The 13th Queer Screen Film Fest (QSFF26) kicks off tonight, bringing a bold and diverse program of LGBTIQ+ cinema with 28 films spanning acclaimed international features, emerging Australian voices, cult classics and boundary-pushing shorts. Australian Arts Review takes a look at twelve films worth checking out:
Jim Queen
When the bizarre “Heterosis” virus sweeps through Paris, flamboyant gay icon Jim Parfait faces his ultimate nightmare: losing his chiselled physique and queer identity. Joined by a shy twink sidekick, Jim embarks on a glittering, anarchic quest for a cure, encountering an eclectic cast of queer characters along the way. Direct from its Cannes premiere, Jim Queen brilliantly weaponises queer iconography into a high-stakes survival journey. This subversively clever satire is as unapologetically sexy, quirky, and funky as it is destined for cult-classic status, driven by a pumping disco soundtrack and rendered in jaw-dropping, vibrant animation.
La Bola Negra
Spanning three timelines across 85 years of Spanish history, La Bola Negra (The Black Ball) interweaves the lives of three men bound by desire, silence, and memory. In 1932, a young aristocrat faces exile after being black-balled from an elite club over his sexuality. In 1937, amid the Civil War, a conscripted soldier falls for a leftist prisoner. In 2017, a gay historian inherits a mysterious gift from an estranged grandfather, reopening deep family wounds. Connected through Federico García Lorca’s poetry and lingering secrets, their lives bleed together across time in a powerful story of self-acceptance. Acclaimed directors Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi (Veneno, La Mesías) deliver a sweeping, visually stunning cinematic masterpiece that demands to be experienced on the big screen.
Coward
Lukas Dhont (Close, Girl) returns with a stunning historical romance between two soldiers during WWI. It’s 1916, and two young Belgian soldiers are caught in the brutal realities of the Western Front. Francis (Valentin Campagne) is a flamboyant performer tasked with directing a theatrical troupe of fellow “rejects” to keep soldier morale high. When the quiet, war-weary Pierre (Emmanuel Macchia) is assigned to assist the troupe, an undeniable connection sparks between the two men. As they collaborate on a spirited musical revue to lift the spirits of their dejected comrades, their growing intimacy soon evolves into a deeply moving romantic love story born in the trenches of war. Coward stands as an epic testament to finding queer freedom and joy even in the darkest of times.
Big Girls Don’t Cry
Set against the hazy, sun-drenched backdrop of a coastal New Zealand town over the summer of 2006, this debut feature from writer-director Paloma Schneideman is a quietly observed, intimate drama. Fourteen-year-old Sid Bookman (Ani Palmer) is a stormy, rebellious teen desperate to reinvent herself before the annual influx of tourists hits her quiet beach town of Ōmaha. In a clumsy bid for connection, Sid begins catfishing her crush by impersonating her best friend’s brother on an instant-messaging app. While her reckless digital posturing rapidly alienates her family, it unexpectedly catches the eye of her older sister’s friend, Freya. Seeing straight past the rebellious facade, Freya recognises the raw vulnerability Sid is so fiercely trying to hide.
Bound
Thirty years after its historic premiere, the remarkable debut feature from Lilly and Lana Wachowski remains a masterpiece of neo-noir style and an undisputed touchstone of sapphic cinema. Set almost entirely within a Chicago apartment building, the film follows Violet (Jennifer Tilly), the seductive girlfriend of violent mobster Caesar (Joe Pantoliano). When she crosses paths with Corky (Gina Gershon), a fierce ex-con freshly released from prison, an electric attraction sparks between them. Together, the two women hatch a daring scheme to engineer their own jailbreak, planning to escape Caesar’s clutches while pocketing two million dollars of his laundered Mafia cash. But as the mob closes in, will the two lovebirds actually get away with it? Full of delicious suspense and masterful twists, Bound marked the spectacular feature directorial debut of the Wachowskis.
Our Effed Up World
Our Effed Up World follows Sheri, a young girl who has spent her life watching the skies with her astronomer father, Hank. Paralysed by grief after the passing of her beloved grandmother, Sheri finds solace among a ragtag group of cinephile misfits at her local video store. But when a neon-green meteorite crash-lands nearby and unleashes a gruesome, otherworldly evil upon the town, the retail shitkickers must step up. It quickly becomes Sheri and her loyal mates’ task to conquer their apathy, save humanity, and kick some serious alien ass. Directing her seventh feature at just 21 years old, Alice Maio Mackay has assembled an all-star cast of queer cinema icons.
Sweet Milk Lake
When Jake, a soft-spoken young trans man, returns to his remote, rural hometown of Sweet Milk to visit his terminally ill, estranged father), he expects closure. Instead, he gets a clean slate. Totally unaware that Jake has transitioned, his ailing dad mistakes him for his successful, cisgender twin brother, Sam. Seizing an unexpected opportunity to fit in as masculine in a place where nobody suspects his past, Jake steps into his brother’s shoes to reclaim a boyhood he was denied. But with secrets beginning to threaten the fragile peace Jake has found, the intoxicating allure of messy male privilege quickly tangles Jake in a suffocating web of deception that threatens to shatter his perfect world. Written, directed, and starring Zielinski in a brilliant, dual performance, this striking debut feature beautifully unpacks the fragility of trust in a hyper-masculine environment.
Hunky Jesus
Founded in 1979 to counter the rise of homophobic evangelical preachers in San Francisco, the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence remain a unique, vital social justice movement. Director Jennifer M. Kroot (To Be Takei) crafts a vibrant chronicle that weaves between the 2023 annual festival in Dolores Park, featuring a variety of blasphemous cabaret for a cause and rich archival history. Anchored by intimate interviews with long-serving icons like Sister Roma, founding member Grand Mother Vish-Knew, and RuPaul alumni Saint Honey Mahogany, the film honours decades of compassion, artistry, and fierce political resistance. Kneel for these glorious, sexy freedom fighters who resurrect our faith in community, joy, and each other.
The Education of Jane Cumming
When the haughty aristocrat Lady Cumming Gordon enrols her granddaughters at a new girls’ boarding school, young Jane Cumming finds herself instantly isolated. Born to an Indian mother and targeted by the racism of her classmates, Jane turns to her progressive teachers, Marianne Woods and Jane Pirie, for solace and protection. However, admiration soon morphs into a volatile psychological game. When Jane’s desperate bid to join her mentors’ inner circle is rejected, the fragile boundary between teacher and student fractures, driving her to unleash a ruinous accusation. Evoking the luscious period aesthetics of Portrait of a Lady on Fire, director Sophie Heldman delivers a thrillingly lensed masterclass in tension.
Body Blow
Musclebound, sex-addicted cop Aiden is sent undercover through the underground bars and drag joints of Sydney’s iconic Oxford Street. There, he crosses paths with the seductive Cody, a sex worker moonlighting as a bartender. What begins as an unexpected challenge to Aiden’s assumed heterosexuality rapidly spirals out of control. As his intense attraction to the younger man deepens, Aiden finds himself hopelessly embroiled in a lethal web of drugs, violence, and a deadly heist orchestrated by Cody’s boss, the ruthless drag Mafioso Fat Frankie. Evoking the visual grit and provocative charge of Paul Verhoeven, Abel Ferrara, and Brian De Palma, director Dean Francis (Drown) crafts a gripping tale of desire and deprivation.
Test
Oozing with intense erotic tension until its final frame, Test arrives as a gripping exploration of ambition, faith, and queer awakening. Small-town dreamer Eddie will stop at nothing to get his professional bodybuilding card. Navigating a co-dependent relationship with his demanding mother and coach, he secretly funds his expensive athletic regimen by moonlighting as a webcam model. Eddie’s fortunes seem to turn when he connects with a legendary local coach who offers to unlock his true potential. However, as the trainer’s unconventional, high-risk methods intensify, igniting the jealousy of Eddie’s mother, their partnership sparks an unexpected queer awakening. With his biggest pro-qualifying competition looming, Eddie is caught in a suffocating trap between his religious community’s strict faith, his mother’s control, and a dangerous new romance. Director Sam McConnell delivers a sexy, beautifully lensed drama that brilliantly subverts standard sports-genre conventions with raw, muscular vulnerability.
Montreal, My Beautiful
Feng Xia has spent decades cultivating a seemingly perfect traditional life with her husband and children within Montreal’s Chinese ex-pat community. But when she crosses paths with Camille, a free-spirited, younger Québécoise woman, a passionate affair awakens her long-suppressed sexuality. Faced with a devastating choice, Feng Xia must decide whether to embrace the terrifying freedom of her true identity or abandon it to preserve the home and family she spent a lifetime building. Director Xiaodan He treats her lead with profound nuance, exploring the intersection of immigrant realities and BIPOC queer family dynamics.
Beyond the cinema, QSFF26 expands its industry program with the inaugural Queer Screen Studio, while the Queer Screen Pitch Off gives emerging filmmakers the chance to compete live for $10,000 towards their next short film. And don’t forget the Shorts programs!
The 13th Queer Screen Film Fest screens at the Event Cinemas George Street (Sydney) from 2 – 8 September 2026, and On-demand from 9 – 16 September 2026. For more information and full program, visit: www.queerscreen.org.au for details. Please note: some sessions have sold out!
Images: Body Blow (film still) | Jim Queen (film still) | La Bola Negra (film still) | Coward (film still) | Big Girls Don’t Cry (film still) | Bound (film still) | Our Effed Up World (film still) | Sweet Milk Lake (film still) | Hunky Jesus (film still) | The Education of Jane Cumming (film still) | Body Blow (film still) | Test (film still) | Montreal, My Beautiful (film still)