Bubbly and steamy at varying turns, Greyson Horst’s comedy Throuple is alive with a sense of romantic exploration amid the fierce energy of its DIY scene. At its opening, Throuple finds single singer-songwriter Michael (played by Michael Doshier, who also penned the screenplay) adrift and musically uninspired… at least until he meets a newly-open gay married couple at his friend’s show.

Seemingly on the hunt for casual sexual encounters, Georgie (Stanton Plummer-Cambridge) and Connor (Tommy Heleringer of Gayby, Frameline36) instantly draw Michael into their orbit. But when Michael’s relationship with the husbands starts to feel less like an NSA fling and more like a hunt to find their third, Michael starts to consider new possibilities both in his romantic and his artistic pursuits, taking him to uncharted territory.

Using split-screen editing, sharp location photography, and colorful captions amid the din of the many concert and performance sequences, Throuple’s energy stems as much from its central trio as the creative community they’re a part of. Throuple offers a sweetly realized tale of growing up, which places openness and creativity as keys to unlocking one’s self.

PROGRAM NOTE WRITER

George Elkind

Expected Guests

Michael Doshier

Actor, Screenwriter

Katharine Bartek

Producer

Phillip Hughes

Producer

Streaming Note: This film is only available to stream in California.

Tickets

JUNE 27, 2024 3:30 PM — 5:08 PM

Roxie TheaterBook Tickets

JUNE 24, 2024 12:01 AM — JUNE 30, 2024 11:59 PM

STREAM

Struggling as a young aspiring writer in London, Max forges a new identity for himself in the form of a ravenous sex worker: Sebastian. Opening himself up to a previously unexplored world, Max suddenly finds himself unburdened by expectations and invigorated by possibility. When he begins writing thinly-veiled stories about his double life, Max finds himself with the book deal he’d been dreaming of. But as his newfound experiences spur a creative output, Max must decide where he ends and Sebastian begins.

With his confident sophomore feature, Finnish British writer/director Mikko Mäkelä (A Moment in the Reeds, Frameline42) isn’t afraid to explore the complicated nuances of sex work and the transformative power it can wield. As Mäkelä traces Max’s journey of self-identity (which is powerfully brought to life onscreen by actor Ruaridh Mollica), he opts not for sensationalism but tenderness. The result is a thoughtful, compelling investigation of the importance of queer identities and how they shape us.

Expected Guests

Mikko Mäkelä

Director

Ruaridh Mollica

Actor

James Watson

Producer

Tickets

JUNE 24, 2024 6:00 PM — 7:40 PM

Vogue Theatre

https://www.frameline.org/films/frameline48/sebastian

Riley

DIRECTED BY BENJAMIN HOWARD 2023 USA 93 MINS

Centered on the clashing emotions and pent-up passions of a beloved high school football star, Riley is a powerful, compelling tale of a young man’s journey to discover who he is, what he wants, and where he’s going. Written and directed by Benjamin Howard, the film tells the story of a popular and talented young athlete who struggles with the all-encompassing anxiety of coming out. His overbearing dad and hyped-up teammates have a clear plan for Riley, but secret dreams and desires gnaw at his insides.

Filmmaker Howard infuses this honest high school story with intense moments of sexual desire and the awkward realities of adolescent relationships. Jake Holley delivers an intricate, powerful performance as Riley, a character who strives to be loved by everyone, but struggles to love himself. Also starring Colin McCalla (The Dick Appointment, Frameline44), Riley is a deep dive into the complex emotions of budding masculinity and the challenge of connecting with teenage peers. Its unique take on identity, love, and sexual desire resonates long after the closing credits.

JUNE 27, 2024 6:00 PM — 7:42 PM

Vogue Theatre

Director James Ivory and producer Ismail Merchant were one of the most successful filmmaker partnerships ever. Together they made 44 movies since 1985 and their incredible resume includes such masterpieces as Shakespeare Wallah, A Room With A View, Howards End, The Remains Of A Day.

They were also life partners and privately lived openly as a gay couple but kept that fact away from the public, and somehow the media.  Even so, they were responsible for the groundbreaking queer love story  Maurice back in 1987.  Based on the novel by E M Forster written in 1914 who also closeted, insisted wasn’t published until after he died in 1971.  It was a happy love story…. a rarity for a gay film ….. and they even managed to include male nudity unknown in the cinema at the time.

Merchant Ivory also converted a second E M Forster novel A ROOM WITH A VIEW in 1985 and this was their first film that broke out of the Art House into the mainstream.

Three of their movies were nominated for Academy Awards for Best Picture and Screenplay but it wasn’t until after Merchant’s death that Ivory won his first Oscar in 2018  for his screenplay for Call Me By Your Name ….. another groundbreaking  queer film 

Now filmmaker Stephen Sourcy has made the first definitive feature documentary on the pair and their primary associates, writer Ruth Prawer Jhabvala and composer Richard Robbins.

With a veritable who’s who of actors …..including six Oscar winners …. we get to learn what made them such a dynamic duo who produced these outstanding cinematic gems and how their partnership affected their work and other relationships.  Their impact on the cinema ….. particularly period dramas, can never be under-appreciated,  They were geniuses and they so deserve this very affectionate profile.

Tickets

JUNE 22, 2024 6:00 PM — 7:52 PM

Roxie Theater

It’s the early 2000s, so dust off your VHS camcorder and your punk audio cassettes and come along for the ride with The New Normals, a young queer Canadian indie band, as they escape their small town for the excitement and promise of Toronto. The lead singer, Evan, is a trans guy with a gift for songwriting and a desire to live life to the fullest. He writes the songs with his girlfriend Isis who plays the keyboard. They’ve got a cis guy drummer in love with a cis girl bassist. And then there is Lou, the introverted lead guitarist.

Based on the 2017 short film of the same name that played at Frameline42, this indie punk trans new wave feature refreshingly throws a trans guy into the spotlight without feeling the need to focus on his trans-ness. We Forgot to Break Up instead asks the crucial question: Can The New Normals survive a love triangle and overnight success?

JUNE 28, 2024 3:30 PM — 5:04 PM

Roxie Theater

Buy Tickets: https://www.frameline.org/films/frameline48/we-forgot-to-break-up

George Platt Lynes began his career photographing celebrities from the 1930s-50s. It’s those portraits along with his extravagant fashion work that he’s best remembered for today. However, George’s heart, his passion, and his greatest talent lay elsewhere, in his work with the male nude. This work, sensuous and radically explicit for its time, has only recently begun being fully discovered and appreciated for the revolution that it represents – a man capturing his fantasies as a gift, a window to a future his camera saw coming before anyone else.  HIDDEN MASTER features a stunning collection of photography uncovering the life of Lynes less known: his gifted eye for the male form, his long term friendships with Gertrude Stein and Alfred Kinsey, and his lasting influence as one of the first openly gay American artists.

HIDDEN MASTER

Presented by OUTwatch Film Festival

Thursday, May 9 7pm

Not Rated

96 mins

Documentary

Tickets

Trailer

Thu, May 9

7:00

GET TICKETS

Robert Mapplethorpe.”     Queer Guru

FEATURE FILMS
The Disappearance of Shere Hite (US, documentary feature, dir. Nicole Newnham) Shere Hite’s
1976 bestselling book, The Hite Report, liberated the female orgasm by revealing the most private
experiences of thousands of anonymous survey respondents. Her findings rocked the American
establishment and presaged current conversations about gender, sexuality, and bodily autonomy.
So how did Shere Hite disappear?

Fancy Dance (US, narrative feature, dir. Erica Tremblay) Following her sister’s disappearance, a
Native American hustler (Lily Gladstone, The Unknown Country, MVFF 2022) kidnaps her niece
from the child’s white grandparents and sets out for the state powwow in hopes of keeping what is
left of their family intact. Ages 15+ – Bay Area Premiere

Housekeeping for Beginners (North Macedonia / Sweden / Kosovo / Poland / Serbia / Croatia,
narrative feature, dir. Golan Stolevsky) From acclaimed filmmaker Goran Stolevski comes a story
exploring the universal truths of family, both the ones we’re born into and the ones we find for
ourselves. Dita never wanted to be a mother, but circumstances force her to raise her girlfriend’s
two daughters, tiny troublemaker Mia and rebellious teen Vanesa. A battle of wills ensues as the
three continue to butt heads and become an unlikely family that must fight to stay together. In
Macedonian with English subtitles – US Premiere

Maestro (US, narrative feature, dir. Bradley Cooper) Maestro is a towering and fearless love story
chronicling the lifelong relationship between Leonard Bernstein (Bradley Cooper) and Felicia
Montealegre Cohn Bernstein (Carey Mulligan). A love letter to life and art, Maestro at its core is
an emotionally epic portrayal of family and love.

Monster (Japan, narrative feature, dir. Hirokazu Kore-eda) Japanese auteur Hirokazu Kore-eda
(Shoplifters, MVFF 2019) returns in this Rashomon-like tale of a troubling school incident that
proves much less clear-cut than initially believed. When her young son Minato starts to behave
strangely, his mother feels that there is something wrong. Discovering that a teacher is
responsible, she storms into the school demanding to know what’s going on. But as the story
unfolds through the eyes of mother, teacher and child, the truth gradually emerges. In Japanese
with English subtitles – West Coast Premiere

National Anthem (US, narrative feature, dir. Luke Gilford) Dylan (Charlie Plummer), a 21-year-
old construction worker in New Mexico, joins a community of queer rodeo performers in search of
their own version of the American dream. While working on a communal ranch in the breathtaking
and poetic expanse of the American Southwest, they contend with the undeniable powers of
nature, family, and love. – West Coast Premiere

Nyad (US, narrative feature, dirs. Jimmy Chin, Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi) From acclaimed
documentarians Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin (The Rescue, MVFF 2021), Nyad
tells the remarkable true story of athlete Diana Nyad (Annette Bening) who, at the age of 60
and with the help of her best friend and coach (Jodie Foster), commits to achieving her life-
long dream: a 110-mile open ocean swim from Cuba to Florida.

The Persian Version (US, narrative feature, dir. Maryam Keshavarz) Coming from two countries
at odds with each other, Iranian-American Leila (Layla Mohammadi) strives to find balance and
embrace her opposing cultures, while boldly challenging the labels society is so quick to project
upon her. When her family reunites in New York City for her father’s heart transplant, Leila
navigates her relationships from arm’s length in an effort to keep her “real” life separate from her
family life. However, when her secret is unceremoniously revealed, so are the distinct parallels
between her life and that of her mother, Shireen (Niousha Noor). Winner of the U.S. Dramatic
Audience Award and Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. –
West Coast Premiere

Robot Dreams (Spain/France, animated feature, dir. Pablo Berger) Based on the popular graphic
novel by North American writer Sara Varon, Robot Dreams is the first animation film by the
award-winning director Pablo Berger (Blancanieves). A story about friendship, its importance, and
its fragility. DOG lives in Manhattan and he’s tired of being alone. One day he decides to build
himself a robot, a companion. Their friendship blossoms, until they become inseparable, to the
rhythm of 80’s NYC. One summer night, DOG, with great sadness, is forced to abandon ROBOT
at the beach. Will they ever meet again? Ages 10+ – California Premiere

Rustin (US, narrative feature, dir. George C. Wolfe) Bayard Rustin (Colman Domingo) was the
architect of 1963’s March on Washington. He challenged authority and never apologized for who
he was, but was forgotten despite making history. Rustin spotlights the man who, alongside
Martin Luther King Jr., dared to imagine a different world and inspired a movement. – West
Coast Premiere

Saltburn (US, narrative feature, dir. Emerald Fennell) Academy Award winning filmmaker
Emerald Fennell (Promising Young Woman) brings us a beautifully wicked tale of privilege and
desire. Struggling to find his place at Oxford University, student Oliver Quick (Barry Keoghan)
finds himself drawn into the world of the charming and aristocratic Felix Catton (Jacob Elordi),
who invites him to Saltburn, his eccentric family’s sprawling estate, for a summer never to be
forgotten.

SHORT FILMS

binary. (Milan Mackenzie Wood & Maddie Barbiee, US 2023, 14 min) In this intimate look into the
life of a young transgender person inspired by androgynous rockstars, a teen struggles to
understand who they really are while facing conflict with those around them.

Farther (Een Saam) (Josh Hundermark, South Africa 2022, 15 mins) A father faces some difficult
truths when he revisits the past with his daughter. In Afrikaans with English subtitles

Mist (Niebla) (Leonardo Romero Zarza, Colombia 2020, 10 min) When Nicolas and his family
move from the city to a new house next to a forest, his perception of his new environment starts
to change thanks to mysterious encounters with native animals. In Spanish with English subtitles

No More Longing (Connor Lee O’Keefe, US 2022, 16 mins) Seven years after moving from
Brazil to California to pursue his love of music and four years after starting testosterone, Jaime
Jobim searches for his new voice. In English & Portuguese with English subtitles

Once Was (Lilian Bowden, US 2023, 11 min) A reunion with a former romantic partner spurs a
moment of reflection.

An Ordinary Day (Ju-yeon Gim, South Korea 2023, 19 min) Two female friends — one blind, the
other in a wheelchair — find that this day they decided to spend together is anything but ordinary.
In Korean with English subtitles