Willem Baptist

Ik zeg je eerlijk

With verve and humour, teacher Peter van Maaren, a gay man converted to Islam, gives workshops about sexual and religious diversity to his pupils in primary and secondary schools. Without judgement and exploring their language, he opens sensitive topics up for discussion, triggering disarming and often confronting debates in class. But how do the pupils react when Peter tells them about his private life? Documentary about the importance of conducting safe and open discussions at school about subjects that some people consider taboo.

The Border Crossed Us

With a visual style that alternates between intimate verité moments, meditative reflection and suspenseful sequences, the film tells the story of Chief Ramon Gonzalez, detective Manuel Casas and officer Mayra Garza, as they navigate the complexities of their existence on the US/Mexican border.

They and Them

At the age of 15, can you know if you ever want to conceive or give birth to a child? The team coordinator at the gender clinic in the Dutch city of Zaandam is doubtful. And yet this is one of the questions he asks the young people who register for psychological guidance. A fellow psychologist trusts that young people know what is good for them. He is a trans man and one of the experts by experience who work at the clinic. The use of language, already such a sensitive instrument, proves to be more complex than some expect. There are those who see it as unnecessary to mention your pronouns when you introduce yourself, but the majority are in favor. Director Ingrid Kamerling switches smoothly between observation and interviews. Above all, there is a sense of the need to equip young people and their parents as well as possible for the emotional journey of drastic change that lies ahead of them.

Mama

A feature documentary about a self chosen family living in Rotterdam. At the head of the family is mother and dragqueen Ma'MaQueen, who has created a safe haven for her six ‘drag children,’ not all of whom can count on understanding from their biological family. Together they find support, security and a home in which fantasy becomes reality.

Shabu

Fourteen-year-old Shabu is a good-natured, creative, and street-smart boy from the south of Rotterdam. When he wrecks his grandmother’s car on a joyride, his whole family is angry with him. He has a summer to make amends before his grandmother returns from a vacation in Suriname.

When Forever Dies

An archival fiction feature about the eternal battle of the sexes, in which two star-crossed lovers trapped in a kingdom of shadows fight to keep their love alive as they gradually fall in hate. Their names are Forever Man and Forever Woman. They are embodied by actors and actresses from long-gone eras, but also by cartoon characters and puppet animations. Together they narrate the story of the euphoric ups and tragic downs of human existence. When Forever Dies, a virtuoso collage of film fragments from the Eye Filmmuseum archive, is an epic ode to largely unseen cinema anchored in the polarizing world of today.

Nomade in Niemandsland

As the first artist in the Dutch Kingdom freely using his work to explain what it means to be queer and Caribbean, Felix de Rooy broaches some sensitive subjects. Despite the relevance and artistic value of his works, he is not included in the white art scene. This documentaryconfronts viewers with the volatility of life, when Felix suffers a stroke. Next, something surprising happens: As a result of a changing social awareness, young creatives of colour look back and realise on whose shoulders they are standing. And there is a retrospective of De Rooy’s work at the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam. Suddenly, Felix gets the acknowledgement he deserves.

Ring of Dreams

In a world where fantasy meets reality, Tengkwa leads a band of Dutch wrestlers and tries to train a new generation of superheroes. With slim chances of fame and glory, only the most die-hard of them will succeed.