RainbowQC is part of the Competition Sections of the 13th QCinema International Film Festival, running from November 14 to 23, 2025. The section provides a platform for queer perspectives that challenge, inspire, and reflect the diversity of LGBTQIA+ experiences in an increasingly complex world.
Selected for the RainbowQC competition are:
3670 by Park Joon-Ho (South Korea) — Southeast Asian premiere, Winner of Best Actor Prize, Disruption Support Prize, CGV Award, and WAtcha’s Award at the Jeonju International Film Festival. This tender slice-of-life drama follows Cheol-jun, a young North Korean defector in Seoul who is also gay. Concealing his sexuality within the defector community while gradually exploring the city’s queer scene, Cheol-jun navigates new friendships and romantic tensions, portraying a sensitive journey of self-affirmation, belonging, and the search for authentic connection.
Bel Ami by Geng Jun (France, Taiwan) — Southeast Asian premiere, Winner of Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Leading Actor, and Best Narrative Feature (Audience Choice Award) at the Golden Horse Awards. Set in a frozen, remote town in northeast China, the film interweaves stories of individuals struggling with queer identities in a society that refuses to accept them. Middle-aged Zhiyong experiences a late-in-life awakening, pursuing love with young barber Quan, while a seemingly open lesbian couple enlists Quan as a sperm donor under strict conditions. A lonely restaurant owner’s attempts to unite the town’s gay residents add absurdist comedy amidst tension, highlighting the characters’ search for acceptance, intimacy, and community.
On the Road by David Pablos (Mexico) — Asian premiere, Winner of the Queer Lion and the Venice Horizons Award at the 81st Venice International Film Festival. Following Veneno, a young hustler on the run from a violent past, the film depicts his journey across Mexican highways with trucker Muñeco. As intimacy develops between them, they navigate desire, trust, and looming danger, culminating in a high-stakes confrontation that tests both survival and their fragile bond.
Skin of Youth by Ash Mayfair (Vietnam, Singapore, Japan) — Southeast Asian premiere, Winner of Special Jury Award at the 24th New York Asian Film Festival. Set in 1990s Saigon, this luminous yet gritty LGBTQ+ romance follows San, a young transgender nightclub performer, and her devoted lover Nam, a cage fighter. Their love is tested by the criminal underworld, moral compromises, and societal pressures, including unexpected pregnancy, forcing the couple to confront gender roles, sacrifice, and survival. The film is notable for casting a transgender actor in the leading role, a first for Vietnamese fiction cinema.
Strange River by Jaume Claret Muxart (Spain, Germany) — Southeast Asian premiere, Winner of the Golden Puffin at the 22nd Reykjavik International Film Festival. A poetic coming-of-age drama, the film follows sixteen-year-old Dídac on a family cycling trip along the Danube. His encounters with the enigmatic Alexander catalyze his sexual and emotional awakening, creating tension with his family while exploring desire, freedom, and growth. Shot on 16mm film, it beautifully captures the fleeting nature of first love and the bittersweet journey toward independence.
Summer’s Camera by Divine Sung (South Korea) — Film within a film, Winner of the Wavemaker Award Grand Jury Prize at the Seattle International Film Festival. High schooler Yeo-reum, known as Summer, navigates grief, first love, and family secrets while carrying her late father’s camera. A crush on Yeon-woo and the discovery of her father’s secret relationship with Maru propel Summer’s exploration of her queer identity, self-discovery, and mentorship, framed through a poignant cinematic lens.
The Little Sister by Hafsia Herzi (France, Germany) — Southeast Asian premiere, Winner of the Queer Palm and Best Actress at the 78th Cannes Film Festival. Fatima, a 17-year-old from a traditional French-Algerian Muslim family in Paris, navigates the tension between faith and lesbian identity. Experiencing first love with Ji-Na while maintaining loyalty to her family, Fatima’s journey depicts the nuanced struggle of embracing one’s whole self in a society that often demands compartmentalization.
The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo by Diego Céspedes (Chile) — Southeast Asian premiere, Winner of the Un Certain Regard Award at the 78th Cannes Film Festival and Chile’s Oscar entry for Best International Feature. Set in 1982 in a remote Chilean mining town, the film follows eleven-year-old Lidia, raised by a queer community at a cabaret. As a mysterious illness spreads, fear and ignorance fuel violent homophobia, prompting Lidia to challenge dangerous myths and defend her chosen family. Blending melodrama and magical realism, the film highlights love, humor, and collective humanity amid prejudice and chaos.
Other competition sections at QCinema 2025 include Asian Next Wave, spotlighting powerful new voices from Asia; New Horizons, showcasing debut and second features pushing the boundaries of global cinema; and QCShorts International, highlighting emerging Southeast Asian directors working in short film format.
The 13th QCinema International Film Festival runs from November 14 to 23, 2025, with screenings at Gateway, Robinsons Galleria, Eastwood, Trinoma, Fishermall, and Cloverleaf. Tickets are priced at ₱250.
