Queeramnesty Berlin x Popo Fan

Open-air Screening

Queeramnesty Berlin x Popo Fan
Queeramnesty Berlin cordially invites you to the open air screening of the celebrated documentary Be a Woman (2011), followed by a brief Q&A session with the award-winning filmmaker and activist Popo Fan 范坡坡.
With this event, we want to shed light on the joys and struggles of non-Euro-American LGBTI communities through the lens of drag, and raise awareness on the realities of cross-dressers (fanchuan 反串) and trans* communities. Over the course of three years, Popo Fan visited the “Only-Love” bar on Gonghe Street in Nanning, the largest city in and capital of Guangxi Province in Southern China, and carefully listened to the stories of the performers. Who are the people behind their flamboyant personas on stage? And what does it (or does it not) mean to "be a woman"?

Synopsis
Be a Woman | 2011 | Documentary | 84 mins | Cantonese with English subtitles
Nanning is a city located in Southwestern China. Every night at 纯爱 (Only-Love) Club, luxurious merry-making happens. Gorgeous apparels, glittering stage lighting, tempting dancing … behind their sophisticated performance, what life stories do these drag queens hind? Ziqi, a lofty nightingale flirting with men at different evenings; humorous and dirty “Bread,” running mad both on and off the stage; Bewitching Lala, always dressed up with extra delicacy; with both age and weight over all the other, Shancun would not spare a single minute play at the pole with great excitement. The joy and sadness of drag queens are not invisible, three years of faithful record brings you a close look at their beauty and sadness. 

Festivals: Beijing Queer Film Festival; Hong Kong Lesbian and Gay Film Festival; CinemAsia Amsterdam; Long Beach Queer Film Festival; Indonesia Q! Film Festival


About the Director
Popo Fan is a Berlin-based filmmaker, writer, and activist from China. His queer documentaries “Chinese Closet,” “Mama Rainbow,” and “Papa Rainbow” on family issues in China have made a notable impact on Chinese society. From 2016, he has concentrated on scripted, sex-positive shorts. He has served as an organizer for the Beijing Queer Film Festival for more than a decade, and is also the founder of Queer University Video Training Camp. Additionally, he participated in Berlinale Talents 2017 and was a jury member of the Teddy Award in 2019.
© www.popofan.net

August 3, 2021
Doors: 8.30 pm
Start: 9 pm
OV with subtitles/headphones
silent green courtyard
Free admission; prior registration online necessary

Portrait foto: By dahahmchoi