Across much of West Africa – and Africa more broadly – LGBTQ+ lives continue to exist under immense pressure. In countries like Nigeria, same-sex relationships are not only socially stigmatised but also legally criminalised, with laws such as the Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Act reinforcing a culture of fear and invisibility. While there have been small…
40th BFI FLARE: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival: In Conversation with Lexie Bean, Director of “What Will I Become?”
Lexie Bean is a trans multidisciplinary artist whose work moves across writing, film, and community-based practice, always based on questions of identity, memory, and the body. For over fifteen years, they have worked closely with survivors of domestic and sexual violence, creating spaces for storytelling through books, performances, and visual work. Their practice is collaborative…
40th BFI FLARE: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival: “Satisfaction” Review
Something is unsettling about Satisfaction, not because it shocks in obvious ways, but because it does not offer simple answers. It stays in discomfort, in silence, in the spaces where language fails, and in doing so, it asks one of the most difficult questions a film can pose: how do we make sense of our…
40th BFI FLARE: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival: “What Will I Become?” Review
Across both the United States and the United Kingdom, the mental health crisis affecting transgender young people has become increasingly difficult to ignore. Studies consistently show that trans youth experience significantly higher rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts than their cisgender peers. In the U.S., research from organisations such as The Trevor Project has…
40th BFI FLARE: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival: “A Letter for Tomorrow” Review
Sometimes the LGBTQ community’s feelings are not hurt by open hostility, but by something harder to face: silence. Harm doesn’t always come from direct cruelty – often, it comes from people choosing not to see or engage. In many cultures, especially within traditional families, a person can feel really alone even among people who love…
Homecoming and Healing: BTS’s “ARIRANG” – Album Review
ARIRANG is BTS’s first studio album in four years. At the height of their fame in 2022, the group announced a hiatus in order to complete their mandatory military service: Jin enlisted in December of 2022, with the others in 2023. JungKook and Jimin were the last to serve their terms, finishing June 11th, 2025….
40th BFI FLARE: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival: “Beyond the Fire – The Life of Japan’s First Pride Parade Pioneer” Review
Japan is one of those societies where discussions about sexuality have traditionally remained private. However, the country has made visible progress in LGBTQ+ awareness in recent years; local partnership systems now exist in dozens of prefectures, Pride celebrations are held in cities across the country, and public discussion around marriage equality continues to grow. Yet…
40th BFI FLARE: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival: “The Deepest Space in Us” Review
Grief can be especially difficult to process when it is complicated by discovery – when, after someone is gone, you begin to uncover things about their life you never knew existed. In The Deepest Space in Us, written and directed by Yasutomo Chikuma, this kind of loss is at the center of the story. The…
40th BFI FLARE: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival: In Conversation with Rahemur Rahman & Lily Vetch, Directors of “Body of Our Own”
Perhaps it is through artists that we come to see stories we might never have known otherwise, stories that exist beyond the margins. Body of Our Own is one such film. Centered on the lives of three women from the Hijra community, offering a perspective rarely seen on screen. The film is brought to life…
40th BFI FLARE: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival: “Body of Our Own” Review
Presented at this year’s BFI Flare: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival, the documentary Body of Our Own follows three members of the Hijra community: Momo, Neshi, and Jannat. Directed by Rahemur Rahman and Lily Vetch, the film gives us a beautifully observant portrait of identity and friendship. Filmed over seven years, Rahman and Vetch take a…
VIEW OF THE ARTS 