Symposium: An Athenian Rawmance[2017]

Benjamin(en)

Benjamin, a rising star filmmaker, is on the brink of premiering his difficult second film No Self at the London Film Festival when Billie, his hard drinking publicist, introduces him to a mesmeric French musician called Noah.

My Brother the Devil(en)

Fourteen-year-old Mo is a lonely, sensitive boy whose hunger for the rant and banter of buddies makes him prone to tread dangerous territories. He idolizes his handsome older brother, Rashid, a charismatic, well-respected member of a local gang, whose drug dealing enables “Rash” to provide for his family. Aching to be seen as a tough guy himself, Mo takes a job that unlocks a fateful turn of events and forces the brothers to confront their inner demons. It turns out that hate is easy. It is love and understanding that take real courage.

Starcrossed(en)

Two brothers develop a sexual attraction to one another amid the unkind world around them.

I'm Here(en)

A library assistant plods through an ordinary life in LA until a chance meeting opens his eyes to the power of creativity and ultimately, love. When this new life and love begin to fall apart, he discovers he has a lot to give. This short film proves that ordinary is no place to be.

Alex Strangelove(en)

Alex Truelove is on a quest to lose his virginity, an event eagerly awaited by his patient girlfriend and cheered on with welcome advice by his rowdy friends. But Alex, a super gregarious dude, is oddly unmotivated. A magical house party throws Alex into the presence of Elliot, a hunky college guy, who pegs Alex as gay and flirts hard. Alex is taken aback but after a series of setbacks on the girlfriend front he takes the plunge and learns some interesting new facts about himself.

The Duke of Burgundy(en)

Day in and day out, lovers Cynthia and Evelyn enact an elaborate sadomasochistic fantasy as mistress and maid. But as their ritual of domination and submission begins to turn stale, Cynthia yearns for something more conventional, while Evelyn tries to push their taboos even further.

Akron(en)

Benny, a college freshman at the University of Akron, Ohio meets and falls for fellow freshman Christopher at a football game. With the support of their families and friends they embark on a new relationship. But a tragic event in the past involving their mothers soon comes to light and threatens to tear them apart.

Flow(en)

A filmmaker talks about his work and love life with an unseen friend behind the camera. We also watch four of his short films.

My Policeman(en)

In the late 1990s, the arrival of elderly invalid Patrick into Marion and Tom’s home triggers the exploration of seismic events from 40 years previous: the passionate relationship between Tom and Patrick at a time when homosexuality was illegal.

Dirty Sexy Saint(en)

Clay Kincaid hates the nickname 'Saint', he got for being too kind to stray animals and desperate people. Especially when it comes to women. With a rough and damaged past that has left him jaded, he doesn't do committed relationships. This is before he meets Samantha Jamieson, an heiress turned runaway in need of help. When she starts to work as a waitress at his bar, he discovers that she is someone truly special and amazing… someone that could warm his damaged heart.

Below Her Mouth(en)

An unexpected affair quickly escalates into a heart-stopping reality for two women whose passionate connection changes their lives forever.

The Boys in the Band(en)

At a birthday party in 1968 New York, a surprise guest and a drunken game leave seven gay friends reckoning with unspoken feelings and buried truths.

Yes, God, Yes(en)

Alice, a young innocent Catholic girl, is tempted into masturbating after an AOL chat suddenly turns sexual, however is conflicted as the act would be considered a sin.

A Perfect Ending(en)

This intimate drama follows Rebecca, a woman who has kept her sexuality a secret from her friends but chooses to reveal it to a stranger. While Rebecca's revelations may not yield the results she expects, a perfect ending is still in reach.

Code 3(en)

A burned-out paramedic tries to survive his last 24 hours on the job while training a new recruit.

Five Dances(en)

A gifted young dancer arrives in New York City and joins the downtown contemporary dance world. With talent to burn, he soon must choose between his responsibility to his broken family in the Midwest, and forging a life and career for himself.

A Corner in Wheat(en)

On a whim, a greedy tycoon decides to corner the world market in wheat. This doubles the price of bread, forcing grain producers into charity lines and others further into poverty. The film contrasts the differences between the lives of those who work to grow the wheat and the life of the man who dabbles in its sale for profit.

Pretty Boy(en)

Sean is taken to a motel and is given a prostitute for his 18th birthday by his father. He must sleep with her to "fix" his questionable homosexuality. "Pretty Boy" is a coming of age story of a young bullied teen, Sean, struggling with his sexuality and the hardships of high school. After his father finds some questionable magazines in his room, this devout Christian will go to any lengths to get his son to find the light and "perform" the way a man should. Sean is introduced to Katie, a prostitute that understands the stigmas of modern society and helps him see the true light that is within him.

The House of Tomorrow(en)

The film tells futurist, architect, and inventor R. Buckminster Fuller's incredible story through two teens hoping to get laid, become punk gods, and survive high school.

Brothers(en)

The story of two brothers, Tom and Jake, and their problematic relationship.

Breathe(en)

A woman is drawn to a lake by an unforeseeable force that keeps her there.

Dawn(en)

As dawn creeps across London, two lost outcasts meet in the darkness, more afraid of themselves than each other. As the sun begins to rise, and the veil of the night is lifted, the pair look into the cold light of day for hope and it takes more than just the eyes to see inside a soul.

La chaqueta del botones(es)

The Neolith(en)

On the moors of a desolate land where the silence of the wind reigns, a mysterious man challenges four bloodthirsty savages responsible for a horrible crime.

Teddy(en)

A desperate father tries his best to wake up his wife who's in a coma.

Glimpse(en)

A highly emotive, visual feast set in the imaginative mind of a heartbroken panda called Herbie, who has recently broken up with his deer girlfriend Rice.

Disco, Ibiza, Locomía(es)

In the effervescent Spain of the 80s, Xavi Font, an artistic misfit, together with his friend Lurdes Iribar and her lover Manolo Arjona, founds Locomía. Although he achieves success, he also experiences the dark reality of the industry at the hands of powerful producer José Luís Gil.

El buen mal(en)

I didn't worry about it, until the symptoms got worse. The doctors said I had no cure, I'd be sick for the rest of my life. I wish they had been right.

Hotel Chevalier(en)

In a Paris hotel room, Jack Whitman lies on a bed. His phone rings; it's a woman on her way to see him, a surprise. She arrives and the complications of their relationship emerge in bits and pieces. Will they make love? Is their relationship over? (A prequel to The Darjeeling Limited, 2007.)

Enthralled(cn)

An enthralling directorial debut by the phenomenal, biting columnist and broadcaster Chip Tsao. Three elementary school pals, separated during the post-Tiananmen wave of emigration, reunite after 20 years, only to find themselves in totally different places. When each of them gets involved in an unlikely and at times illicit romance, their disparate lives intertwine and take a dire turn. The simmering ennui of post-handover Hong Kong is insightfully captured in this original and hardhitting drama about love, deceit and betrayal.

Mi Madre, My Father(en)

Reared by an abusive, pill-popping mother and an absentee playboy father, six-year-old Valentina must fend for herself. She does what she can to craft the illusion of normalcy: makes herself lunches that look just like the ones her classmates tote, dresses and grooms herself expertly, and lies to cover up for her mother Anita's erratic behavior.

Three Tidy Tigers Tied a Tie Tighter(pt)

Isabella, Jonata and Pedro are stuck at home for a weekend. Distressed by the state of the world and financial difficulties, the trio decides to go out on the streets of a dystopian São Paulo to relax, which allows them to meet many individuals in a similar situation, causing tragicomic and fantastic situations.

4 Moons(es)

Four interwoven stories about love and self-acceptance: An eleven year-old boy struggles to keep secret the attraction he feels towards his male cousin. Two former childhood friends reunite and start a relationship that gets complicated due to one of them’s fear of getting caught. A gay long lasting relationship is in jeopardy when a third man comes along. An old family man is obsessed with a young male prostitute and tries to raise the money to afford the experience.

Two Memories(en)

Henry and Marion have a lover's quarrel and part in anger. They do not reconcile, and ten years pass without contact. Marion becomes a society girl and spends her time at parties with her friends. Henry has become very ill and wishes to see Marion one more time. He writes asking her to visit. When she recieves the note, she laughs and tosses it on the floor, but, later, on a whim, decides to take all her drunken friends with her to visit him. When they arrive, Marion finds Henry dead, clutching her portrait in his hand. She sends her friends away and falls to her knees in remorse. Mary Pickford's debut!

Cat Skin(pt)

A few weeks before Carnival, slum boys organize huntings for stray cats, whose leather can be used in Samba percussion instruments, like the Tamborim, a small drum.

Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets(en)

A portrait of the lives of a disparate group of patrons and employees at an American watering hole today.

La León(es)

Deep in the lush river jungles of Argentina, Alvaro lives a solitary existence fishing and harvesting reeds. What sets him apart from the rest of his village is that he is gay. There are no other gay men in his world, his only means of expression is with the occasional outsider who passes through. Most of these men come via the river taxi El León, whose captain El Turu is a mean man with a homophobic streak and a secret. When illegal loggers appear in the jungle El Turu accuses Alvaro of aiding them, a dispute which leads both men towards confrontation.

Lilly White(en)

After her hands are severely damaged in an accident, an over-zealous hand model hatches an ill-conceived plan to get back in the extremity modeling game with her feet.

Jaggi(pa)

In rural Punjab, a schoolboy’s impotence leads to accusations of being gay, triggering relentless bullying. Amid this torment and dark family revelations, he battles inner demons that push him further on the edge. When pressured into an arranged marriage, he’s forced to make a heartbreaking choice.

Boucherie fine(fr)

A butcher whose meat is most tender, surrounded successively by ephemeral and delightful cashiers.