It wouldn't be quite right without a retrospective section. We are returning on the big screen four films which have irrevocably become a part of the queer cinema history.

British drama Victim, for example, will take you to the early 1960s when men were elegant, cars stylish...and homosexuality a criminal offence. Basil Dearden's noir drama follows a married lawyer who decides to investigate the death of a young man who used to be his secret lover.

 

We will travel to the 1990s with the iconic Cuban Strawberry and Chocolate (Fresa y chocolate), which was nominated for Oscar for the Best Foreign Language Film in 1993. It depicts an unusual friendship of two men – Diego, who is a fervent supporter of the Communist regime, and dissident David.

 

Even more history? German drama Aimée & Jaguar was made in 1999, but it is sent during the World War II. Believe it or not, but the story of forbidden love between a Jewish partisan and the wife of a Nazi officer is based on a true story.

 

Both in Prague and Brno, the festival will close with the fifteen-year-old musical Hedwig and the Angry Inch. The iconic story of a rock star from East Germany who negates traditional gender categories was directed by John Cameron Mitchell, who also stars in the main role. We can guarantee that you won't get those catchy songs out of your head any time soon.

 

There will also be a special screening at this year's Mezipatra, and you'll have a chance to see Hustler White (1996), directed by Bruce LaBruce and Rick Castro. You can look forward to a slightly different American independent film: with explicit sexual scenes, pulpy aesthetics and references to classical cinema.