Sarnt Utamachote

This 1954 cinematic narration of the entity "katheoy" (in Thai means "ladyboy" or roughly "queer") is a proof that non-Western LGBT+ terms (be it katheoy in Thai context, as well as many others) did exist before the birth of American LGBT+ stonewall movements in 1969.

The director' choice to slow down or intervene the continuous flow of (colonial and globallly mediated) footage serves as example of how to experiment not simply with the content of the found footage but also with its pacing, way of unfolding, questioning how it reveals itself.

Agustina's use of existing footage - hearing unfulfilled wishes of queer persons who later died (after the filming of AIDS) - by re-enacting and making the "better" ending for them remains to me one of the most touching cinematic approaches done for LGBT+ communities recently.

Its simplicity - story of how the director's mother attempts to catch the stray cat via messy means - and how it curves its narration from her denial of failure to her denial of grief: loss of director's brother, stays with me until now as example of how simple queer cinema can be.

Its story: of queer kinship, trauma, sharing safe space, intimacy, is something we see often in queer cinema, yet rarely so touching and sharply executed like this film. Its simplicity remains the gem of short queer films I have seen.

This film stands by itself as the art of short film (or video art) making, the act of slowing down, lagging the music, the footage, almost a comedic play with the audiences and cinema. It remains iconic in itself, as much as it represents the director's extremely unique approach to cinema.

The film looks at a very mundane social situation in hair salon, where people subtly indirectly express their desire for intimacy and each other - something I can relate to well as queer person (even its not a queer film). Combining with archive footage from an old film, the music, the atmosphere of urban city, this short film is well-crafted blend of fiction and hybrid character.

This rare video art brings stories tied by blood - one being Richard's biological kin (aunt), Chinese immigrant to Trinidad - another being Richard's chosen kin (husband), who suffers from AIDS. Resembling discourses written, for example, by Glissant, in how ocean is the site of colonial encounters between diverse groups, this queer film stays as a hallmark of such story.

In midst of America's rise of racism, transphobia and fascism, this domesticated, quiet, transcendental, and healing piece of conversations in a household: of parenthood, trauma, intimacy, care stands strong as the proof of queer resilience, in the world that wants them eradicated.

Ratchapoom is Thailand's most recent and exciting queer filmmaker (since Apichatpong), who - as genius - questions mode of image- and audio-production, in this case, via cinema of Cold War. He continues his approach in deconstructing narration, depiction, history-writing in cinema, and with a plus, with such comedic tone, which we barely can find in experimental cinema. This film, a part of his trilogy, is truly a hallmark of Southeast Asia's experimental scene.