must learn how to fend for himself on the mean streets of São Paulo. Unable to collect her ashes without the consent of his estranged father, and with no income to cover the rent for his run-down apartment, Socrates sees no way out of his desperate situation. When he lands a small construction job, he meets a troubled young man and forms a relationship with him that simmers, then smolders, and then takes a consequential turn.

World skiing champion Erika Schinegger, who won the gold medal in the women’s downhill competition in 1966, had been declared female at birth and raised as a girl. But a newly-introduced genetic test proved that Erika was actually male.  The joy of victory gives way to heartbreak as Erika is disqualified, accused of fraud and prevented from competing in the 1968 Olympics unless she undergoes a medical procedure to become fully female. Erika finds herself alone, without support from family or friends, and faced with the most important and agonizing decision of her life.

Following the divisive 2016 presidential election and a wave of anti-LGBTQ laws, the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus embarks on a tour of the American Deep South to set the record straight about LGBTQ people. With allies in the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir, they use music to bring a message of love, hope and acceptance to communities confronting – and preaching – intolerance. A true celebration of the power of music to unite us, even in the face of inflexible religious fundamentalism.

This coming-of-age drama that will sing its way into your heart opens in 1986 South Africa, as small-town Johan is called up for compulsory military service at the age of 18.Happily, he is accepted into the military choir, the Canaries. At a time when religion oppresses individuality, and apartheid separates whites from blacks, Johan and the Canaries must survive promote both church and state during a national tour of duty. However, as Johan falls in love with a choir mate and begins to question everything he has been told about the world,

For most of the last century, lesbians rarely saw themselves (out) on the silver screen – at least not in the way they wanted. But Stonewall, the feminist movement, and the experimental cinema of the 1970s ushered in a new age of visibility that transformed queer cinema. Filmmakers Barbara Hammer, Su Friedrich, Rose Troche, Cheryl Dunye, Yoruba Richen, Desiree Akhavan and Vicky Du, film critic B. Ruby Rich and others share moving and hilarious stories on the struggle to express queer identity through film.

When Karole and Ali decide that that they want to be moms, they’re not fully aware of the challenges (and exhaustion) they will face along the way. Their lives are complicated because they share a small flat with Ali’s annoying ex-boyfriend. But they put up with him because he has that secret ingredient they need to make a baby. After their enthusiastic first attempt, the women face many daunting hurdles, but they’re determined to keep trying because they are in love, and miracles can happen.