Queer Screen Mardi Gras Film Festival’s programme features an epic 161 films and events spread across 77 unique programmes, so there's plenty to see.
Plus, if you can’t make it in person (or you can and you just want an extra fix of film), Queer Screen presents an on-demand encore season, with a diverse selection of films available for streaming nationally.
Opening proceedings in 2024 will be the Sydney premiere of British neo-noir thriller ‘FEMME’ starring Nathan Stewart-Jarrett and George MacKay. . . And closing things off is ‘Housekeeping For Beginners’ from Goran Stolevski – a sensitive, conversation-rich exploration of found family.
Then, in between is a rich, layered collection of films. Some sad, some happy, some fun. . . And some a little naughty!
To explore the sexy side of things, Queer Screen Mardi Gras Film Festival Director Lisa Rose lists the five sexiest films of the fest.
One
'The Summer With Carmen': Intriguing, sexy and unique – Zacharias Mavroeidis’s film will get under your skin, in the best way. As gay best mates Demosthenes and Nikitas chill out on one of Athens’ cruising beaches, they reflect on the life-changing period when Demosthenes broke up with his partner, in the hope of finding inspiration for a film script. A funny, poignant look at relationships, friendships, intimacy and pet ownership, set against a steamy Greek summer.
Two
'Split': When stuntwoman Anna meets the magnetic famous actress she’s doubling for while shooting a film, she unlocks a part of her she’d always kept hidden. What starts as an innocent exchange of glances soon ignites into a turbulent, sensual love affair. Directed by a French feminist author and filmed with an 80 per cent female crew, 'Split' is a daring, innovative and genre-bending unpacking of power and trauma through a queer feminist lens.
Three
'Egoist': When successful fashion editor Kosuke hires Ryuta to be his personal trainer, there’s an immediate attraction. Ryuta lives with his ill mother and works multiple jobs to support her. Kosuke, having lost his mother when he was young, is welcomed into their family – a bond he had long missed. Told with warmth and tenderness, this adaptation of Makoto Takayama’s autobiographical novel 'Egoist' is a gut-wrenching character drama boasting vulnerable and assured lead performances.
Four
'When Night Is Falling': Get swept away by the stunning 4K restoration of one of the most erotic sapphic romances to ever grace our screens. 'When Night Is Falling' tells the story of Camille (Pascale Bussières), a professor at a Protestant college in Toronto who’s engaged to fellow professor Martin (Henry Czerny). After a chance meeting Camille is inexplicably drawn to Petra (Rachael Crawford), a flamboyant performer in a Felliniesque circus troupe, throwing her whole conservative life into disarray.
Five
Hot Boy Shorts: Filled with sexually frank stories, steamy reveries and titillating tales, don't miss out on seeing what these Hot Boys Shorts are packing. Dwelling on the steamier side of gay life – from spontaneous toilet stall hook-ups to a man's attempt to step outside of his comfort zone, through to secret forest trysts and long-held fantasies about an older brother's friend – these shorts explore how sex can offer insights into who someone really is beneath the surface.
Queer Screen Mardi Gras Film Festival 2024 is on from 15-29 February in cinemas (Sydney) and 1-11 March on-demand.
