ABSTRACT

Brazil’s LGBTQ movement celebrated 40 years of existence in 2018 while not one single proposal promoting gay and trans rights was made into law, and with the victory of an openly homophobic candidate in the presidential elections of November 2018, Brazil’s sizeable LGBTQ community fears it has little to celebrate. LGBTQ film culture has very shallow roots in Brazil. Like many minority groups, LGBTQ communities in Brazil, both filmmakers and viewers, rely on the enthusiasm and commitment of individuals, a number of community-focused film festivals and occasional sources of dedicated funding support for the production and dissemination of LGBTQ-themed films. Perhaps the most controversial recent gay-themed Brazilian film is Praia do Futuro, partly set in the beach of the same name in Fortaleza, capital of the northeastern state of Ceara. Homophobia is perhaps much more entrenched in Brazilian society than the liberal legislation and increase in LGBTQ cultural production in the twenty-first century might suggest.