East Palace, West Palace

China 1996, 90 min, English subtitles

Almost a love story – and certainly a story of the ‘relationship between power and sex,’ according to director Zhang Yuan. Following a raid in a park regarded as a gay meeting place, a young writer ends up in the police station. During the interrogation, repressed memories resurface involuntarily: about the young man’s childhood, his first sexual experiences, forced labour, his never-ending search for love. The policemen vacillates between feeling disgust and fascination, and becomes increasingly uncertain of his own feelings in the process.

Followed by a talk about the film with the director.

Rice Queens

Even today, homosexuality is still taboo in China. Films dedicated to this subject are illegal and may not be shown in public. Two films devoted to a reality that still exists nevertheless.