Screening & Filmmakers Talk | Queer Asian Diaspora
Two film screenings and in conversation with the filmmakers.
For the LGBTQ+ History Month this year, we are very fortunate to have the support of Hackney Pride365. We will have a special focus on the history of queer Asian diaspora community, hosting the screenings and zine making workshop. We hope to open up a discussion in a relaxed and interactive atmosphere about how the queer Asian diaspora views LGBTQ+ History Month, what is still missing and how each of us can contribute to its narratives.
We will be screening two films followed by a Q&A with talented filmmakers.
In the place where we left and arrived (dir,Samuel Zhang):
This project revolves around the subject of Queer Chinese Diaspora, starting from a personal journey to a shared experience in a wide social context. The queer identity intertwined with diaspora implies the concept of home that is being problematised not only by ethnocultural-identity transformation through transnational movement but also by the rejection experienced in the home country as identifying as queer. The reality for people who are marginalised either culturally, geographically, or socially, is always a state of exile.
Stonewall 50: Where next for LGBTQ+ lives? (produced by Openly/Thomson Reuters Foundation):
The Stonewall riots were a series of spontaneous demonstrations by the LGBT+ community that began on June 28, 1969 in the Stonewall Inn, Greenwich Village. This was a turning point in the gay liberation movement and is often seen as the start of the modern fight for LGBT+ rights and freedoms in the United States.
50 years on, for many around the world this remains a dream.
Filmed in Honduras, Zanzibar, Taiwan and England, the documentary provides unique access to the poignant personal stories of those facing challenges due to their sexuality or gender identity.
Guests:
Samuel Zhang (he/they), a multidisciplinary visual artist and LGBTQ+ rights advocator who was born in Shanghai based in London. He recently graduated from Goldsmiths (University of London) with a master’s degree in Visual Anthropology. https://www.samuelzhang.co
Shanshan Chen (she/her), co-director of Stonewall 50: Where next for LGBTQ+ lives? Born in Shanghai and based in London, Shanshan Chen is a self-shooting Director-Producer who is passionate about creative and character-driven documentaries that continue to delight international audiences. She has a flair for gaining access to original stories and engaging characters, directing documentaries about complex and sensitive issues in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Europe and the U.S. She brings incredible journalistic skills to her work, with her documentaries screened at festivals and broadcasted globally. https://shanshanchen.co.uk
Open to LGBTQ+ individuals and allies from all cultural backgrounds.
Accessibility:
We regretfully apologise that vFd is in a basement venue accessed by a staircase and therefore is not wheelchair accessible.
The main space is accessed by a single staircase with 12 stairs that has a single bannister along the entire length. There are no steps or stairs once you are in the basement.
There are two toilets in the basement space, each are gender neutral and have no steps to them.