A Queer Review of the Austin Film Festival (2023)
Highlighting the many ways in which AFF 2023 illustrated that the queer experience is not a monolithic one.

Emma and Sandra, bound by loss and love, find solace and passion in each other while haunted by the illusions of their past. As reality and fantasy blur, they navigate guilt, desire, and the echoes of their late spouses. How long can they live in a world of make-believe?
Highlighting the many ways in which AFF 2023 illustrated that the queer experience is not a monolithic one.
A wondrously imaginative, diverse, and spirited allegory of childhood and the arduousness of adulthood.
After We Collided is a sequel to last year’s After, which itself was based on Anna Todd’s 2014 novel of the same name, and which was originally published as a Harry Styles-centric fan-fiction on WattPad (a similar path as E.L. James’ Fifty Shades of Grey series).
Of the 28 total films I watched, just six of them were queer or featured queer characters in some way.
'Legally Blonde' remains a standard of feminist filmmaking over two decades after its release, although its poor treatment of racial and sexual minorities make it a product of its time.
A few episodes in, I realized the most prominent theme of In The Long Run wasn't culture, race or even finding independence--but the idea of belonging.