Silence Will Not Protect You

Festival 2024

Multiple origins, 2023, 2024

DocumentaryPay What You CanShort Form

This documentary shorts programme offers an unfiltered look into invisible and unspoken aspects of LGBTQ+ experience: the daily routine of a queer couple under military rule; the difficulties of living through Covid times with HIV; anti-trans persecution; and a man remembering his painful experience seeking asylum in the UK. These films expose the many layers of oppression faced by queer East and Southeast Asian people today. Participants recount traumatic memories to the camera, laying bare their lived experiences of prejudice and violence, while the filmmakers invite the viewer to join in a moment of solidarity.

Followed by in person Q&A with Dorothy Cheung (director of Heart Murmurs) and Warren (from Qeluar).

Total Runtime: 76 min

Qeluar | Justice Khor | UK | 2023 | 20min

The Bus Driver | Ku Ki | Myanmar | 2024 | 22min

Heart Murmurs | Dorothy Cheung | Hong Kong, UK | 2023 | 9min

House of Rencong | Rizky Rahad | Indonesia | 2022 | 25min

Tickets

20 April 2024, 2:00 PM

Past Event

The Garden Cinema

28 November 2024, 6:00 PM

Past Event

esea contemporary

Qeluar

2023

Directed by
Justice Khor

Running time
20 mins

Expelled from Malaysia, the first person to receive asylum in the UK on the grounds of LGBTQ+ identity recounts a journey marked by ousting, disownment, and a quest for acceptance.

The Bus Driver

2024

Directed by
Ku Ki

Running time
22 mins

A bus conductor and his wife struggle to make ends meet, having to cope with long working hours and daily power cuts in Myanmar. Yet, this queer couple seems to be completely integrated into their community, despite LGBTQ+ people being legally persecuted by the military regime.

Heart Murmurs

2023

Directed by
Dorothy Cheung

Running time
9 mins

Heart Murmurs is a poetic dialogue between the filmmaker and Dean, a young man living in Hong Kong. In reflecting on his experience living with a congenital disability and HIV during the first years of the COVID pandemic, Dean expresses his sense of self in the face of regular medical challenges.

House of Rencong

2022

Directed by
Rizky Rahadianto

Running time
25 mins

In 2018, Indonesian police raided several hair salons in the province of Aceh, torturing dozens of trans hairdressers. Four years later, survivors meet discreetly with a trans artist, Tamarra, to explore performance as a means for collective healing.

Additional info

This is a pay-what-you-can event between £3 and £15. We suggest £9 as a general admission, but feel free to follow the list below to pay based on your circumstances.

How much should I pay?
£3: I am just about able to cover my everyday costs.
£6: I can cover my everyday costs, but I find it stressful occasionally.
£9: I can comfortably cover my everyday costs.
£12: Beyond my everyday costs, I have disposable income and financial security.
£15: I would like to contribute more to support the organisation’s work.