… films about diversity and courage. These are the stories of Ukrainians from the LGBTQIA+ community who remain true to themselves despite the judgment of their loved ones, social pressure, and Russian military aggression. With the temporary occupation of Crimea in 2014, the international queer community lost the iconic gay resort Simeiz. Now it exists only as a summer memory in Anton Shebetko's film of the same name. The story of Crimea is also recalled in ‘QIRIM’ with a Ukrainian non-binary protagonist, …

… Simeiz Simeiz is a small village on the southern coast of Crimea which is temporarily occupied by Russia. In the Soviet era, an underground gay resort arose in the village. It started with a small nudist beach; a popular bar and night club, Hedgehogs, appeared later in independent Ukraine. From the 1990s on, …

… Mamay Mamay draws on traditional Ukranian and Tatar folktales for its Romeo and Juliet-like love story and parable about chivalry and the struggle for freedom. Hundreds of years ago, in the wild steppes of Crimea that form an uneasy border between East and West, Europe and Asia, nomad and farmer, the proud Cossack Mamay falls in love with the Tatar beauty Omai. The title, like the storyline, holds a variety of different meanings taken from different …

… Love You Crimea. Young Crimean Tatar Aziz is in love with Russian girl Masha. Their parents will never stop to divide them. Narіman Alіiev Drama Fiction Kinoparty …

… Katya embarks on a long journey where she meets future adults, together they seek the answer, what is home? Is home people? Or is it things? Or maybe home is our language? At the end of the journey, Katya realizes that she still doesn’t know when her Crimea will be de-occupied, but she definitely understands that to find home, she needs to return to the mundane, simple, and sometimes interesting life that she has loved for 33 years. Kateryna Tiuri Drama Documentary Kinoparty …

… The War of Chimeras This strikingly graphic and honest documentary is about the human toll of the ongoing Russian aggression against Ukraine that started in 2014 with the annexation of Crimea and was immediately followed by the Russian occupation of parts of southeastern Ukraine. Director Anastasiia Starozhitska and her boyfriend, Ukrainian soldier Valery Lavrenov, are filming what's happening to them and sharing their feelings with each …

… and actress. See her personal journey of resistance to Russian occupation policies. “My name is Antonina Romanova, and I’m a non-binary person.” We learn about her participation in the Crimean Tatar activities and the Euromaidan protest, her escape from Crimea and involvement in the Ukrainian fight against the Russian invasion. The film author assembles a puzzle from diverse elements, unafraid of experiment, and a personal story becomes a metaphor of Ukrainian strength in the face of the uncompromising …

… Volcano Lucas goes to the Crimea border as an OSCE mission member. After several strange coincidences, Lucas is left alone in a small town in southern Ukraine where he meets a local weirdo Vova. Following Vova, Lucas slowly sinks into the life of the Ukrainian province where …