BFI Flare will be returning to the BFI Southbank cinema and BFI Player from 19-30 March.
First held in 1986 as the London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival, the British Film Institute’s (BFI) Flare film festival aims to celebrate LGBTQ+ cinema.
The festival’s programme features over 100 short and feature-length films across various strands and genres, along with live panels with tickets starting from £5.
Director Gitika Buttoo, whose film Before I Do is among those being featured, said: “It’s such a huge space for queer stories, and to have my film included is a huge honour.”
Before I Do tells the story of Mona, a non-monogamous woman who, ahead of her marriage, begins to reminisce about her past and question her future.
The idea for the film came from years of conversations between Buttoo and writer Afshan D’Souza Lodhi about their experiences navigating love and the expectations placed on South Asian women.
She added: “We rarely see stories where queer South Asian women are at the centre, making choices for themselves when tradition and personal freedom don’t align.
“I’m excited for the audiences, the conversations that happen after the credits roll, the people who might see a part of themselves in Mona’s story.”
The BFI not only screens hundreds of LGBTQ+ films and shows but also produces them by offering a wide range of funding, training, and support for filmmakers.
Butto explained: “You always wonder if you’ll have to fight to keep your vision intact, but from the beginning, the BFI really supported what we wanted to do.
“They encouraged us to be bold, to tell the story unapologetically, and that kind of backing made all the difference.”
Tickets to BFI Flare are available at: https://whatson.bfi.org.uk/flare/Online/default.asp
Feature image credit: BFI
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