12 Must-See Latino Movies at NewFest, New York’s LGBTQ Film Festival
'Queen of Lapa' still courtesy of NewFest
This year’s NewFest, New York’s LGBTQ film festival, is setting its sights on Brazil. That is, on top of offering an exhaustive roster of movies from around the globe that celebrate the LGBTQ community which includes projects from Colombia, Guatemala and Argentina, the programming team have set aside an entire block of shorts focused on Brazilian productions. As the country’s history with oppression of LGBTQ+, Afro-Brazilian and low-income communities has found itself newly unearthed under Jai Bolsonaro’s government, NewFest’s “Postcards from Brazil” program hopes to offer a collective of filmmaking voices who celebrate the queer and trans lovers, fighters, and everyday Brazilians working toward lives free from discrimination.
On the feature-length side, Brazil is equally well represented, with stories that touch on the leather community, romantic foibles and student activism. But that’s only to scratch the surface of what’s arguably one of the most diverse slates you’re likely to find. Whether you’re into a documentary about queer women’s representation on U.S. television, a dour drama about gay conversion therapy in Central America, or an LA-set vampire flick, you’ll find NewFest has you covered. Check out all the US Latino and Latin American feature films playing the fest below.
NewFest runs October 23 — 29, 2019.