Premiering to a standing ovation at the Busan Film Festival, "Aligarh" is one of the most vital films to come out of India in recent years. Based on the true story of Dr. Siras, a linguistics professor who faced suspension due to his sexual orientation, the film is a heartfelt demand for the right to love, and a poetic call to transcend identity.
Skype Q&A with Naeem Mohaiemen!! This striking and hypnotic documentary offers a fascinating interrogation of the legacy of radical left-wing movements. Using archival sound and surveillance video, Mohaiemen reconstructs the hijacking of an airplane at the hands of the Japanese Red Army in 1977, during which it was forced to land in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Harune Massey in Person!! With echoes of Romeo and Juliet, "Gardaab" is a taut and stylized thriller about two lovers caught in a web of family and gang warfare in the underbelly of Karachi. Harune Massey's restrained direction offers a compelling meditation on love, and on the fragility of human life, and points to an exciting new wave of Pakistani filmmakers on the horizon.
Bay Area Filmmakers in Person!! From power to pleasure, courage to comedy, this year's kaleidoscope of cinematic offerings engage the sexual and the sensual: a young man gathers strength to approach his crush, while a young woman plots a shocking escape from marriage; Audrey Lorde's poetry and Justin Bieber's music become fodder for queer interventions; and SF's Sexy Circus ponders its future.
