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thread of lgbtq african films
Braids on a Bald Head (Nigeria). A hairdresser in Nigeria finds the strength to ask for better treatment in her marriage after an experience calls her sexuality into question.
@tchindasfilm (Cape Verde). A documentary which follows Tchinda Andrade's preparations for one of the biggest annual events on the Cape Verde calendar: carnival.
The String (Tunisia). Malik's problems melt away when he meets a dreamy houseboy at his mother's estate.
Inxeba/The Wound (South Africa). At an initiation ritual for the young men of his Xhosa community, a closeted factory hand meets a Johannesburg teen who discovers his best-kept secret.
Karmen Geï (Senegal). A retelling of the celebrated "Carmen" myth set in contemporary Senegal to African music and dance.
Stories of Our Lives (Kenya). Created by the members of @Thisisthenest, a Nairobi-based arts collective, the film is an anthology of five short films dramatizing true stories of LGBT life in Kenya.
All My Life (Egypt). When Rami's longtime lover Waleed leaves him to marry a woman and his best friends drift away, he comes face to face with the harsh realities of life as a gay man in Egypt.
Coming Out of the Nkuta (Cameroon). Based on personal testimonies, Cameroon: Coming Out of the Nkuta portrays the daily struggle of young gays and lesbians in Cameroon.
Woubi Chéri (Côte d'Ivoire). 1998 French/Ivorian documentary that shows a few days in the life of various members of the gay and transgender community in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire.
Reluctantly Queer (Ghana). This epistolary short film invites us into the unsettling life of a young Ghanaian man struggling to reconcile his love for his mother with his love for same-sex desire.
Rafiki (Kenya). “Good Kenyan girls become good Kenyan wives," but Kena and Ziki long for something more. When love blossoms between them, the two girls will be forced to choose between happiness and safety.
Apostles of Civilized Vice (South Africa). South African filmmaker and activist Zackie Achmat investigates the experiences of gays and lesbians and colonial-era personalities in South Africa.
Black./Womyn: Conversations with Lesbians of African Descent (Misc). Directed and produced by Tiona McClodden, it is a feature-length documentary focusing on the lives and views of lesbians of African descent from various backgrounds.
Glitterboys and Ganglands (South Africa). Follow "The Princess", "The Mechanic" and "The Pre-Op", running up the largest female impersonator pageant in Cape Town.
We Don't Live Here Anymore (Nigeria). A scandal brews at Prominence High School that would not only redefine the fate of the two teenage boys involved but would shake the foundations of the people they love and the town they live in.
Salvation Army (Morocco). In Casablanca, a gay teenager tries to build a life within his large family while dealing with his authoritarian mother and older brother.
Forbidden Fruit (Zimbabwe). Filmed in Zimbabwe, the film depicts the romantic relationship between two women, and the aftermath of the discovery of their relationship.
Difficult Love (South Africa). Lesbians in South Africa must deal with living in one of the most-homophobic countries in the world.
Dakan/Destiny (Guinea). Telling the story of two young men struggling with their love for each other, it has been described as the first West African feature film to deal with homosexuality.
Simon and I (South Africa). Bev Ditsie and Simon Nkuli are South African gay rights activists. This is the story of their lives, their meeting, and their efforts to get sexual orientation into the new South African Bill of Rights.
Call Me Kuchu (Uganda). In Uganda, openly gay David Kato and his fellow activists work to defeat new legislation in their country that would make homosexuality punishable by death.
Upon the Shadow (Tunisia). Follows the life of former Femen member Amina Sboui & the community of LGBTQ friends she houses in her Tunisian home. Offering unparalleled insight into life following the Arab spring, social persecution and political struggle, from a queer perspective.
The Road to Love/Tarik El Hob (Algeria). Slow-burning and smart, French director Rémi Lange's film is a romantic tale of self-discovery that also offers a fascinating historical take on homosexuality in Northern Africa.
My Brother the Devil (Egypt). Two teenage brothers must face their own prejudices head on if they are to survive the perils of being British Arabs growing up on the streets of gangland London.
Être Soi-Même/Be Yourself (Cameroon). Three homosexuals (two men and one woman) from Montreal's black communities recount the conflicts they faced, before they could assert themselves and prejudices that hindered their development after their release.
The World Unseen (South Africa): A drama centered on two women who engage in a dangerous relationship during South Africa's apartheid era.
Rag Tag (Nigeria). Two childhood friends are reunited after many years and discover their feelings for one another have taken a new turn
Lost In The World (South Africa): This film tells the story of a South African police officer seeking revenge after her girlfriend is raped and murdered.
Outed: The Painful Reality (Uganda). Drama depicting violence directed towards LGBT people in Uganda. Shot in secret to avoid reprisal, the film is based on a true story of what happened after a Ugandan newspaper printed an article outing the "top 200 homosexuals".
I am Gay and Muslim (Morocco). Several Moroccan homosexual men explore their religious and sexual identity in this documentary.
The Pearl of Africa (Uganda). A Ugandan transgender woman struggles and prevails as she lives in an actively transphobic environment.
Proteus (South Africa). A former servant and a Dutch sailor begin a risky love affair in an 18th-century South African prison.
The Wedding (Egypt). The Wedding centers Rami (Sam Abbas), a young Muslim man, who is preparing for his wedding with Sara (Nikohl Boosheri). In secret Rami goes against the taboos of sexuality within Muslim culture to explore his own sexuality.
Locked In (A Transgender Story) [South Africa]: A documentary on the witch hunt in many churches and mosques against people with transsexual identities.
![Locked In (A Transgender Story) [South Africa]: A documentary on the witch hunt in many churches and mosques against people with transsexual identities.](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DvhOpeAX4AUtbL5.jpg "Locked In (A Transgender Story) [South Africa]: A documentary on the witch hunt in many churches and mosques against people with transsexual identities.")
Born This Way (Cameroon): There are more arrests for homosexuality in Cameroon than any other country in the world. With intimate access to the lives of four young gay Cameroonians, this film offers a vivid and poetic portrait of day-to-day life in modern Africa.
The Pass (Nigeria). A romantic interaction between two young footballers profoundly affects one of them throughout the rest of his life and career.
Hidden Away (Morocco). Fourteen-year-old Ibrahim meets Rafa in a nightclub, and the brief encounter has a profound effect on both of them.
Breaking Out of the Box (South Africa). Directed by Busi Kheswa & Zethu Matebeni, this documentary highlights the lives of black lesbians in South Africa.
While You Weren’t Looking (South Africa). Directed by Catherine Stewart, the film examines the struggles experienced by lesbians living in suburban South Africa compared to those living in townships.
My Name Is Not Ali/Jannat ‘Ali (Morocco). Directed by Viola Shafik, this documentary details the very sad and bizarre story of one of Fassbinder's most recognisable stars, the mysterious, gentle-hearted Moroccan immigrant of 'Fear Eats the Soul', El Hedi ben Salem.
Under the Rainbow (Nigeria). A documentary showing LGBTI activist Pamela Adie ( @biwomdz)’s experiences as a lesbian in Nigeria.
The Art of Being a Sinner (Sudan) is a documentary by Ibrahim Mursal, following the outing of Sudan’s first openly gay artist (Ahmad Umar) and his search for acceptance and reconciliation from his family back home. https://vimeo.com/222638854
Kelet (Somalia). A documentary by Susani Mahadura, the story follows the unique life of Kelet Ali, a young Finnish Somali trans woman living in Helsinki who dreams of becoming a model. Filmed between 2017 and 2019, it is the first Finnish film with a trans WOC as a protagonist.
I am Samuel (Kenya). Filmed verite style over five years and directed by @petemurimi, @IamSamuelFilm
is an intimate portrait of a Kenyan man torn between balancing duty to his family with his dreams for his future.
is an intimate portrait of a Kenyan man torn between balancing duty to his family with his dreams for his future.
She’s Not a Boy (Zimbabwe). Tatenda Ngwaru left Zimbabwe with sixty dollars and the hope that she would finally find a place she belonged. But for an asylum-seeking intersex woman, even a diverse, queer-friendly city like New York is a hard place to make home.
