Timeline of queer cinema history in Southeast Asia

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Early 1970s

During this period, queer topics were largely undiscussed or considered taboo in Southeast Asia. Queer people were largely seen as the “other”, fated to be hidden, condemned, or treated as comic relief. This is reflected by some of the films during that time. The 1970 Filipino film Tubog Sa Ginto (translates to “Dipped in Gold”) depicts a wealthy businessman who tries to hide his homosexuality from the public. The 1971 Indonesian film Jang Djatuh Di Kaki Lelaki (roughly translates to “The one who falls at a man’s feet”) showcases “abnormal” sexual behaviours, equating a lesbian relationship with sadism and serial affairs.

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Tubog Sa Ginto

Dipped in Gold

Country: The Philippines

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Jang Djatuh Di Kaki Lelaki

The one who falls at a man’s feet

Country: Indonesia

Late 1970s
to 1990s

While stigma still existed, queer communities continued to gain visibility in various parts of Asia. Soth Yun, one half of the elderly lesbian couple in Khmer film Bopha Pitorng Chhomnas Tekpleang (translates to “Two Girls Against The Rain”) (2012), notices how queer communities were slowly gaining acceptance in Cambodia during the 1980s. Meanwhile, Singapore became known as the country with Southeast Asia’s first sex reassignment surgery. Its famous tourist spot, Bugis Street, also became famous for housing a community of transgender women, who were immortalised in the controversial 1995 film Bugis Street. It features a non-queer protagonist who unlearns her bigotry against transgender women.

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Bopha Pitorng Chhomnas Tekpleang

Two Girls Against the Rain

Country: Cambodia

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Bugis Street

Country: Singapore

2000

With increased visibility came documentaries that not only pushed real life queer voices to the forefront, but also challenged anti-queer sentiments and reframed them. In 2000, two notable documentaries were released. The first was Markova: Comfort Gay, a Filipino biographical film based on Walter Dempster Jr., the last surviving Filipino male sex slave for the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. The other was Bukak Api (roughly translates to “open fire”, a street lingo used amongst sex workers of a sexual act), a Malaysian film depicting the lives of mak nyah sex workers in Chow Kit, Kuala Lumpur, with the aim of spreading awareness about AIDS in the community.

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Markova: Comfort Gay

Country: The Philippines

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Bukak Api

Open Fire

Country: Indonesia

2000 to 2010

This period saw significant progress in normalising queerness in some countries. The fall of Soeharto’s authoritarian regime in Indonesia ushered in an era of media freedom and made way for works like the Indonesian film Arisan! (translates to “The Gathering”) (2003), which had the country’s first on-screen gay kiss. The Thai film รักแห่งสยาม (translates to “Love of Siam”) (2007) invited both critical acclaim and controversy for its deliberate decision to not mention the film’s gay romance on its promotional materials, in favour of not treating queer relationships differently.

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Arisan!

The Gathering

Country: Indonesia

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รักแห่งสยาม

Love of Siam

Country: Thailand

2011 to 2016

Unfortunately, progress is seldom linear. A period of regression and stagnation followed. In stark contrast to its predecessor’s optimistic portrayal, Arisan! 2 (2011) featured a scene where a queer film screening is boycotted by an angry mob, reflecting the recent rise in hostility from Indonesia’s government personnels and conservative religious groups that eventually led to several anti-LGBT+ threats and attacks in January 2016. Thailand, despite its queer-friendly reputation among tourists and wealth of boys’ love media, saw rampant discrimination among its locals, and was stuck in a series of attempts and failures to legalise same-sex unions. The 2016 film Fathers explored what it meant to be a gay couple with a son without marriage and adoption rights, dealing with stigma and a constant fear of losing their family.

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Arisan! 2

The Gathering 2

Country: Indonesia

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Fathers

Country: Thailand

2014

In difficult times, queer creators and allies rose to the occasion. In Brunei, where same-sex sexual activity is illegal and punishable by death, telling queer stories has always been especially difficult. Despite that, in 2014, a short film on its local drag queen scene titled Haram Queen was released. The inaugural &PROUD film festival was also held in Myanmar, which hosted various short films featuring queer personal stories such as That’s The Way I Am.

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Haram Queen

Country: Brunei

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That's The Way I Am

Country: Myanmar

2017 to 2019

In some countries, it takes more time for queer communities to flourish. Timor Leste had its first pride parade in 2017, and a documentary on the state of its community titled Dalan Ba Simu Malu (translates to “The Road To Acceptance”) was released a year after. The documentary featured a segment where Dr. Rui Maria de Araujo, the prime minister, delivered a speech urging the public to accept each other, including LGBT+ individuals. Laos’ first queer documentary short film, Queerability, was released in 2018 and illuminates the intersectional experiences of those in the queer community living with disabilities.

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Dalan Ba Simu Malu

The Road to Acceptance

Country: Timor Leste

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Queerability

Country: Laos