Queer SWANA Shorts Program

These stories unfold in moments of quiet upheaval: a phone call before a wedding, a crisis in a small-town mosque, a young girl’s journey through myth, siblings fractured by grief. Centering queer, trans, and intersex lives across the SWANA region, this program honors the intimate revolutions that occur within families, faith, and the self.

Brattle Passes Not Accepted

Program:

Krizalit
Naz Tokgöz, Aranxta Ibarra • 16 min • USA • Turkish w/English subtitles
Krizalit follows Deniz, an enigmatic young woman drawn into the vibrant life of modern Turkey. Alternating between the euphoria of her intricate love with a Turkish woman, Melisa, and the weight of feeling like an outsider, the story weaves subtle hints about Deniz’s true nature — inviting contemplation on identity and belonging. Set against the backdrop of a country in flux, Krizalit delicately portrays the healing journey of existing within a city so capable of profound love, yet at times challenged to extend that love to others.

Arman
Farzad Kiyafar • 12 min • USA • English
Overwhelmed and isolated on his wedding day, a closeted immigrant speaks to his family on the phone moments before walking down the aisle.

From Male and Female
Bassem Ben Brahim • 12 min • Tunisia • Arabic w/English subtitles
Salima, 15, accidentally discovers that she is intersex. A young ballerina, she escapes into an imaginary world where the Buraq — a mythical creature — becomes her guide. Together, they travel through a parallel universe in search of a buried truth: her identity, and the essence of who she is.

I Never Promised You a Jasmine Garden
Teyama Alkamli • 20 min • Canada • Arabic w/English subtitles
Tara, a queer Palestinian woman in her late 20s, attempts to suppress her internal emotional turbulence during a phone call with her best friend Sarab, with whom she is in love.

Witness
Radhika Mehta, Saif Jaan • 14 min • USA • English/Urdu
A revered small-town imam faces a crisis of faith when he must choose between upholding the values of his mosque or protecting the safety and spiritual belonging of a trans man congregant. CONTENT WARNING: Trans person getting outed

Les Dieux
Anas Sareen • 15 min • Iraq, Switzerland, UAE • Arabic/French
Under a burning sun, Adel and Moïse try to come to terms with the loss of their father. But as their grief turns into an obsession, a rift grows between the two teenage brothers and threatens to separate them.

Coyotes
Said Zagha • 20 min • Palestine/France/Jordan • Arabic/Hebrew
A Palestinian surgeon drives home after a long night shift, but little does she know that a commute through a desolate West Bank road will change her forever.