With performances and direction like this you really can make shorts that say it all with few words. This anthology of the longing search for company radiates emotion from the skin of its performers and the luminous situations they find themselves in.

Lov Novios de mi Madres (All My Mother’s Lovers)

In Los Novios de mi Madres Samuel Montes de Oca Leon creates the unsettling triangle between Cesar (Cesar Acosto), his flirtatious mother Luisa (Sandra Burgos), and his arrogantly attractive school mate Pablo (Alonso Esponda). Pablo is keen to exercise his growing power of attraction which Luisa selfishly grooms. Cesar, the awkward, nerdy kid is caught between the humiliation of his mother’s behavior and his own feelings for Pablo. The sneaky sliding feet under the dining table and his mothers over enthusiastic lotioning with bedroom door gaping mean little actually needs to be said. Until Cesar finally challenges both of them. It’s a reminder of how unpoliced heterosexuality is versus homosexuality as the mother’s behavior strays into the predatory. 

Bootyful by François Barbier

Is any gay club night out complete without a twerking queen reigning over his drunk girlfriends? It’s an oddly traditional scenario to see the semi flirtatious play between a straight woman and a flaming gay man as they hit the dance floor to showcase their sexy selves. A man interrupting could actually spoil the fun. And so it does. Where this short succeeds is that it doesn’t make the gay man or the straight woman look needy. They all have their own power to summon as required.

The film includes Karim Camara, Flore Bonaventura, Léa Lounda and Arthur Gillet.

Apenas o que você precisa saber sobre mim ( Only What You Need To Know About Me) by Maria Augusta V. Nunes

When you are just being you shouldn’t that be enough? Two long haired skaters in baggy clothes find that they can’t get enough of each other’s company. Shared interest and shared beauty are hard to ignore. But at some point assumptions have to be addressed and the burden of responsibility lands unfairly on the shoulders of the non binary as the boy thinks he is seeking his girl. It’s Gen Z in all their gorgeousness. We wish that love could conquer all. 

The film includes Alice Doro, Rafael Gregório and Aleff Resler.

Junk by Joe Morris

It’s grim up north (Sheffield to be specific) and it’s even grimmer if you are one of the LGBTQ youth who make up a horrifying proportion of the homeless. If the options are prostitution, drugs or staying in an abusive home then it helps to find company in your misery. Tat tries to find money for food and shelter while trying to save his unwilling boyfriend from the greedy hands of heroin dealers. The smell of dirt and danger lingers after this disheartening movie ends. 

The film includes Luke Dunsmore, Connor Ryan, Tara Moran, Martin Hancock, Ian Peck and David Barras.

Stille Dorst (High Tide) by Claire Zhou

Moroccan Tarik is on the verge of divorce and taking a moment for himself alone in the woods. A broken shower leads to a night with a handsome plumber. It all sounds very Noir Male but it’s closer to poetry than porn as Tarik comes to terms with himself and the reality that his marriage was a sham despite it making him a proud father. Close your eyes and listen to the birdsong as peace finally descends on him. Sometimes you only find yourself when you find someone else. 

The film includes Mouad Ben-Chaib, Joshua Albano and Floor van Vloten.

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Review by Andrew Hebden

Queerguru Contributing Editor ANDREW HEBDEN is a MEDIA & CULTURAL STUDIES graduate spending his career between London, Beijing and NYC as an expert in media and social trends. As part of the expanding minimalist FIRE movement he recently returned to the UK and lives in Soho. He devotes as much time as possible to the movies, theatre and the gym. His favorite thing is to try something (anything) new every day.