Frameline Announces Full Lineup For 48th San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival

The Festival will also feature A Conversation with Lena Waithe and presentation of the Variety Creative Conscience Award to the Emmy Award-winning and Tony-nominated writer, producer, and actor

Frameline has announced the full program for the 48th San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival (Frameline48), the oldest and longest-running LGBTQ+ film festival in the world. Curated from over 1,600 submissions and invitations, the Frameline48 slate will screen from June 19–29 in theaters across the San Francisco Bay Area, including the Roxie Theater, the Palace of Fine Arts Theatre, the Herbst Theatre, the Vogue Theatre, and The New Parkway Theater in Oakland. In centering historic venues throughout the Bay Area, the 11-day celebration of film and queerness will carry on—and amplify—the spirit of the 2023 Festival’s “Neighborhood Nights.”

In lieu of a traditional opening night show, Frameline48 will commence with the previously announced first-ever Castro neighborhood celebration of Juneteenth. A free outdoor event, the Juneteenth Film and Block Party will feature an evening of music, drag performances from Reparations curated by winner of the Drag Queen of the Year Pageant, Nicki Jizz, as well as a screening of Lil Nas X: Long Live Montero. By celebrating the intersection of Blackness and queerness, Frameline48 reaffirms its commitment to bringing visibility, joy, and essential stories to the communities it centers.

“I can’t think of any better way to kick off Frameline48 than with a screening of Long Live Montero,” said Allegra Madsen, Frameline’s Executive Director. “As a queer Black artist, Lil Nas X embodies so much of what this year’s Festival is about: meeting the cultural moment and using art as a means of expression, connection, and creating lasting change. At the same time, it’s important—and even revolutionary—to continue celebrating queer joy.”

Celebrating queer creators, past and present, is also a vital component of Frameline48. Director Alessandra Lacorazza’s debut feature, In the Summers (6/20 at the Palace of Fine Arts), was awarded Frameline’s Completion Fund Grant, and went to premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival—where it won the Grand Jury Prize (U.S. Dramatic). Thirty years ago, director/writer Rose Troche and writer Guinevere Turner’s lesbian classic Go Fish (6/20 at the Palace of Fine Arts) similarly earned Frameline’s Completion Fund Grant and went on to have a history-making turn at Sundance. In a full-circle moment, In the Summers and Go Fish will both screen at Frameline48, with the latter having been restored in 4K, in part by Frameline, for its 30th anniversary.

Of the over 120 screenings at Frameline48, other highlights include the “Queer Premiere” of writer-director Anthony Schatteman’s coming-of-age feature-length debut Young Hearts (6/21 at the Palace of Fine Arts), which will be followed by Frameline48’s First Friday Gala, hosted at Terra Gallery. There’s also Desire Lines, a deep dive into transmasculine desire for cisgender gay men in this sexy, intimate doc-fiction hybrid by Jules Rosskam (Dance Dance Evolution, Frameline43). Extremely Unique Dynamic, which just played the Sonoma International Film Festival and CAAMFest, is a gleeful buddy/stoner super meta comedy about aspiring actors and childhood best friends Ryan and Danny (co-leads/writers/directors Ivan Leung and Harrison Xu) who lampoon Hollywood conventions and stereotypes with their giddy premise, but at its core, is a heartfelt take on male friendship.

Winner of the Grand Jury Prize and Directing Award in the U.S. Dramatic competition at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, In the Summers is a 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. It stars multi Grammy and Latin Grammy Award-winning Puerto Rican rapper and activist Residente and Lío Mehiel (Mutt, Frameline47). Centered on the clashing emotions and pent-up passions of a beloved high school football star, Riley is a powerful, compelling tale of a young man’s journey to discover who he is, what he wants, and where he’s going. Written and directed by Benjamin Howard and with a star-making turn by Jake Colley as the titular Riley. Named one of Variety‘s 10 Directors to Watch in 2022, actor-turned-filmmaker Megan Park follows her award-winning 2021 feature The Fallout with My Old Ass. After taking mushrooms on a camping trip, quick-witted 18-year-old Elliott (Maisy Stella) crosses paths with her 39-year-old self (Aubrey Plaza) in the wilderness. What playfully begins as an examination of how the years have treated her body (well, her ass mostly) becomes a queer youth’s exploration of the expansiveness of her Bisexuality and ends with an ominous instruction from Elliott the elder: “Don’t fall in love.”

The Festival will also feature A Conversation with Lena Waithe on June 29th at The Herbst, the Emmy Award-winning and Tony-nominated writer, producer, and actor behind hit series and films like The Chi, Twenties, and Them. Moderated by Variety Senior Artisans Editor Jazz Tangcay, the conversation with Waithe will also include the presentation of the Variety Creative Conscience Award, which honors an individual in the entertainment world who personifies the industry’s dedication to humanitarian, cultural, and charitable causes.

In a celebration of local talent, Frameline48 is delighted to screen Lady Like (6/26 at the Vogue), which features Lady Camden, the San Francisco-based British drag queen who appeared on RuPaul’s Drag Race as well as various web series, including Give It to Me Straight. When it comes to spotlighting local talent, Frameline48 will also continue the Festival’s tradition of starting off Pride Weekend in style with a Pride Kickoff Party, hosted by Oasis. In conjunction with the screening of Don Hardy’s Linda Perry: Let It Die Here (6/28 at the Herbst), legendary singer, songwriter, and producer Linda Perry will perform at Frameline48’s Pride Kickoff Party. In many ways, this is a homecoming performance for Perry, who wrote the classic 4 Non-Blondes song “What’s Up?” in San Francisco.

By showcasing a dynamic collection of LGBTQ+ films and hosting ground-breaking queer artists, Frameline48 places an emphasis on the transformative power of art. “Film festivals are often seen as being by and for tastemakers in our industry, but Frameline deepens that perception by being by and for change-makers,” Madsen said. “Queer and trans artists don’t just influence culture, they create it. Frameline48 celebrates and platforms that tireless innovation and spirit by bringing filmmakers and works from all over the world together in the Bay Area—a place that’s historically been on the pulse of propelling queer art forward.”

Individual tickets for all screenings and events in the Frameline48 lineup will be available May 22 for Frameline members and on May 24 for the general public, for $24.00 at the Palace of Fine Arts and The Herbst and $19.50 per ticket at the neighborhood venues.. For the first time, audiences can also purchase the Festival’s “Palace Pass,” for $200, which grants holders access to all public screenings at the Palace of Fine Arts Theater and the Herbst Theatre. For more information on ticketing, including schedule, visit frameline.org.

Festival Sponsors
Frameline48 is presented by returning Premier Sponsors Gilead and Bank of America, Premier Hotel Sponsor Hilton San Francisco Union Square and Parc 55 Hotel, and new Premier Transportation Sponsor Waymo. Frameline48’s “Intersections” theme was designed by San Francisco-based Premier Creative Sponsor, PACT Studio.

Here is the complete lineup for the 48th San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival (Frameline48).

Perfect Endings
Daniel Ribeiro
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

Sally!
Deborah Craig
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

Out
Dennis Alink
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

The Life of Sean DeLear
Markus Zizenbacher
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

If I Die, It’ll Be of Joy
Alexis Taillant
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

Una película barata
Osama Chami
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

Best Years
Jordan Hidalgo
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

Vollúpya
Éri Sarmet & Jocimar Dias Jr.
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

Threshold
Gregory Brecher
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

Cucumber/Knife
Gustavo Vinagre
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

Like You
Harrison Sheehan
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

Euphoric
Cam Killion
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

Trans Heaven, Pennsylvania
Hansen Bursic
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

Well, I Should Get Going
Celine Sutter
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

Stink
Matias Breuer
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

After Hours
Star Amerasu
World Premiere | Queer Premiere

Cidade; Campo
Juliana Rojas
North American Premiere | Queer Premiere

After the Snowmelt
Yi-Shan LO
North American Premiere | Queer Premiere

Life Is Not a Competition, But I’m Winning
Julia Fuhr Mann
North American Premiere

The Deep Queer Massacre
Mathieu Morel
North American Premiere

MASC4MASC
Felix Greisinger
North American Premiere

Demons at Dawn
Julián Hernández
International Premiere

Duino
Juan Pablo Di Pace & Andres Pepe Estrada
International Premiere

Stories from My Gay Grandparents: Episode 1
J Stevens
International Premiere

The Astronaut Lovers
Marco Berger
US Premiere | Queer Premiere

Teaches of Peaches
Philipp Fussenegger & Judy Landkammer
US Premiere | Queer Premiere

Rookie
Samantha Lee
US Premiere

We Forgot to Break Up
Karen Knox
US Premiere

Helen and the Bear
Alix Blair
US Premiere | Queer Premiere

Stranger
Jehnny Beth & Iris Chassaigne
US Premiere

Volver
Borja Larrondo & Diego Sánchez
US Premiere

Halfway
Kumar Chheda
US Premiere

What a Feeling
Kat Rohrer
West Coast Premiere

Crossing
Levan Akin
West Coast Premiere

High Tide
Marco Calvani
West Coast Premiere

Any Other Way: The Jackie Shane Story
Michael Mabbott & Lucah Rosenberg-Lee
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

The World According to Allee Willis
Alexis Spraic
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

The Queen of My Dreams
Fawzia Mirza
West Coast Premiere

Fragments of a Life Loved
Chloé Barreau
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

I Don’t Understand You
Brian Crano & David Craig
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

Split
Iris Brey
West Coast Premiere

Rent Free
Fernando Andrés
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

Linda Perry: Let It Die Here
Don Hardy
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

Meanwhile
Catherine Gund
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

Lady Like
Luke Willis
West Coast Premiere

Fallen Fruit
Chris Molina
West Coast Premiere

Turtles
David Lambert
West Coast Premiere

1-800-ON-HER-OWN
Dana Flor
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

Haze
Matthew Fifer
West Coast Premiere

Carnage for Christmas
Alice Maio Mackay
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

One Night at Babes
Angelo Madsen Minax
West Coast Premiere

Mother
Meg Shutzer & Brandon Yadegari Moreno
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

If I’m Here It Is By Mystery
Clari Ribeiro
West Coast Premiere

The Callers
Lindsey Dryden
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

The Birth of Naikee
Clémentine Decremps
West Coast Premiere

Alok
Alex Hedison
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

Chimera
Kryzz Gautier
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

Ripe!
Tusk
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

Paradise Europe
Leandro Goddinho & Paulo Menezes
West Coast Premiere

Bold Eagle
Whammy Alcazaren
West Coast Premiere

Spookable
Jonathan Andre Culliton
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

¡salsa!
Antonina Kerguelén Román
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

Burrow
Leaf Lieber
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

The Dinner
Jesús Martínez ‘Nota’
West Coast Premiere

T-Minus
Emily Lerer
West Coast Premiere

Kasbi
Farah Jabir
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere 

Stud Country
Lina Abascal & Alexandra Kern
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

Foraging
Matthew Jacobs Morgan
West Coast Premiere

Beach Logs Kill
Haley Z. Boston
West Coast Premiere | Queer Premiere

Dream Burger
Sami Kali
West Coast Premiere

The Judgment
Marwan Mokbel
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

Sebastian
Mikko Mäkelä
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

The Summer with Carmen
Zacharias Mavroeidis
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

Asog
Seán Devlin
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

Chuck Chuck Baby
Janis Pugh
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

Power Alley
Lillah Halla
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere | Queer Premiere

In the Summers
Alessandra Lacorazza
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere | Queer Premiere

Can’t Stop Change: Queer Climate Stories from the Florida Frontlines
Vanessa Raditz, Natalia Villarán-Quiñones, Yarrow Koning, Jess Martínez, & Shoog McDaniel
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

Riley
Benjamin Howard
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

Don’t Change Hands
Paul Vecchiali
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

Throuple
Greyson Horst
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

A House Is Not a Disco
Brian J. Smith
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

The Herricanes
Olivia Kuan
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere | Queer Premiere

Underground Orange
Michael Taylor Jackson
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere | Queer Premiere

Desire Lines
Jules Rosskam
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

Scarecrow in a Garden of Cucumbers
Robert J. Kaplan
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere | Queer Premiere

Lesvia
Tzeli Hadjidimitriou
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

Doppelgängers³
Nelly Ben Hayoun-Stépanian
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere | Queer Premiere

After All
Amanda Villalpando
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere | Queer Premiere

My Best Friend
Elina Street
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

There Are Things to Do
Mike Syers
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

RAT!
Neal Suresh Mulani
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere | Queer Premiere

The White Crows
Denis Liakhov
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

Stan Behavior
Tyler C. Peterson
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere | Queer Premiere

Goodbye Tango
Jason Laurits
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

Grace
Natalie Jasmine Harris
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere | Queer Premiere

Seat 31: Zoey Zephyr
Kimberly Reed
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

You can’t get what you want but you can get me
Samira Elagoz & Z Walsh
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

Bust
Angalis Field
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere | Queer Premiere

The Pansy of Pickadee
Gus George & Paddy Morahan
San Francisco Bay Area Premiere

Merchant Ivory
Stephen Soucy

National Anthem
Luke Gilford

Mad About the Boy: The Noël Coward Story
Barnaby Thompson

Good One
India Donaldson
Queer Premiere

My Old Ass
Megan Park

Gondola
Veit Helmer

That Boy
Peter Berlin

Extremely Unique Dynamic
Harrison Xu, Ivan Leung, & Katherine Dudas

Second Nature
Drew Denny
Queer Premiere

Wouldn’t Make It Any Other Way
Hao Zhou

Loads
Curt McDowell

Queen Size
Avril Besson

The Robbers
Isa Schieche

Sweet Dreams
Honey Lee Cottrell

ILY, BYE
Taylor James

Kai Haliʻa (Sea of Memory)
Angelique Kalani Axelrode
Queer Premiere

Birthday
Shine Louise Houston

Falling Up
Eric Garcia
Queer Premiere

Kings
Eric Garcia
Queer Premiere

Transit
Jiz Lee, Vanniall

The Barman’s Daughter
Shawna Virago

Score
Aron Kantor
Queer Premiere

The Device That Turned Me Into a Cyborg Was Born the Same Year I Was
Chella Man