Annual international film festival QCinema just announced a special edition of the festival will take place this June. Called “QCinema RainbowQC Pride Film Festival,” the festival will feature films curated to celebrate the many facets of the LGBTQIA+ experience.
This is the first time the international film festival will be holding a pride edition. “For the first time ever, QCinema is serving full-blown pride realness,” they say in an announcement post.
QCinema hinted that the lineup will be full of “drama, landi, hugot, at karapatan all celebrating the fierce and fabulous LGBTQIA+ experience.”
Read: Allyship 101: How to amplify the voices in the LGBTQIA+ community
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The festival will feature four full-length films and five short films:
“Some Nights I Feel Like Walking” (Philippines, Italy, Singapore)
Petersen Vargas’ 2024 film is making its Philippine premiere at the festival. It follows a young group of hustlers, who, after the death of a member of the gang, band together to honor their deceased friend’s last wish. As the boys go on their journey, we get the sense of the film’s emphasis on the need for belonging, and finding chosen family, especially in the queer community.
“The Wedding Banquet” (USA)
This 2025 romantic comedy exploring the complications of queer relationships amid traditional Asian values and (oft-outdated) family expectations. A remake of a 1993 film of the same name, the Sundance Film Festival entry received positive reviews.
“Cocoon” (Germany)
This coming-of-age story revolves around Nora, a shy 14-year-old who struggles with her identity. Unlike her sister and her best friend, she just can’t find any interest in fashion and social media; but her summer begins to change when she experiences an awakening in different ways, from getting her first period, to falling in love with another girl.
“Consequences” (Slovenia)
This award-winning 2018 film revolves around the encounters among the boys in a youth correctional facility. Andrej, a 17-year-old, is admitted to the facility after a series of petty crimes. There, he has to fight for his place, while also struggling to keep his repressed emotions.
Among the short films slated for the festival are “A Catholic School Girl,” “Microplastics,” “Watersports,” “Abutan Man Tayo ng Houselights,” and “River That Never Ends.”
The festival will take place from June 25 to 27, at Cinema 12, Gateway Cineplex 18 in Cubao, Quezon City. Screening schedules are available on QCinema’s social media.
