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With Melbourne’s premiere queer arts and culture festival a.k.a. Midsumma 2026, kicking off on January 18, we dedicated this program to celebrating two fantastic LGBTQIA+ film related events that are coming your way that will leave you entertained and engaged. First up, we always know that the Melbourne Queer Film Festival brings a great selection of films for Midsumma and 2026 is no exception. One of our favourite returning guests, MQFF’s Program Director Ro Bright, joined us to take us through the great line up of films on offer for their 2026 MQFF Midsumma series. Then we turned our attention to a workshop that will help to nurture and inspire the next generation of local queer filmmakers forward with their own projects. Lead by Melbourne based Kiwi born independent filmmaker Lousie Lever, ‘There’s a story in you: a Queer filmmaking workshop’ is on January 24 – 25 with a goal to empower participants to connect with likeminded creatives and learn more about the process of filmmaking. Show your support for these fantastic events and have a very safe, happy, and queer Midsumma!

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Even though we are at the start of a new year, we wanted to take the time to spotlight a TV series that came out at the end of 2025 that has literally taken over social media (and our lives) plus made us all into big fans of ice hockey. ‘Heated Rivalry’ came out in late November and took the internet by storm with its good-looking cast, romantic storylines, and steamy gay sex scenes. As the first season rolled out over six episodes, the fandom grew and it was easy to see why this Canadian-made show set in the world of professional ice hockey was winning hearts all over the world at a time when representation of LGBTQIA characters in television and film are under threat. With the final episode still playing on repeat in our hearts and minds, we took this opportunity to take a look at the ‘Heated Rivalry’ phenomenon and explore its history starting out as a series of novels through to its development as a television show along with its cultural impact broadly and from a gay perspective. We also took a look at some of the films we’re looking forward to seeing and reviewing in 2026 including ‘Pillion’, ‘Supergirl’, ‘Heartstopper Forever’ and more. Happy New Year!

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With 2025 coming to a close, we thought it would be a good time to revisit some of our favourite interviews from the past 12 months. We’ve been fortunate to speak to so many great filmmakers, actors and industry creatives over the year and quite honestly, we could do another 5 of these interview highlight shows and still have more leftover. For this special, we revisited our interviews with Tracie Laymon, Karan Soni, Roshan Sethi, Andrew Ahn and Kate Woods to discuss their respective projects, careers and more. If you enjoy these interviews and want more then you’re in luck – check out more from the past 10 years of the show on our podcast feed and also find us on social media to see what’s coming up on the show too. Happy New Year, we’re looking forward to bringing you more of the best in queer film and television in 2026!

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We know that ‘Best of’ lists can be problematic but with the end of the year fast approaching we wanted to share with you some of our favourite queer films and television shows for 2025. In no particular order, we offered up three picks each that reflected some of the best shows and movies this year that showcased representation from a LGBTQIA+ perspective on our big and small screens or was just something that brought us some joy and that we loved watching in a very challenging year. Let us know if you liked our selections, think we made a mistake or missed one of your faves by dropping us an email or messaging us on our socials. Happy holidays and here’s to a very queer 2026 for us all!

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The year was 2016 and two weeks out from Christmas, a new show started on JOY that promised to bring you the best in queer film and television every week… and on Monday December 15, Out Takes celebrated 10 years on air and on podcast and everyone was invited! For this very special live show from the JOY studios at the Victorian Pride Centre, we were joined by some very special guests, including Cinema Nova CEO and friend of the show Kristian Connelly, along with a shout out from our London-based international correspondent Dion. We also had some great giveaways courtesy of Eclipse Cinema and Cinema Nova plus we reminisced on some of the many highlights and memorable moments from our last decade bringing you the best in queer film and television. Thank you for your support and for listening!

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For this Out Takes, we decided to get into the festive season by looking at two new Christmas themed films that explore queer stories within the family dynamic that is often overlooked in these genre.

First up we took a look at ‘The Christmas Writer’ from Tello Films which is the first network dedicated to telling stories featuring and about lesbian/queer women and is the world’s longest running LGBTQ+ streaming platform with the biggest library of sapphic holiday films available anywhere. Their latest sapphic holiday-themed film follows Noel, a bestselling lesbian Christmas author who loses her holiday muse and experiences writer’s block, so she returns to her quaint hometown in search of renewed inspiration. What she finds is an unexpected love story that even she couldn’t have written… We really enjoyed this film and jumped at the chance to speak to Christin Baker, the film’s director and CEO of Tello Films, and Stacey Lee Powell, her real life partner and one of the stars of ‘The Christmas Writer’, from their homebase of Nashville. We covered a lot in this two-part interview, including the intent behind Tello Films, the importance of representation in lesbian and sapphic series, movies, and shorts plus the all-important question, what makes a great queer Christmas movie.

We then moved on to ‘Oh.What.Fun.’, the new Christmas film streaming now on Prime Video, with an all-star cast including Michelle Pfeiffer, Denis Leary, Chloe Grace Moretz, Felicity Jones, Danielle Brooks, Jason Schwartzman, Eva Longoria, Maude Apatow and Joan Chen. We had high hopes for this one, especially with a queer character in the mix, so listen to our review to see if it lives up to the hype.

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For this special Out Takes episode, we headed back in time then back to the future in honour of JOY 94.9’s 32nd on-air anniversary and World AIDs Day 2025. We started off by using the 1993 December 1st start date for JOY to reflect on what was happening in queer film and television during this period and also check in on where we were at on our specific queer journeys and what we were watching at the time. We then caught up with Cal Hawk from Thorne Harbour Health and one of the hosts of Well, Well, Well on JOY to discuss the importance of World AIDs Day, the history of HIV and AIDS activism in Melbourne, and some of the seminal films and TV programs that have shaped the discussion around HIV/AIDs over the years. We then finished up with some television and film recommendation’s that we have previously discussed focusing on HIV/AIDS that are available to listen to now in the Out Takes podcast archive.

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As is our way at Out Takes, we literally had something for everyone this week! The highly anticipated second film of the most talked about movie musical in years, the return of a fantastic local documentary to a local streaming service, a queer Christmas radio play from one of our own that is on around Melbourne for a limited run, and a review of a new psychological drama that is in Aussie cinemas from November 27.
First up, we discussed our return to Oz with the release of ‘Wicked: For Good’ and had our say on whether it’s a perfect part 2 to one of the biggest films of last year or left us wanting more. Needless to say, it’s a celebration of diversity and queerness that we need more than ever, and we love seeing Cynthia, Ari and Jonathan belting it out on our big screens. We then welcomed back Sue Thomson, the local filmmaker whose delightful documentary ‘The Coming Back Out Ball Movie’ is heading to DocPlay this month. Following its release in 2018 at the height of the marriage equality debate, this wonderful celebration of LGBTQIA+ elders is an incredible legacy piece that is well-worthy of a re-watch plus we hear more from Sue around her memories from that time, her thoughts on the current landscape for Australian documentaries and more. Our second interview for the show was with one of our very-own as Demetra told us all about her latest creative venture that is having three special performances around Melbourne in the lead up to Christmas. Billed as a live queer radio play, “Coming Out for Christmas” is the story of a queer young Greek-Aussie woman, who brings her Aussie girlfriend home for her family’s Christmas lunch and discovers her conservative family is hiding from everyone. This is a comedy about family, community, and living your truth. Our final review for this show was ‘Lurker’, a new film that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and screened at MIFF this year where it garnered overwhelmingly positive reviews. The film follows Matthew as he manages to infiltrate the inner circle of a rising pop star, Oliver, and glories in his new status as an indispensable member of the entourage. But when Matthew realises how easy he is to replace – or even worse, that he is not as important as he believed – he will go to any lengths to stay relevant to Oliver and his crew.

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For this Out Takes, we welcomed the return of Melbourne’s very own queer film festival with a selection of reviews, took a look at a new local show that promises to be a feisty feminist murder mystery plus we checked in on Eclipse Cinema, the latest independent cinema to open in Melbourne’s Northside.

First up, with the 35th Melbourne Queer Film Festival under way, we let you know about a few of the films we’ve seen that you can check out in this year’s programs, including In Transit, She’s The He, Hot Milk and 300 Letters.

We then moved on to ‘He Had It Coming’, a new Aussie series coming to Stan on November 20 that bills itself as a feisty feminist murder mystery that has an impressive international cast set against the backdrop of a fictional university in Adelaide.

We finished up by turning the spotlight on to a new independent cinema that has opened up in the heart of Melbourne’s Northside. Eclipse Cinema is found in Collingwood’s former Sherrin factory and is now home to a single-screen cinema that’s pairing new and recent films with classic must-sees. We caught up with Mark Walker, the owner and operator of Eclipse Cinema, to find out more about his love of cinema, how he decides on what to screen each week and more.

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For this Out Takes, we kept it eclectic by discussing the latest all-star female focused series from Ryan Murphy that the internet cannot get enough of, a documentary about one of the most respected and queer friendly world leaders, and we welcome the return of Melbourne’s very own queer film festival.
We started off with ‘All’s Fair’, the new TV series that has received some of the worst reviews in recent history while generating excellent ratings and major online buzz. Is it a case of its-so-bad-it’s-great or something more predictable at work here like good old-fashioned misogyny? With a cast including Glenn Close, Niecy Nash, Sarah Paulson, Naomi Watts, and Kim Kardashian, and with Ryan Murphy’s fingerprints all over it you can guarantee it looks good and is camp AF so based on that you will either love it or loath it!
We shifted gears dramatically to review ‘Prime Minister’, a new documentary that chronicles Jacinda Ardern’s tenure as New Zealand PM where she navigates crises while redefining global leadership through her empathetic yet resolute approach, including being recognised as a political ally to the LGBTQIA+ community.
We finished this show with a two-part interview with one of our favourite returning guests, Melbourne Queer Film Festival’s Program Director Ro Bright. Along with taking us through the program and a few of their personal highlights and recommendations for 2025, we also discussed some of the many special events on offer and explored this year’s theme and what it means to be searching for queer utopias.

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For this Out Takes the theme of the show was ‘eclectic’ with a delightful mix including our review of JLo’s latest film (and her first ever movie musical), an update from our London-based international correspondent on the latest releases coming our way soon and we catch up with two special guests to discuss the power and importance of queer music videos.

First up, we took a look at ‘Kiss of the Spiderwoman’. It started life as an award-winning novel. Then, a groundbreaking drama in the 1980s that won the late William Hurt a Best Actor Oscar. In the 90’s, it was transformed again – this time into a record-setting Broadway musical that bagged seven Tony awards. Now, nearly half a century on, the web’s being woven all over again with Jennifer Lopez taking one of the lead roles in this movie musical that is in cinemas now.

Next up we welcomed back Dion Blackler, our UK correspondent and one of the co-hosts of the ‘In The Mood For Film’ podcast, to discuss the recent BFI London Film Festival which highlighted some of the queer films coming down under soon including the much anticipated ‘Pillion’ and ‘The History of Sound’ plus some of the many highlights from this year’s festival.

To celebrate the launch of the 115th Issue of Senses of Cinema, we spoke with not one, but two doctors – Dr Patrick Kelly and Dr Stayci Taylor, who joined us to discuss their special event ‘My Formative Queers: Stories of the Music Videos that Made Us Queer’. Both will be on the panel for this free ticketed event so they gave us a taste of what to expect and explained what makes a classic queer music video.

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For this Out Takes, we went on a global cinematic trip looking at films and filmmakers from Britain, Iran, and the U.S.A.
First up, we looked at ‘Hedda’, the latest provocative drama from writer-director Nia DaCosta which is a modern reimagining of Henrik Ibsen’s classic. This time around, the action has been transposed from 19th-century Oslo to 1950’s Britain, where former bohemian free-spirit Hedda has moved into a sprawling estate with her new husband, the pinched and humourless academic George. Hedda has a lot going on – as the daughter of a general navigating a house she does not want and a marriage she feels trapped in, and a female ex-lover who reappears in her life. Tessa Thompson is exceptional in the title role and delivers a performance that is a bold and haunting portrait of a woman on the edge.
We were then joined by Palace Cinema’s National Program Manager Kim Patelas to discuss the return this November of the Russell Hobbs British Film Festival and some of the highlights in this year’s program. As the Festival’s curator and who worked for Palace for 40 years, Kim started the British Film Festival and even though he retired from Palace in 2021 he has continued to program the Festival and has an encyclopaedic knowledge of British film.
We concluded the show with a look at the upcoming ‘Focus on Jafar Panahi’ retrospective that is coming to Melbourne this November. While he has not directed any explicit queer films, his work often addresses social restrictions that heavily affect marginalised individuals, including LGBTQ+ people. Despite arrests, filmmaking bans, and restrictions on travelling outside of Iran, Jafar Panahi has resolutely made films marked by profound humanism for over 30 years. ACMI has curated a program of twelve films, from his breakout feature ‘The White Balloon’ to the Out Takes favourite ‘Offside’ through to this year’s Palme d’Or winner at the Cannes Film Festival, ‘It Was Just an Accident’.

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For this Out Takes, we reviewed two new films from gay directors that explore the queer experience in vastly different ways and environments, plus we celebrated the return of The Other Film Festival and MQFF who are collaborating on a special inclusive cinema event this November.
First up, we reviewed ‘Twinless’, a truly original and entertaining film that is equal parts hilarious and heartbreaking. After meeting in a twin bereavement support group, Roman and Dennis develop an unlikely friendship as they both search for solace and an identity without their better halves. They soon become inseparable, but old wounds reopen that will have permanent consequences for their friendship. This stirring, whip-smart, wholly original dark-comedy comes from breakout multi hyphenate writer, actor and director James Sweeney and it’s fair to say it is one of our favourite queer films of 2025. Next, we discussed ‘After The Hunt’, the latest film from gay Italian director Luca Guadagnino starring Julia Roberts, Ayo Edebiri, Andrew Garfield, Michael Stuhlbarg and Chloë Sevigny. that tells the story of a college professor who is forced to grapple with her own secretive past after one of her male colleagues is faced with a serious accusation against an up-and-coming young queer female student at Yale University. We were then joined by The Other Film Festival’s Artistic Director Fiona Tuomy to discuss their ground-breaking disability-led program for 2025 that places Deaf and Disabled people at the centre of the Australian screen industry. Founded in 2004, The Other Film Festival is Australia’s first international disability film festival and a pioneer in offering a global standard of universal access for audiences. Along with putting on their own festival, this year they are collaborating with MQFF on a special inclusive cinema event for the Australian Premiere of ‘If You Are Afraid You Put Your Heart into Your Mouth and Smile’. We ended the program with a look at this year’s Melbourne Queer Film Festival which is back across Naarm this November with a stellar selection of LGBTQIA+ cinema and events, including a swag of premieres and films that we have been very excited to see on the big screen and in its online program.

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For this show, we take the phrase ‘mixed-bag’ and make it a reality by celebrating the return of one of our favourite local film festivals, review two television shows that highlight two gay men’s experience of dealing with two very different battlefields – one being the US Marine’s boot camp and the other being the hellscape known as the American High School campus, and we revisit a queer highlight from the ‘Black Mirror’ anthology.
With TILDE returning to Melbourne from October 31 – November 2, we welcome back their CEO Ro Bright to discuss this year’s program and find out why the festival’s theme “Bites Back” is a celebration of creative defiance, self-determination, and the power of storytelling to challenge dominant norms and reclaim space on their own terms. We also reviewed the new series ‘Boots’ a Netflix dramedy set in the 1990s that follows Cameron, a closeted gay teenager, who impulsively joins the U.S. Marine Corps with his best friend. Based on Greg Cope White’s memoir ‘The Pink Marine’, the series explores themes of identity, friendship, and resilience as the recruits navigate boot camp, a dangerous environment where being openly gay meant severe consequences. We then moved on from the Marine’s boot camp to another battleground that is well known to many of us – the teenage warzone known as high school. ‘English Teacher’ is a comedy series from Brian Jordan Alavarez who plays Evan Marquez, a gay man who finds himself at the intersection of professional, political, and personal aspects of working at a high school in Texas. We finished by revisiting ‘San Junipero’ from the critically acclaimed and much-loved British science fiction anthology television series Black Mirror. This episode premiered on Netflix in October 2016, and the story begins in 1987 in a beach resort town named San Junipero, where the introverted Yorkie meets the more outgoing Kelly. Many felt that this episode marked a cultural shift in relation to the portrayal of lesbianism on television, or proof of concept that works dealing with queer characters need not be tragic.

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It’s no secret that we love a film festival at Out Takes so for this program we let you know what’s the craic with the return of the Irish Film Festival. Now in its 11th year, the 2025 Festival will showcase sixteen films and documentaries from Ireland, including 14 Australian premieres, and will take place in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Canberra, and Perth, alongside a nationwide online program from October 9 to November 9.

We had the opportunity to review three films, starting with ‘Never Stop the Action’, which is described as a kaleidoscopic journey through time and space. We begin the film in The Bronx, catching a 5am D-Train with our guides Teshi and Casey, two old friends recently reunited at an all-night dance party. On their long subway ride through the awakening city, the two share stories that take us out of the train on surreal swerves into vivid imaginary universes.

We then looked at ‘Ten Years of Yes’, a wonderful short film that follows Sydney Queer Irish, a social group for Irish expats and their friends of all identities and nationalities in Sydney. For the last 15 years, they have held regular meetups and annual events, participated in the Mardi Gras festival, and created a home away from home for Ireland’s LGBTQ+ diaspora down under. This short documentary follows Sydney Queer Irish in their preparation for the 2025 Mardi Gras parade, where they unveiled a sensational wedding party upon Sydney’s Oxford Street, honouring ten years of marriage equality in Ireland. ‘Ten Years of Yes’ captures a moment of both reflection and celebration amongst a community in their adopted city, thousands of kilometres from where history was made. We spoke with Alan Fitzgerald, the film’s director and member of Sydney Queer Irish, about how he got involved in the group, the importance of capturing this moment on film and also how he became an ‘accidental’ filmmaker.

Our final review was the feature documentary ‘Mrs Robinson’, which tells the impressive life story of change-maker Mary Robinson: Ireland’s first female President, a pioneering UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and the successor of Nelson Mandela as Chair of The Elders. This intimate portrait takes viewers from Mary Robinson’s childhood in the rural west of Ireland to the world stage working with Bishop Desmond Tutu, Nelson Mandela, Joe Biden, and Barack Obama. Unfettered access for the first time allows the viewer to hear Mary’s commentary on a changing Ireland, her legal wins decriminalising homosexuality, legalising divorce and contraception and her triumphant Presidential victory.

We finished by speaking with Dr Enda Murray, an award-winning filmmaker who has lived and worked in Ireland, England, USA, and Australia. His academic and filmmaking practice focuses on community, social justice, and popular culture. He is also the founder and creative director of the Irish Film Festival, and we spoke with him to find out more about the history of the festival, the importance of sharing Irish stories on our screens and more.

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For this program, we looked at two films that explore the queer experience through very different perspectives; one being a documentary on the creative team behind many loved films from the past 50 years including the queer classic ‘Maurice’; and the second, a queer coming-of-age comedy about coming out of the closet that is screening at the VPC and Thornbury Picture House in Melbourne this October.

First up we reviewed the delightful ‘Egghead & Twinkie’ which explores the aftermath of Vivian a.k.a. Twinkie, a teenage girl who has just come out to her conservative parents who then takes off on a road trip to meet her online crush with the help of her nerdy best friend Egghead. This film is heart-warming and very a sweet tale about embracing your identity and the ups and downs of best friendship. It’s written and directed by Sarah Kambe Holland who joined us to discuss the film, the importance of representation and more.

Next up, we ran an encore of our interview from November 2024 with writer, producer and film director Stephen Soucy who was the driving force behind this insightful and educational documentary ‘Merchant Ivory’ that explores the legendary creative team behind Merchant Ivory Productions who became synonymous with prestige arthouse cinema. Check out this fantastic film at the ‘Meet the Filmmaker’ screening at Cinema Nova with Stephen Soucy for a post-screening Zoom Q&A.

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For this Out Takes, we bring you a spring edition of Out Takes Recommends looking at a selection of films, TV shows and more that we’re enjoying as it is warming up down under and we struggle through hay-fever season a.k.a springtime in Melbourne!

We started off with a review of Wayward which is streaming now on Netflix and is from Mae Martin, the queer comedian and actor whose previous show ‘Feel Good’ was a big hit in 2020 – 21, and also stars Toni Collette in a scene stealing role. Wayward is set in the picture-perfect town of Tall Pines where sinister secrets lurk behind every closed door. This genre-bending limited series about the eternal struggle between one generation and the next, what happens when friendship and loyalty are put to the ultimate test, and how buried truths always find a way of coming to the surface.

We followed up with a selection of films, television shows and a podcast that we’ve been enjoying as it warms up down under including The Hunting Wives, Caught Stealing, Weapons, Good Hang podcast, Peacemaker Season 2 and more. Let us know what you think of our recommendations and share yours with us too! 

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Disclaimer: the two films discussed on this episode deal with the topic of suicide and domestic violence and our commentary may contain content that could be distressing to some people so listener discretion is advised.

For this Out Takes we’re saying Bentornato to the St Ali Italian Film Festival which is back this spring in Palace Cinemas across Australia from September 17, delivering a Bellissimo selection of box office hits and award-winning films. We started with a review of ‘Il ragazzo dai pantaloni rosa’, also known as ‘The Boy with Pink Trousers’, which has become a cultural phenomenon and box office sensation in Italy. This incredibly moving, emotional and heartbreaking drama explores the real story behind Italy’s first publicised case of online bullying through the short life of Andrea Spezzacatene. A gifted student and a talented singer, Andrea longs to make friends and fit in at his new school but he soon falls prey to Christian, a charming student with a darker side. Then events take a turn for the worse for Andrea as the school bullying intensifies. We were honoured to be joined by Margherita Ferri, the film’s director, for a long form chat about her involvement in the film, the importance of telling this story through a queer lens and more.

We also took a look at ‘Diamanti’ (Diamonds), the 15ht film from celebrated gay Turkish-Italian film director and screenwriter Ferzan Özpetek which is also having its Australian premiere at this year’s festival. This Italian box office hit is a gorgeous tribute to the costume designers and seamstresses whose great craftsmanship bring to life the magic of cinema and is inspired by Özpetek’s personal experience frequenting film and theatre tailoring shops in the 1980s and the incredible women he encountered in these high-pressure environments.

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For this episode we turned the spotlight on two local female directors in line with a special cinema event coming to the Victorian Pride Centre for one and the latest release for the other which is coming to a cinema near you soon. First up we took a look at ‘Revolt She Said’, a feature documentary that interrogates ideas about contemporary feminism and gender from an Australian and New Zealand lens. The film is from director Louise Lever who appeared on the program recently to discuss her short film ‘Joey’s Heart’ and is presenting a special screening of ‘Revolt She Said’ on Wednesday September 17 at the Victorian Pride Centre. Louise joined us again to discuss this upcoming event and how this film continues to provoke discussion around the themes of identity, gender politics, queer identity, power and women’s roles. We were then joined by Kate Woods, the celebrated Australian director of ‘Looking for Alibrandi’ who has taken time away to direct film and television overseas and is now back in Australia with her latest film ‘Kangaroo’ which is in cinemas nationally from September 17. This family friendly film is inspired by the extraordinary true story of kangaroo-carer Chris “Brolga” Barns and stars Ryan Corr as a fallen TV personality who forms an unlikely friendship with a 12-year-old Indigenous girl, played by newcomer Lily Whiteley, as they rescue and rehabilitate orphaned joeys in the red centre. We had the pleasure to speak with Kate to discuss her interest in bringing this story to life along with looking back at her incredible career. Finally, with the Melbourne International Film Festival concluding in late August, we took the opportunity to look back at some of our favourite films we saw across the 18 days.

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For this episode, we took a deep dive into ‘Went Up the Hill’, the latest film from Samuel Van Grinsven that stars Vicky Krieps and Dacre Montgomery which has been appearing at festivals around the world and will be in Aussie cinemas from September 11. This haunting, original tale of grief and possession set in remote New Zealand. The film follows Jack who has arrived at a distinctly unwelcoming funeral of Elizabeth, the artist mother he barely knew. An unnerving atmosphere hovers in Elizabeth’s cavernous and isolated house as Jack attempts to connect with Jill, his mother’s widow.

We caught up with Samuel Van Grinsven, the film’s writer and director, as he was doing the rounds to promote ‘Went Up the Hill’ and discussed how this intense and very queer film got made, the casting, his connection to the landscape of New Zealand and more. We also dived in to the Out Takes archives and revisited his interview from 2019 when he was on the show to discuss his first feature film ‘Sequin in a Blue Room’.

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For this Out Takes, we welcomed the return of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne that promises ‘More Cinema, More Culture, More Celebration’ featuring an inclusive Pride event this August. We began by reviewing ‘We Are Faheem and Karun’, the latest film from celebrated gay Indian filmmaker Onir. This beautiful and unique tale is the first ever queer Kashmiri love story, set in Kashmir itself, and in the Kashmiri language, with local actors. Set in a remote Kashmiri village on the Indian and Pakistan border, we meet reserved security guard Karun who forms a forbidden bond with Faheem, a man torn between tradition and desire. Through stolen glances, online flirtation, and secret visits, their connection challenges beliefs and loyalties.

We also had the pleasure to speak with Onir about the challenges of getting this film made, representation in South East Asian cinema and more in the lead up to a special screening of ‘We Are Faheem and Karun’ for the Pride at IFFM event on August 22 as a double bill with ‘Badnam Basti’ from 1971, which is considered the first queer film made in India. This double bill will be followed by BollyQ, a celebration of Queer Indian Cinema hosted by Queer South Asians of Melbourne, where the celebration continues with electrifying performances by local drag sensations – definitely one not to be missed!

We concluded this Out Takes with a recap of three films that we’d seen at the Melbourne International Film Festival which runs until August 25 and has seen Melbournians turn out in droves for its great selection of films, events and more.

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The Melbourne International Film Festival not only allows us to explore over 250 films during its run but we also get to meet some of the people behind them who have travelled from around the world to come to Australia to present their films to local audiences. One of these special guests in 2025 was Addison Heimann, a California based queer filmmaker who was down under at MIFF this August to promote his latest film ‘Touch Me’ which is described as an erotic extraterrestrial horror-comedy with a kaleidoscopically camp aesthetic inspired by 1960s and 70s Japanese horror. However, amid the gory mayhem, he also explores big themes like trauma, mental health, co-dependency and addiction. We caught up just after he’d landed from LA and had a great conversation about the film, his creative inspirations, mental health and more so please enjoy this Out Takes Extra with writer/director Addison Heimann.

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For this Out Takes, we reviewed two new films, one very queer and the other very camp, plus we celebrated the return of the Queer Screen Film Festival that is bringing fresh and diverse LGBTIQ+ cinema from around the world to Sydney from August 27 to 31.
Our first review was for the highly anticipated and award winning ‘Lesbian Space Princess’ that is finally showing in Melbourne at sold out sessions at MIFF and getting a general release across Australia this September. Described as an adult animated science fiction comedy, this truly original and ridiculously hilarious feature is written and directed by South Australian based filmmakers Emma Hough Hobbs and Leela Varghese and won the prestigious Teddy Award for Best Feature at the 75th Berlin International Film Festival. We’d been looking forward to discussing this one since we heard about it late last year and we’re pleased to say it was worth the wait!
Our second film review was for ‘Freakier Friday’ which is in Australian cinemas now and is a sequel to 2003’s Freaky Friday which was itself based on Mary Rodgers’s 1972 novel and is the seventh overall film in the franchise. The film reunites Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan with the story picking up 22 years after Tess and Anna endured an identity crisis that literally saw them swap bodies for a very memorable Friday. In this latest version, Anna now has a daughter of her own and a soon-to-be stepdaughter. As they navigate the myriad challenges that come when two families merge, Tess and Anna discover that lightning might indeed strike twice. It’s camp, full of nostalgia and continues the Freaky Friday legacy with a very queer coded romp through modern day L.A.
We finished up the show with an interview with Benson Wu, the recently appointed CEO for Queer Screen. and Andrew Wilkie. the festivals Programming & Industry Manager, to talk about the fantatsic program on offer, the state of the industry, the power of volunteering and more. This comes in the lead up to the 12th Queer Screen Film Festival which takes place in Sydney from August 27 to 31 and promises to present a bold and dynamic program that highlights LGBTQI+ emerging voices, international excellence and community celebration.

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We continue celebrating the return of the Melbourne International Film Festival this August with two special guests and a look at a wonderful homegrown queer short film, a retrospective from a revered Belgian auteur, and the return of a lesbian cult classic to the big screen that spotlights the heady heroin-chic days of the 90’s New York art scene.

First up we reviewed ‘I’m the Most Racist Person I Know’, a fantastic short film that follows Lali and Ana who go on a date where they bond over their shared experiences as queer women of colour and also force Lali to confront her prejudices. We also spoke with its creator Leela Varghese to discuss her process, inspirations, love of the Adelaide film scene and more.

Then we heard from MIFF senior programmer Kate Jinx who took us through two highlights in this year’s program. We started with looking at Chantal Akerman: Traces, an expansive survey of the queer filmmakers output, many of which are newly restored Australian premieres. That was followed by a discussion about ‘High Art’ which was recently restored in 4K that is described as a psychosexual lesbian love triangle drama featuring Melbourne’s own Radha Mitchell, along with Ally Sheedy and Patricia Clarkson.

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For this program, we looked at the latest film from revered French filmmaker François Ozon film that is a very timely tale of secrets, murder, and mushrooms, plus we discussed some of the many queer films on offer that we’re looking forward to seeing in August at the Melbourne International Film Festival.

First up was our review of François Ozon’s latest film ‘When Fall is Coming’ which is in cinemas from July 31 and is set in rural autumnal Burgundy where we meet Michelle who leads an isolated life, foraging for mushrooms in the forest with her friend Marie-Claude. When her sharp-tongued daughter Valérie arrives unannounced to leave her son in Michelle’s care over the school holidays, Michelle sees a chance to repair their fractured bond. But a single mistake sets off a ripple of consequences, threatening her relationships and plunging her back into estrangement and guilt. This moody, atmospheric reflection on regret, redemption and the secrets that fester just beneath the surface (like mushrooms) was one that we enjoyed and encourage you to check it out too.

It’s no secret that we look forward to the Melbourne International Film Festival (a.k.a. MIFF) every year so we took this opportunity to pull out some of the films we’re most looking forward to seeing in cinemas this August. From high profile documentaries to queer independent features, there is literally something for everyone in this year’s program so let us know what you’re looking forward to seeing at MIFF in 2025 so we can add them to our very long lists as well!

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For this Out Takes, we reviewed ‘On Swift Horses’ which is screening now exclusively in Melbourne at Cinema Nova. Director Daniel Minahan’s queer period romance stars Daisy Edgar-Jones, Jacob Elordi, Will Poulter, Diego Calva and Sasha Calle. Set in the 1950’s, it tells the story of Muriel and her husband, Lee, who begin a new life together after he returns home from the Korean War. However, their newfound stability gets upended by the arrival of Lee’s charismatic brother Julius, a wayward gambler with a secret past. While its director is not a household name, his list of credit’s feature some of the best and most loved television shows from the past 20 years including 6 Feet Under, L Word, True Blood, Halston and Fellow Travellers. We spoke with Daniel Minahan from Toronto to discuss the making of the film, its incredible cast, his passion for telling queer stories without tragedy and much more.

We also welcomed the return of Tilde for a special short film screening event this July at ACMI celebrating Australia’s emerging filmmakers conveying trans and gender diverse experiences. We spoke with Ro Bright, the CEO of Tilde, and two of the filmmakers, Jamie Connor from Sapphic Flicks and Naavikaran, whose films will feature at the screening that looks to cross-boundaries by experimenting with form, music and the filmmaking process itself.

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For this Out Takes, we turned the spotlight on to a new gay romantic comedy that follows a gay Indian man who both dreams of – and fears – the big Indian wedding of their dreams with the love of his life and his journey to get there with Jonathan Groff by his side, plus we welcomed back the creative force behind ‘Girls’ who has teamed up with one of the standout performers in Hacks for a new must-see TV show on Netflix.

First up we reviewed ‘A Nice Indian Boy’ which is in select Australian cinemas now and it’s fair to say we loved this sweet and fun film that tells the story of Naveen who brings his fiancé Jay home to meet his traditional Indian family and sets off a chain of events to help them all to accept and connect with his white-orphan-artist boyfriend in the hope of them heading towards their dream Indian wedding. We were delighted to be able to speak to the films lead actor, Karan Soni, and its director, Roshan Sethi. who also happen to be a couple in real life to find out about the parallels in their own life with this very personal story and this project, the benefits of collaborating with someone who knows you so well and much more.

We also took a look at a new show from Lena Dunham, the creative force behind ‘Girls’, who is now back in front of the camera and behind the scenes on ‘Too Much’. This Netflix series has an incredible cast including breakout star Megan Stalter, Will Sharpe from season 2 of a little show called ‘The White Lotus’ plus Rita Wilson, Rhea Perlman, Richard E. Grant, Naomi Watts and a range of cameos that will blow your mind (we see you Rita Ora!). The show is described as an “ex-pat rom-com for the disillusioned” which follows Jessica, a New York workaholic who moves to London to isolate herself after a breakup but finds herself unexpectedly drawn to a man named Felix. Their connection, however, proves complicated, forcing them to question if they can bridge the cultural gap between them.

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For this program, we started off by welcoming back the 2025 Hurtigruten Scandinavian Film Festival this July and August which once again presents the best new cinema from the Nordic region . One highlight in the program that we were excited to review was ‘Odd Fish’, a tale of dreams, identity, and acceptance. This feel-good film follows childhood friends Hjalti and Björn, who run a seafood restaurant in their hometown during the summer. They dream of keeping the restaurant open year- round, and when an unexpected opportunity arises, Björn reveals to Hjalti that she is a transgender woman and will be known as Birna from now on. These changes test their friendship, and both must face life with a new perspective to preserve what matters most. We then turned our attention to ‘Here Comes the Dykes’, a brilliant and thought provoking short documentary that recounts the alternative history of photography by JEB (Joan E. Biren) with lesbians as central protagonists in The Dyke Show, produced by The New Yorker films. ‘Here Comes They Dykes’ is streaming for free so check it out and then do yourself a favour and dive into the world of Joan E Biren a.k.a JEB as well, you will not be disappointed. We finished up by highlighting some of the many diverse First Nations films on offer this NAIDOC Week. Running from July 6 to 13, NAIDOC Week marks a powerful milestone in 2025 with 50 years of honouring and elevating Indigenous voices, culture, and resilience. This year’s theme is The Next Generation: Strength, Vision & Legacy which celebrates not only the achievements of the past but the bright future ahead, empowered by the strength of First Nation young leaders, the vision of their communities, and the legacy of their ancestors. Along with a great selection of free content streaming on DocPlay and SBS on Demand, we also featured an encore presentation of our interview from October 2024 with Jon Bell, the writer/director of ‘The Moogai’, a ground breaking First Nation’s horror thriller film that debuted at the 2024 Sydney Film Festival winning the Audience Award for Best Feature, premiered globally at the Sundance Film Festival, and won the prestigious 2024 CinefestOZ Film Prize Award.

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The cold weather has well and truly settled in down under so for this Out Takes we presented a Winter Warmer edition of recommendations and reviews to get you through  the next few motnhs of this chilly Melbourne winter.  We started off by looking at ‘We Were Liars’, a new TV series streaming on Prime Video that brings a much loved book from E. Lockhart to our screens that explores revenge and redemption for a very wealthy American family torn apart by tragedy and their self-imposed drama. No spoilers here but needless to say that despite a beautiful setting and some stand out cast members, in this instance, not all reviews are recommendations…

We then turned our attention to a selection of TV shows, films and more that we wanted to recommend, review or rant about (yes, we’re looking at you ‘And Just Like That’ season 3!). As expected, it was an eclectic offering from the OT crew including season 2 of a popular lesbian dating show, the latest film from Celine Song that has got everyone talking about modern love, a beautiful documentary about the first US woman to fly in space and the same-sex relationship that kept her grounded, the return of M3GAN, plus much more.

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As you know, Out Takes is the home of queer cinema and television on JOY 94.9 but for this show, we dived into the world of gay literary fiction to spotlight an Aussie author who is doing great things on the page that has also been making waves on our screens. When we heard Holden Sheppard had a new book out and was available for interviews, we jumped at the chance to speak with him. From the author of ‘Invisible Boys’, now a hit original series on Stan that we reviewed earlier this year and loved, comes a new novel; ‘King of Dirt’, Holden’s first novel for adults. Described as a gritty and heartfelt gay coming-of-age story set in the world of FIFO workers and tradies in Western Australia, the story follows Jack who by all accounts, including his own, is a mess. He works piecemeal construction gigs in remote WA, drinks himself to oblivion and is estranged from his family and friends. He’s consumed by a self-loathing all too common for closeted men who have grown up in a world of hate and shame. But then Jack returns to his regional hometown of Geraldton for a family wedding. He hasn’t been back since he fled at the age of eighteen, and his past soon catches up with him… It was a delight to speak with Holden Sheppard about his latest book and we hope you think so too.

We also celebrated the arrival of ‘I’m Your Venus’ on Netflix with an encore presentation of our fantastic interview from February with the film’s director Kimberly Reed, and two of the producers, Jonovia Chase and Dominique Jackson a.k.a Elektra Abundance Evangelista from Pose.

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For this Out Takes we celebrated Pride Month with the return of a special selection of queer films from MQFF, a new short film showcase coming to Melbourne’s west, and a review of a classic stage play that is returning to cinemas for a limited season this June.

Our first guest was the recently appointed MQFF Program Director Ro Bright to discuss the upcoming selection of films for Pride Month from MQFF plus we found out more about their extensive career as a writer, producer, and programmer. We then caught up with Mat and Courtney from Pride of Our Footscray to discuss the call for submissions for a special showcase of queer short films for a one-night-only event at PoOF on Thursday August 28 plus we find out more about their monthly Pride Movie Nights. We finished up with a review of the film version of ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ that won acclaim and awards for it’s 2014 run in the West End from visionary Australian director Benedict Andrews. Gillian Anderson, Vanessa Kirby and Ben Foster lead the cast in  Tennessee Williams’ tense and timeless masterpiece which is returning to Australian cinemas for a limited run from June 19.

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For this Out Takes, we welcomed the return of two of our favourite film festivals that will be entertaining us in cinemas over the winter months here in Melbourne. We started with looking at one of the many fantastic films on offer at this year’s Spanish Film Festival which will be bringing the fiesta to cities around Australia this June and July with a curated selection of thirty films from Spain and Latin America. ‘Baby’ is from Brazilian writer and director Marcel Caetano and is described as a vibrant queer drama that is a colourful, empathetic ode to found family, and a superb homage to the city of São Paulo and the people who struggle to survive in it. The film looks at the life of 18-year-old Wellington a.ka. Baby, who after being released from a juvenile detention centre finds himself alone and adrift, without any contact from his parents and lacking the resources to rebuild his life. He encounters Ronaldo, a mature and handsome sex worker, who takes him under his wing and teaches him new ways of surviving. We spoke with Marcelo Caetano who shares more about the making of this beautiful film and how it is bringing representation for queer Brazilian life to the world.

We then turned our attention to the Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) which returns from August 7 to 24 to bring some of the most talked about films arriving hot from Cannes, Berlin, Sundance and across the globe. We welcomed back MIFF Artistic Director Al Cossar to look at the first glance announcement for this year’s festival which is celebrating its 73rd year with a theme that challenges us to ‘Look Closer’ which we dis aa we discussed some of the many fantastic films and events that will be on offer.

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On our June 2nd program, we reviewed ‘The Karamazovs’, a US independent film that is available to view via VOD now which updates Dostoevsky’s final novel into a contemporary queer tale of family drama that is part murder mystery, part spiritual quest. Queer writer/director Anna Brenner, well established in the world of theatre, makes her feature film debut, working with a primarily LGBTQ+ team on this award-winning film, which begins with the long-estranged Karamazov siblings returning home to become reacquainted with both their dying father and each other. But when the unkind and spiteful patriarch is found murdered, they must finally face the truth about their family’s dark past … and each other. We had a jam packed show on June 2nd so we were only able to run a small section of our interview with ‘The Karamazovs’ writer and director so here is the full version of our interview with Anna Brenner for this Out Takes Extra.

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On our June 2nd episode, we reviewed ‘Number 96’, the trailblazing soap opera from the 70’s that peeled back the walls of suburbia to reveal a bold and unfiltered look at Australian life, introducing shocked audiences to taboo subjects that had never been on TV before including lots of sex, nudity, and queerness. Thanks to local streaming service Brollie, all of the available episodes are going to be online to watch whenever you want and we can thank a dedicated bunch of folks for making this happen including Andrew Mercado. He has been a regular on our screens since his days as a VJ on Channel V in the late 90’s and is well known for his commentary on radio and television as an expert in television and pop culture so who better to talk to about the legacy of ‘Number 96’! We had a jam packed show on June 2nd so we were only able to run a section of our long form chat about all things ‘Number 96’ so here is the full version of our interview with Andrew Mercado for this Out Takes Extra.

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In early February of this year, we reviewed ‘Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story’ which was screening at the Queer Screen Film Festival and is streaming now on DocPlay. This incredible film is a dazzling profile of an enduring gay icon and Hollywood survivor that was brought to the screen by David Bruce Klein, an Emmy-nominated producer, director, and writer of television, film, and digital entertainment. We caught up with Bruce recently in New York and discussed his career, his love of filmmaking and of course, the incredible Liza Minelli. We also heard from Saara Lamberg, a Finnish / Australian filmmaker, director, writer, producer and actor who is presenting screenings of her films this June at the Henkel Street Cinema in Brunswick under the banner of the Winter Warmers Film Festival.

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For this Out Takes, we looked at a new television show and two films that explore the process of coming out, homophobia, toxic masculinity and accepting who you really are. First up, we looked at ‘Overcompensating’ which is streaming now on Prime Video and is a college-set ensemble comedy about the wild, chaotic journey of Benny (Benito Skinner), a closeted former football player and homecoming king, as he becomes fast friends with Carmen (Wally Baram), a high school outsider on a mission to fit in at all costs. It’s fair to say this show gets the Out Takes seal of approval and will be in our top 10 of 2025.
We also took a look at ‘Misericordia’, a sharp, sinister, and deeply dark comedy thriller from director Alain Guiraudie which played to sell-out crowds at MQFF in 2024 and is screening exclusively at Cinema Nova this May. Set in the autumnal, woodsy village of Saint-Martial, Jérémie (Félix Kysyl), an out-of-work baker, has returned to his hometown after the death of his beloved former boss. When Jérémie asks to extend his visit, he begins to insert himself into his mentor’s family’s life, including his former boss’s kind-hearted widow Martine and venomously angry son Vincent. When Vincent disappears, an investigation takes place amongst the carnal world of violence and eroticism that emanates throughout Jérémie, the town, and its inhabitants. No spoilers here but let’s just say you’ll never look at mushroom picking or small town priests in the same way ever again… We finished with an encore presentation of our interview with the director/producer team Gabriel Carrubba and Zane Borg along with Liam Mollica who is the lead actor in ‘Sunflower’ which is streaming now on SBS so support great independent local queer film and check it out.

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Every year, JOY 94.9’s Radiothon brings us together to celebrate, support, and sustain LGBTQIA+ voices in media. This year’s theme, ‘Stronger Together’, is a rallying call: in a world of daily challenges, unity empowers us to amplify our voices and build a brighter, more inclusive future.

This year, the Geeks Out and Out Takes teams joined forces for a 2 hour live radio-crossover-extravaganza to celebrate the theme and our wonderful queer radio station that we broadcast on every Monday night. There was lots of laughs and fun going on plus we battled it out in a 4 part movie quiz that challenged our minds and proved that we are Stronger Together! Show your love for JOY now and all year ’round by making a donation or becoming a member to support Australia’s first and only LGBTQIA+ community radio station.

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For this Out Takes, we reviewed three films that explore very different themes including chosen family, intergenerational relationships, artistic redemption, persecution, and propaganda.  First up was ‘The Wedding Banquet’, the highly anticipated remake of Ang Lee’s 1993 classic which updates the original with a fresh take on the romantic comedy genre featuring an acclaimed and hilarious cast of multigenerational talent including Bowen Yang, Lily Gladstone, and Academy Award winner Youn Yuh-jung. Our special guest was Andrew Ahn, the co-writer and director of this refreshed adaptation who spoke to us about the journey of this remake, it’s Korean glow up and incredible cast plus my wish for a sequel to ‘Fire Island’, his big gay hit film from 2022.

We then took at the return of the 2025 HSBC German Film Festival which returns to Australian cinemas this May with a stellar line up of premieres, special guests and more. We reviewed ‘John Cranko’, Joachim A. Lang’s biopic about the brilliant dancer and choreographer who left the Royal Ballet in London in the early 60’s after he was entrapped by an undercover police officer into arrest for ‘homosexual activity’ and found fame in Stuttgart as its great dance creator. We also looked at the documentary ‘Riefenstahl’ that explores Leni Riefenstahl’s artistic legacy and her complex ties to the Nazi regime, juxtaposing her self-portrayal with evidence suggesting awareness of the regime’s atrocities. We were joined by special guest of the festival Andres Veiel, the film’s writer, and director, to delve into her complex relationship with the Nazi regime and her extraordinary career and life.

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For this Out Takes, we literally have something for everyone with three interviews and six reviews of queer films from around the globe.  First up we looked at ‘Daughters of Darkness’ from 1971 which is appearing at this year’s Cinema Reborn Film Festival and is described as a surreal, stylish take on the vampire myth that blends gothic horror and psychological drama with camp eroticism. Restored to 4K by the Royal Belgian Cinémathèque, this updated print is having its Australian Premiere on May 9th at the Lido in Melbourne. We also heard from Dr Janice Loreck who is a Senior Lecturer in Screen Studies in the School of Culture and Communication and her research expertise centres on cinefeminism, women’s filmmaking, screen violence, transgression and global art cinema and she is presenting the film at the Melbourne screening.  We were also delighted to welcome back Dion Blackler to the show in his official capacity as our London Film Correspondent to recap the films he saw at this year’s BFI Flare, London’s premium LGBTQIA+ Film Festival that is billed as a springtime celebration of queer cinema that ran from March 19 to 30. As one of the co-hosts of the podcast ‘In the Mood for Film’ and a lifelong lover of cinema, Dion knows his stuff and brought us five great reviews for films to keep a look out for in film festival’s in 2025 down under. We finished up with an interview from Erika Addis,  the National President of the Australian Cinematographer Society and is the first ever female national president in the society’s history. With Helen Grace, she made ‘Serious Undertakings’ in 1982, an early example of independent filmmaking by Australian women, and at the beginning of her career as part of the camera crew, she also worked on iconic Australian films including ‘Storm Boy’ and ‘The Year My Voice Broke’. We had her on to discuss ACS Credit Maker 2.0 and the importance of this program in the Australian film industry.

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For this Out Takes, we celebrated the return of ‘Hacks’ as it comes back with season 4 on Stan and which has featured fabulous queer characters and storylines plus tons of cutting comedy throughout its run and delivers even more this season. We also looked at the highly anticipated return of ‘The Last of Us’ which is back for season 2 on Max with some new characters, a major queer love story, more fungus zombies and loads of drama. We promise no major spoilers and can confirm both receive the OT stamp of approval for your viewing pleasure. We also heard from kiwi filmmaker Louise Lever whose wonderful short film ‘Joey’s Heart’ is having its Melbourne Premiere on April 29 at Cinema Nova along with a collection of international LBTQIA+ short films.

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With the return of ‘The Handmaids Tale’ this April and as it concludes with its sixth season, we took this opportunity to look back at the first five seasons and the origin story of this hugely successful, influential and critically acclaimed series and highlight the queer characters and storylines throughout its time on our small screens.  We were also fortunate to have access to advance episodes of season six and while we made sure to give away no spoilers, we do unpack what looks likely to be instore for June, her family, friends and the people of Gilead as we countdown to what seems to be an epic final fight for freedom. Season 6 of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ will stream free on SBS On Demand from Tuesday 8 April, with the triple episode premiere fast-tracked to be available from 2.01pm. The season will continue to be fast-tracked with new episodes available weekly on Tuesdays up to the finale on May 27.

Plus with ‘Audrey’ now streaming on Netflix, we also revisited our review and interview with its director Natalie Bailey from November last year to set you up for one of the most quirky, hilarious, and chaotic Aussie films you may have missed in 2024.

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For this Out Takes, we looked at ‘Mid-Century Modern’ whose first season is streaming now and is definitely one of the gayest sitcoms you’ll see in 2025. It also shares a lot of DNA with one of the biggest gay comedy series of all time ‘Will & Grace’. Both are created by Max Mutchnick and David Kohan and explore the concepts of chosen families, friendship, and cohabitation, along with the trials and tribulations of dealing with family, dating and casual sex, all through a very gay man’s lens.

We also honoured Trans Day of Visibility with an encore of our interview with writer / director Jane Schoenbrun who brought us the brilliant ‘I Saw the TV Glow’ in 2024.

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For this Out Takes we looked at two new films and TV shows are available to watch now on your big and small screens that feature queer stories and creators at the forefront. Our feature review was ‘Bob Trevino Likes It’, a beautiful and bittersweet debut feature film written and directed by Tracie Laymon that stars Barbie Ferreira and John Leguizamo and centres around a young woman who searches for her estranged father, Bob Trevino, online and forms a bond with a different man of the same name. The story is semi-autobiographical, inspired by Laymon’s personal experiences and it won both the Grand Jury and the Audience Award at the 2024 SXSW film festival. We spoke with Tracie Laymon in August 2024 when the film was screening at MIFF so with it now out in cinemas across Australia, we thought it was the perfect time to revisit this insightful and delightful interview with this queer writer and director.

We also looked at ‘The Parenting’, a very silly comedy horror film with a ridiculously stacked cast including Nik Dodani, Brandon Flynn, Parker Posey, Vivian Bang, Lisa Kudrow, Dean Norris, Brian Cox, and Edie Falco. We also checked in on season 3 of ‘The White Lotus’ and tried to avoid as many spoilers as possible (Parker NOOOO!) plus we looked at ‘Running Point’, a new streaming series starring Kate Hudson as a reformed L.A. party girl who must prove herself when she’s unexpectedly put in charge of her family’s pro basketball team.

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For this Out Takes, we looked at some of the films on offer in this years Melbourne Women in Film Festival including the opening night film ‘We Were Dangerous’, a powerful story of hope, rebellion and the celebration of female friendships; and ‘Artrageous’, a collection of experimental and avant-garde shorts from the 1990s and early 2000s that explore the era of Australian third-wave feminism, riotgrrl, and the 90s surrealist revival. We also heard from Dr Janice Loreck, a Lecturer in Screen and Cultural Studies at The University of Melbourne and one of the curators for the festival, who shared her thoughts on the importance of showcasing the work of women and gender diverse filmmakers and storytellers.

We also caught up with Mitch Nivalis, the director of ‘Equal The Contest’, which we originally reviewed and featured in March 2024. 12 months on, the film is now streaming on SBS on Demand and we find out the latest with Mitch and this wonderful documentary as it continues to play a key role in educating and entertaining audiences about the importance of inclusion in sport.

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We love celebrating local films that highlight diversity and representation and ‘My Melbourne’ is one worth celebrating. Themed around four pillars – sexuality, gender, disability, and race – the anthology film ‘My Melbourne’ features four unique stories that celebrate diverse voices and talents from four Indian filmmakers who worked with emerging creatives from underrepresented backgrounds to create a multicultural Australian film about identity and belonging based on authentic migrant experiences. We spoke with the film’s producer Mitu Bhowmick Lange and one of the lead actors Arka das about their roles in this wonderful production and the importance of sharing these stories here and around the world. We also checked in with Dr Sian Mitchell, the Festival Director for the Melbourne Women in Film Festival, on this year’s program and the festival’s mission to elevate the voices, stories and creativity of women and gender diverse people on and behind the screen.

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For this Out Takes Extra, Demetra spoke to Tara Thorne, the writer / director of ‘Lakeview’ which is screening as part of the QueerScreen Mardis Gras FIlm Festival On Demand program until March 10. ‘Lakeview’ is about a queer friend group that unites for a girls’ weekend. Packed with delicious Sapphic drama and plenty of wine drunk antics, ‘Lakeview’ is an unforgettably hilarious venture through the unique dynamics of queer female friendships in all of their messy glory. Demetra caught up with Tara recently to discuss the film, navigating the world of independent cinema and more.

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For this Out Takes, we dedicated the entire show to the 97th Academy Awards a.k.a. the 2025 Oscars! It’s no secret that we love the international film award season and it was another interesting take on the ‘best’ in cinema over the past 12 months and recognising what that means in the film industry but as always, we had our favourites and so it was great to take the time to dissect and discuss who won, who we wanted to win and who was snubbed. If you watched it then let us know if you agreed with us on any of our takes on the ceremony and if you didn’t see it then use this as a guide to get you through the inevitable discussions you’ll have with your cinema loving friends about what should’ve won, why you’re so happy they won and who won the award for best dressed (it’s Colman Domingo, it’s always Colman Domingo).

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The on demand program kicks off soon for the 2025 Mardi Gras Film Festival so we looked at two of the fabulous films on offer that will be available to stream nationally from February 28 to March 10.

First up was ‘Unusually Normal’, a heartwarming documentary spanning eight decades that follows the lives of two lesbian grandmothers, four lesbian mothers and one lesbian granddaughter, all in the same family. Through interviews, archival footage and viral TikToks, this extraordinary family shares their journey from hidden relationships to living proudly and openly, highlighting the similarities (and differences) between three generations of gay women. Then we reviewed ‘Drive Back Home’, a dark comedy road movie showcasing the distance that can grow between two brothers amidst the vastness of the Canadian countryside. In 1970s Toronto, Perley (played by festival favourite Alan Cumming) is arrested for having sex with a man in a park. His estranged brother Weldon (Charlie Creed-Miles) is called on to bail him out. With only each other for company, the quirky Perley, his stoic brother and a taxidermied pug are trapped in a car together as they drive cross country back to small town Stanley. Inspired by a true story, this heartfelt film is about reckoning with the past and learning to forgive.

With special screenings of ‘Moonlight’ coming to IMAX this February, we took the opportunity to revisit our interview with the film’s co-writer and director Barry Jenkins. In 2017, Out Takes was in its first year on JOY and we were offered the opportunity to review a new queer independent film from the U.S. that was generating a lot of buzz in the lead up to the 2017 Academy Awards. ‘Moonlight’ is the searing story of a young black man from Miami struggling with his identity and trying to find his place in the world that Rolling Stone called ‘a masterpiece’ and Vanity Fair called it ‘timely and timeless’.  We loved this film and knew it was something special so we were honoured to speak with its very talented writer and director in January 2017 about his ground breaking film and some of its more critical themes: representation, identity and masculinity.

We also announced a special giveaway for our Aussie listeners to win a double pass to the hilarious comedy ‘One of Them Days’ starring Keke Palmer and SZA , in cinemas March 6. Check out Out Takes on Instagram and Facebook for more details. #OneOfThemDays © 2025 CTMG. All Rights Reserved.

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For this Out Takes it was a mixed bag of reviews and interviews to celebrate the arrival of a new Aussie series based on a much loved queer coming of age novel, the latest release from Italian auteur Luca Guadagnino and the return of the Australian International Documentary Conference. First up we reviewed ‘Invisible Boys’, the new LGBTQ coming-of-age Australian series set in the unforgiving Western Australian coastal city of Geraldton, with the 2017 plebiscite on same-sex marriage as the backdrop, It follows a quartet of gay young men trying to figure out how to navigate family, friends and the expectations put on them and is adapted by director Nicholas Verso from Holden Sheppard’s award-winning 2019 novel of the same name. We always love shining a light on new local queer productions and it’s fair to say this latest offering is a promising start to the year ahead for local LGBTQ content on our small screens. Next up we turned we’re turned our attention to ‘Queer’, which is directed by Out Takes favourite Luca Guadagnino and based on the 1985 novella by William S. Burroughs. Set in 1950s Mexico City, the film follows an outcast American expatriate played by Daniel Craig who becomes infatuated with a much younger man played by Drew Starkey and it features Jason Schwartzman and Lesley Manville in supporting roles. Director John Waters ranked Queer second on a list of his favourite movies of 2024, writing that Craig “may be queerbait for taking on the gay beatnik role of William Burroughs’s alter ego, but I’m all for it’ – we couldn’t agree more! Finally, we welcomed back the return of the Australian International Documentary Conference aka AIDC which is back on in Melbourne in early March. The 2025 AIDC program includes over 40 sessions, more than 115 speakers and 90 industry decision makers and is inspired by the theme “Future Telling: New Horizons in Documentary & Factual Storytelling”. One of the key elements of delivering a successful conference is the program and we were delighted to be joined by AIDC Programmer Alice McShane to get the full scoop on how they’ve pulled together this phenomenal line up for 2025 and some of the many highlights on offer at this year’s conference.

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For this Out Takes, we’re going back to the Queer Screen Mardi Gras Film Festival to look at ‘I’m Your Venus’, a powerful film from the U.S. that is described as a vital companion piece to Jennie Livingston’s legendary 1990 ballroom documentary ‘Paris Is Burning’. One of the iconic trans stars of that seminal film, Venus Xtravaganza, was murdered before its release and thirty-five years later, her two families – the biological Pellagattis and ballroom Xtravaganzas – unite to honour her legacy and seek justice. Old wounds are reopened as her cold case is reexamined, amidst a fight to posthumously amend her birth certificate to finally reflect her actual name and gender. Overflowing with love for its subject, this cathartic documentary is a moving ode to Venus’ life and impact, and the power of the ballroom community. We were honoured to be joined by the films director, New York based trans filmmaker Kimberly Reed, and two of the executive producers on the film, Jonovia Chase and Dominique Jackson, to discuss their involvement with the film and the importance of continuing to tell Venus’s story and the importance of ballroom on queer culture. We also reviewed ‘Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All’, a comprehensive documentary about the Grammy-winning folk-rock duo that explores their lives, music, and activist projects over the course of their incredible 40+ year career.

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