14 Titles to Watch for World Pride
Whether you’re after a TikTok series, a feature documentary or the latest binge-worthy TV, we have your post-Mardi Gras viewing sorted.
From Priscilla Queen of the Desert to Please Like Me, Australians have a rich history of LGBTQIA+ screen stories. Here’s just a few recent titles that are essential viewing in the run up to Sydney WorldPride and Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras.
You can catch World Pride opening night concert here on February 24 and the Mardi Gras parade on February 25 on the ABC.
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“Blak, bitter and too hot for you,” is how Raelee Lancaster from ScreenHub describes the experience of watching All My Friends Are Racist. From the get-go this web series grabs you by the winged eyeliner and doesn’t let go. Created by Enoch Mailangi, All My Friends are Racist follows influencer Casey (Davey Thompson) and law student Belle (Tuuli Narkle) as their ‘Racist Dawgs’ wall is discovered by their so-called friends and they are subsequently cancelled. It’s a show about cultural appropriation, faux wokeness, and ultimately, friendship: the kind that loves you at your best and knows you at your worst. Bursting with thrilling rejoinders and quotable one liners (‘let’s close that gap and decolonise sis’), this hilarious five-part series is co-written by Mailangi and Kodie Bedford, and directed by Bjorn Stewart. Mailangi and Bedford walk the line between the self-aware and the outrageous, and with electrifying performances by Thompson and Narkle, this series is well on its way to becoming a chaotic classic.
Watch All My Friends Are Racist on ABC iView here.
Go behind the scenes with director Bjorn Stewart here.
Read Raelee Lancaster’s full review on ScreenHub here.
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This highly anticipated Stan Original Series is a four-part drama based on the acclaimed book by Australian author Rebecca Starford. Bad Behaviour sees twenty-five-year-old Jo Mackenzie running into an old classmate over a decade after she first arrived at the exclusive boarding school Silver Creek. The meeting triggers an onslaught of memories for Jo, revealing the lasting toll our teenage years can have on our present selves. The series is played out in both the past and present, forcing Jo to confront her teenage years and the choices she made to survive the brutal world of teenage girlhood. Bad Behaviour is written by Pip Karmel (Total Control) and Magda Wozniak (The Heights), produced by Amanda Higgs (The Secret Life of Us) and directed by Corrie Chen (New Gold Mountain). The series is produced in partnership with Matchbox Pictures and premieres on Stan this month.
Watch Bad Behaviour on Stan here.
Listen to our podcast episode with Bad Behaviour creatives Pip Karmel, Magda Wozniak and Corrie Chen here.
Listen to our episode with intimacy coordinator Amy Cater about her experience on the set of Bad Behaviour here.
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From writer-director Adrian Russell-Wills (8MMM Aboriginal Radio) comes Black Divaz, a vibrant documentary about Aboriginal drag queens. The documentary features the inaugural Miss First Nations drag pageant and follows six Indigenous Drag Queens from all over Australia as they compete to become Miss First Nations royalty. Black Divaz goes beyond the glamour and grit of competition to showcase some of the lived experiences of these Queens and the issues they and other members of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander LGBTQIA+ community face. At the heart of this documentary is a celebration of what makes you different, of taking pride in your truth and living it out, loud and fabulous.
Also find out more about the all-stars event Miss First Nations: Supreme Queens at Sydney World Pride at the end of February. Find out more about it here.
Watch Black Divaz on SBS On Demand here.
Go behind the scenes with director Adrian Russell Wills here.
Read Adrian Russell Wills’ Authentic Storytelling piece here.
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This 12-part comedy series for TikTok tells the story of teenage Pat as they come out to their mother Roz as non-binary and Roz’s well-meaning but cringe-inducing attempts to support them. After Pat’s understated coming out, Roz plans to throw them an over-the-top party despite many awkward attempts from Pat to dissuade her. There’s an amusing segue into Stella’s mortifying experience with her Mum’s period party after the first few episodes that sets our expectations for how outrageous Pat’s coming out party is sure to be. Starring Aden Hawke (Iggy & Ace), Roz Hammond (Muriel’s Wedding), and popular Australian TikTokker Samantha Andrew, the series is co-written and co-directed by Jakob Grasa and Naoimh Healy, and is produced by Stephanie Cole. From funny quips about gaslighting, quoting Austin Powers, and relating to painfully uncool parents, Cool Mum is rollicking good fun.
Watch Cool Mum on TikTok here.
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Ellie & Abbie (& Ellie’s Dead Aunt) is an AACTA award winning romantic comedy written and directed by Monica Zanetti. The film is based on Zanetti’s 2016 stage play of the same name and follows 17-year-old Ellie (Sophie Hawkshaw) as she navigates coming out to her skittish Mum and finding the courage to ask her classmate Abbie (Zoe Terakes) to the formal. She is aided by a surprising ally; her dead, lesbian Aunt Tara who acts like her ‘fairy’ godmother dispensing well-meaning but outdated advice whether Ellie wants to hear it or not. Through Tara’s animated perspective on life, Ellie bridges the gap between herself and her Mum and finds the courage to be herself. But, does she get the girl?
Watch Ellie & Abbie (& Ellie’s Dead Aunt) on Netflix here.
Learn how writer/director Monica Zanetti made Ellie & Abbie (& Ellie’s Dead Aunt) here.
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Flunk is an internationally acclaimed YouTube drama series now in its third season. Set in Melbourne and shot in a gritty, handheld style, Flunk follows Ingrid, a sixteen-year-old exploring her sexuality, navigating feelings for her best friend, and handling her conservative Chinese-Australian family. Soon-to-be-released season three is led by writer/director Ric Forster, producer Melanie Rowland and features a range of writers, as well as allowing for improvised dialogue. The series is produced by Lilydale films. If you’re looking for something to really sink your teeth into this World Pride, the series has also spawned three feature length movie spin-offs and a novel/audiobook.
Watch season three of Flunk on YouTube here.
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In Our Blood is a genre-defying four-part musical drama coming soon to ABC TV and ABC iView. This series is inspired by the AIDS crisis during the 1980s, and the radical response of Australian political, medical, and afflicted communities who banded together to stop the spread and save lives. The miniseries is an uplifting story based on Adriano Cappelletta’s play and stars Tim Draxl (Summer Love), Matt Day (Rake), Jada Alberts (Mystery Road, The Stranger), Nicholas Brown (Christmas On The Farm), Anna McGahan (Spirited) and Oscar Leal (Bump, Black Snow). Writer/creator Cappelletta is joined by writers Jane Allen and Jonathan Gavin, director John Sheedy and Nick Verso, with the series produced by Hoodlum Entertainment.
Watch In Our Blood on ABC TV and ABC iView here on March 19.
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Writer/director Goran Stolevski (You Won’t Be Alone) brings us his latest feature film Of An Age. Set in two timelines, it begins in Melbourne in 1999, when 17-year-old Kol is getting ready for what he thinks is the biggest moment of his life: the Australian ballroom dance finals. When his dance partner and best friend Ebony calls, frantic and hours away, they have to ask Ebony’s older brother Adam for help. On the long drive, Kol and Adam find they have more in common than just Ebony, and so begins an intense and romantic connection, with the story picking up again some 11 years later. Stolevski collaborates with producers Kristina Ceyton and Samantha Jennings of Causeway Films (Cargo) to create a deeply-moving, bittersweet story that’s sure to pull at your heart strings.
Watch Of An Age in cinemas from the March 23.
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Comedian and writer Zoë Coombs Marr explores Australia’s untold fascinating queer history in this three-part series for the ABC. From lesbian convict gangs to cross-dressing bushrangers, Queerstralia is a captivating retelling of LGBTQIA+ stories that strips away straightwashing to reveal the long struggle against prejudice and oppression. Throughout the three hour-long episodes, the creators will celebrate hard-fought battles, and look at history in a way that hasn’t been done before, including how colonisation impacted First Nations sexualities and stories that have never been brought to the surface. The series is directed by Stamatia Maroupas (Ms Represented) and co-written by activist/writer/actor Nayuka Gorrie, who also helps guide viewers through First Nations experiences.
Watch Queerstralia on ABC iView from February 28 here.
Read about how director Zoë Coombs Marr's balanced history and comedy in Queerstralia here.
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Director-writer Lachlan McLeod (Big in Japan) brings us the stirring story of larger-than-life trauma cleaner business owner Sandra Pankhurst. The impactful feature documentary follows Sandra as she searches for her birth mother, a search that leads Sandra to discovering parts of herself. Having lived a tumultuous life thus far, Pankhurst embodies resilience, but by far her most compelling trait is her empathy for the world around her. This empathy is the driving force behind her willingness to aid those who need it most, as she and her team attend various types of trauma cleaning: the homes of hoarders, crime scenes, or people who just need a bit of help. The Cleaning Company was produced by Charlotte Wheaton (Bodyline: The Ultimate Test) and David Elliot-Jones (Big in Japan). It was nominated for two AACTA awards and a SXSW award.
Watch The Cleaning Company on SBS On Demand here.
Go behind the scenes with director Lachlan McLeod here.
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Created over the course of seven years, director Maya Newell (Gayby Baby) uses a mixture of interviews, archive footage and family videos to document the life of transgender teenager Georgie Stone. Set over the course of her nineteen years, this 30 minute documentary follows Georgie as she grows into adulthood, affirming her gender and becoming an activist who has helped change the terrain for all trans Australian children. Georgie co-wrote the documentary which delves intimately into her worldview in the fight for transgender rights alongside her personal story. If you’re in the mood to be inspired, The Dreamlife of Georgie Stone is sure to hit the spot.
Watch The Dreamlife of Georgie Stone here.
Go behind the scenes with director Maya Newell here.
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The Formal is a TikTok mockumentary series about the lives of Monique and Hannah as they plan their year 12 Formal. Monique is preoccupied by creating the perfect night while Hannah is distracted from the task at hand by her all-consuming crush on Monique. With relatable pining and many-a-Hemsworth reference (they’re hoping Chris will make an appearance on the night), the series is a fun voyage into the highs, lows, and awkward in-betweens of teenage crushes. Now in its fifth season, creators Hannah-Rae Meegan and Monique Terry shifted the story from TikTok to YouTube for the final two seasons.
Watch seasons 1-3 of The Formal here and seasons four and five on YouTube here.
Read about cinematographer Lucca Barone-Peters’ approach to the series, especially the move from TikTok to YouTube here.
Watch an interview with creators Hannah-Rae Meegan and Monique Terry here.
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Featuring the creative team of writer/creator Michael Lucas (Five Bedrooms), producer Joanna Werner (Riot) and director Emma Freeman (Stateless), The Newsreader is set in the pressurised world of broadcast television in 1986. In it, the story of ambitious reporter Dale Jennings (Sam Reid) and the station’s notoriously ‘difficult’ star newsreader Helen Norville (Anna Torv) plays out against the backdrop of real events, including Halley’s Comet and the Challenger explosion. The soon-to-be-released season two picks up a year later, when Helen and Dale, now in a relationship, are deemed ‘The Golden Couple of News’ – but things are not what they seem. Set amid the global stock crash of 1987 and Australia’s Bicentennial year, the ensemble cast of News at Six have more to grapple with than just inter-office politics.
Watch The Newsreader on ABC iView here.
Go behind the scenes with producer Joanna Werner here.
Listen to our interview with writer Michael Lucas here.
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Transathletica is a 17-part TikTok documentary that tackles the unique barriers facing trans athletes today. The series is presented by trans, autistic TikTok creator and former Badminton champion Rudy Rigg who travels around speaking to other trans athletes from grassroots community clubs to the pro-leagues. The documentary focuses on the hurdles for trans athletes, from sporting codes to age-old institutions, and how so many of the conversations around trans people are played out publicly. Rigg is joined by co-writer and director Hannah McElhinney who won an ADG award for Best Direction in a Mobile-First Online Series Episode for Episode 9: Performance Testing, and the series was featured by the Sydney Morning Herald (read the article here).
Watch TransAthletica on TikTok here.
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