SHORTS: IF YOU WANNA BE MY LOVERBOY

Get ready, boys. Sexual and romantic desire between men fuels this shorts program, capturing the thrill, ecstasy, and heartbreak of wanting. From bathhouse shadows and Fire Island feuds to forbidden hookups, interstellar love, and erotic rituals, these films revel in fantasy, taboo, and longing.

Orion’s Quest
Dir. Steven Chew, 15 min, USA
Before a powerful eclipse occurs, an extraterrestrial being must finalize his mission to comprehend love, by exploring the romantic relationships between black gay men.

Fan Letter
Dir. Zeb Daemen, 16 min, Belgium
A 50s heartthrob discovers a letter that rekindles a lost love, forcing him to confront the Faustian bargain behind his fame. Alone in his dressing room, Ricky risks everything for one last chance at truth and connection.

Pining
Dir. David Jaffe, 14 min, USA
A salty, millennial gay wars with a spunky, Gen Z female he considers a threat to Fire Island Pines’ already crumbling shore while attempting to seduce the optimistic influencer who brought her. CW: Explicit sexual situations

The Upper Room
Dir. Joel Perez, 12 min, USA
Two Pentecostal youth pastors have a crisis of faith when they meet up for an afternoon of forbidden love.

Lisbon
Dir. Matthew Jacobs Morgan, 13 min, UK
A broke queer man attends a hook up with an older man on the promise of cash, but finds himself pulled into a twisted request that forces him to confront deep questions of life, death, and the price of human connection.

A Garden Under the Earth
Dir. Pedro Lavin, 6 min, USA/Mexico
In a series of dreamlike digital vignettes, two wild fairies engage in an increasingly intense erotic ritual. CW: Explicit sexual situations

Within a Quiet Body
Dir. José Manuel Vélez, 14 min, USA/Chile
Alex, a jaded cleaner at a gay sex club, tries to satiate his repressed desires through sex and pain. CW: Explicit sexual situations, disturbing images

Brief Somebodies
Dir. Andy Reid, 15 min, Canada
While rehearsing a sexual assault scene, a pair of actors form a connection they’ll be forced to reconfigure once filming begins. CW: Explicit sexual situations

This screening will be followed by a Q&A