Durban Gay and Lesbian Film Festival 2024
Sat Dec 28, 16:00 - Mon Dec 30, 21:00
Bellézar Umhlanga - Beach Cafe & Bar
ABOUT
She's baaaack! Our post-Covid KZN reboot of queer cinema is here with the 10th Durban Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, a compact end-of-year weekend of select screenings of some awesome South African and international queer filmmaking, from 28 - 30 December 2024.
With venue partnership by the renowned Bellézar Beach Café on Umhlanga’s main beach, and made possible with the generous support of the Ethekwini Municipality’s Durban Film Office, this three night cinematic event brings back to Durban’s shore an important LGBTIQ+ cultural space that celebrates queer stories and filmmaking.
Starting on Sat eve 28 December, at 19h00, the DGLFF opens with the African premiere of 'DOWN IN PARIS' (102 mins), a French language feature film by ex-Joburg and now Paris-based South African filmmaker Anthony Hickling: Richard, a film maker in his forties, is suddenly overwhelmed by anxiety during filming. He walks off set and wanders through the Paris night in search of answers, comfort and inspiration. During his sleepless night, he meets many people, some friendly, some disturbing, some known, some unknown. Richard has to confront his fears and question his deepest desires until the first light of dawn.
An encore screening of ‘DOWN IN PARIS’ is at 19h00 on Sun 29 December 2024.
The Festival is especially proud to be screening the recently completed Afrikaans documentary ‘ONTHOU VI FREDO?’ (37 mins) by South African filmmaker Cleveland Hopp from Cape Town. ‘ONTHOU VI FREDO?’ offers an intimate portrait of Alfredo's enduring impact and legacy after his murder in Malmesbury, as recounted by his mother, close friends and the broader queer community within Malmesbury.
This powerful doccie ‘ONTHOU VI FREDO’ will screen on Sun afternoon 29 December at 17h15 and again on Monday 30 December at 15h00.
Rounding off this select reboot programme is the South African premiere of a Spanish-language documentary set in Russia. ‘CALLS FROM MOSCOW’ (66 mins) is a Cuban-German-Norwegian co-production, by Cuban director Luis Alejandro Yero: days before the invasion of Ukraine is announced, four young Cubans visit a Moscow apartment for a 24-hour stay. In their phone calls, the present and future coexist: their stories as queer and undocumented immigrants, and the exchanges with the film’s director about their distress after the outbreak of the war.
An intimate and gently made doccie, ‘CALLS FROM MOSCOW’ screens on Sun 29 December at 16h00 with an encore screening on Monday 30 December, again at 16h00.
“After enduring the genuine devastation of the recent Pandemic that Covid-19 wrought on live events and cinema in particular, and in a very challenging funding climate where we simply hadn’t the resources to resume, I’m genuinely happy and proud that we can re-boot the Durban Gay and Lesbian Film Festival this year!” exclaims festival director Jason Fiddler.
“The DGLFF remains an important cultural space for the LGBTIQ+ community in Durbs and KZN, and just as importantly, an accessible platform for the all Durbanites who enjoy great cinema to engage with fine storytelling whilst appreciating uniquely queer viewpoints on life, love and everything else!”
In venue partnering with Bellézar Beach Café at their Paradiso function room for 2024, the DGLFF is looking forward to providing festival-goers a safe and comfortable space to enjoy the Festival. Patrons can enjoy the range of beverages and delicious food at the restaurant before and after screenings, whilst soaking up the gorgeous sea views on the famous Umhlanga promenade.
With ample secure parking at the nearby Pearls and Oceans malls, the venue is accessible to patrons across Durban looking for a fun Festive Season outing. Of course, the Festival encourages patrons to also use ride-hailing services to ensure safe, comfortable travel to and from the event.
As the venue has limited capacity, the Festival encourages patrons to get their tickets quickly online at Quicket.co.za – opening night is R200 and includes a limited edition DGLFF souvenir coffee mug and welcome beverage (alcoholic or non), whilst the encore feature film screening costs R70, and the documentary screenings are R40 a ticket.
“We hope that keeping the tradition of affordable tickets enables more patrons to join us in celebrating these incredible queer films in a space that encourages friendship, dialogue and a great sense of community” says Fiddler. “This lays the foundation stone for the next few years as we evolve this special event into the next ten Festivals and beyond! I hope that this year’s DGLFF will again inspire our LGBTIQ+ community, provoking thought and dialogue, and provide an extraordinary resonance with lovers of queer film.”
For more info: