LGBTQ+ Films featured at recent Frameline48 to be released in theatres and other platforms

By Oliver Carnay

I’ve attended Frameline48, San Francisco’s longest running LGBTQ+ film festival in the world, which ran from June 19 through 29th and I’ve enjoyed some of the best queer films featured at the festival. But it’s hard to watch all my top favorites as some overlap with another film I’ve selected. For those who weren’t able to attend, here are some of the best that fortunately have its theatrical releases.

Luke Gilford’s “National Anthem” began its national theatrical run on July 19 and is currently enjoying its national release. This breathtaking portrait of a queer rodeo in the American Southwest is the winner of this year’s Frameline48’s Outstanding Feature Award (currently playing in San Francisco at AMC Kabuki, Landmark’s Opera Plaza, and AMC Bay Street in Emeryville).

Levan Akin’s “Crossing” (winner of the Teddy Award at this year’s Berlinale) is also currently playing nationally in theatres (check out Laemmle Theatres in Los Angeles), soon in the Bay Area, and will be released on MUBI on August 30.

Two films that premiered at Sundance are having a theatrical release. Mikko Mäkelä’s sophomore feature “Sebastian” will be released by Kino Lober on August 2, 2024. The film follows a British writer (great portrayal by actor Ruaridh Mollica) exploring sex work as a source of his creative inspiration. From Metrograph Pictures, “Good One” (which also premiered at Cannes Filmfest in May) will have its theatrical release on August 9.

In September, from Cohen Media Group, docfilm “Merchant Ivory” will open August 30 in limited theatres (September 6 at Landmark’s Opera Plaza in SFO). The film follows the history of the Merchant Ivory partnership, featuring interviews with James Ivory and close collaborators detailing and celebrating their experiences of being a part of the company.

A crowd-pleaser at both Sundance and Frameline48, “My Old Ass” will open in select theatres on September 13 (courtesy of Amazon MGM Studios). Then, Frameline48’s Comcast Audience Award for Narrative Feature, Ray Yeung’s “All Shall Be Well” will begin its limited run across the U.S. via Strand Releasing.

Other FL48 titles onboard for a fall release that have been announced are Anthony Schatteman’s “Young Hearts” and Harrison Xu, Ivan Leung, and Katherin Dudas’ “Extremely Unique Dynamic.”

Also Matt Fifer’s “Haze,” which stars Cole Doman and Brian J. Smith will be available on Shudder and AMC+ in the fall. From director Matthew Fifer (co-director of Cicada, Frameline44) immerses the viewer with a lush, atmospheric, and darkly sexy portrait of a man’s quest for answers to his troubled past. Cole Doman (Mutt, Frameline47, also seen at Frameline48 in the short film Bust) stars as Joe, a gay, investigative journalist who returns to his hometown after recently becoming sober. Struggling to find steady work, Joe becomes laser focused on the next big story to relaunch his career: the mysterious death of eight gay men that occurred at the town’s psychiatric hospital. Now abandoned and intentionally forgotten by the town’s people, the looming structure haunts Joe in his quest for the truth.

Music Box Films plans to release Alessandra Lacorazza’s “In The Summers” in the second half of 2024. The film won the Grand Jury Prize and Directing Award in the U.S. Dramatic competition at the Sundance Film Festival. This delicately powerful ode to fractured fatherhood and sibling solidarity follows sisters Violeta and Eva over the course of the most formative years of their lives, spending the summers in New Mexico visiting their adoring but tempestuous father, Vicente. The two siblings must figure out a way to navigate coming of age and emerge unscathed as Vicente’s recklessness drives the roller coaster of their youth.

In his first major acting role, multi Grammy and Latin Grammy Award-winning Puerto Rican rapper and activist Residente is a towering revelation, imbuing the complicated Vicente with a potent mix of vulnerability and danger. Filmmaker Alessandra Lacorazza – whose incisive direction was celebrated at Sundance – drew from personal experiences to bring her feature debut to life. Also starring Lío Mehiel (Mutt, Frameline47) and Sasha Calle (The Flash), In the Summers examines the complexities of family, trauma, and identity through its Latinx and queer characters at various epochal junctures on the winding road to redemption and salvation.

There is also a big chance that Magnolia Pictures will release Frameline48’s Comcast Audience Award for Documentary Feature — Alexis Spraic’s “The World According to Allee Willis” before the end of the year.

Coming soon on VOD in the U.S., from Dekkoo Films, is one of the funniest films featured at FL48, is “The Summer With Carmen,” which will be available at Dekkoo’s streaming platform later this year.

From Severin Films, it was announced that there will be a North American Blu-ray premiere of Paul Veccchiali’s “Don’t Change Hands” as part of their Summer Sale. Among the disc’s supplemental features is a video interview with director Yann Gonzalez (Kinfe+Heart) about Vecchiali’s influence on his work and what makes “Don’t Change Hands” such a major work in the queer cinema canon.