7 Must-watch Stories to Look Forward to at This Year’s QCinema Pride Film Festival

There will always be a place in this world for queer stories to thrive. The diverse voices, perspectives, and experiences of the LGBTQIA+ community deserve to shine and stand proud in every aspect, especially through the films, shows, books, and songs that portray them.

The QCinema Film Festival, for instance, will always be home to local and international movies that highlight the multitudes of queer identities. And this year, the esteemed event is honoring Pride Month with new titles from around the world that resonate with us. Each one may fall under various genres, but they’ll always come together to prove that queer storytellers deserve to be celebrated, uplifted, and fought for in a world that attempts to silence them.

Dreamboi 3670 QCinema Pride Film Festival

Photo: Dreamboi, QCinema International Film Festival

From June 24 to 26, 2026, the QCinema Pride Film Festival will feature seven critically acclaimed LGBTQIA+ films from eight countries. Now in its second year, the initiative continues to champion queer creatives, actors, and filmmakers through its inclusive roster, which spans romance, psychological drama, comedy, thriller, and even animation.

QCPFF Poster

Photo: QCinema, When In Manila

You can watch this year’s entries to the QCinema Pride Film Festival at Cinemas 17 and 18 of Gateway Mall 2 in Cubao, Quezon City. Here’s how each film explores the multitudes of queer people and their deeply impactful experiences:

Dreamboi (2025) from the Philippines

Dreamboi is returning to the big screen this Pride Month, and we couldn’t be happier for the passionate team behind it. This award-winning psychological drama, written and directed by Rodina Singh, revolves around a trans woman (EJ Jallorina) and her intense fascination with an underground erotic audio performer (Tony Labrusca). What follows is a journey of longing, obsession, and self-discovery that you’ll enjoy from start to finish.

3670 (2025) from South Korea

In Park Joon-ho’s 3670, Cheol-jun (Kim Hyun-mok) navigates life’s ups, downs, and in-betweens as an escapee from North Korea. He finds his footing in South Korea’s queer community, which guides him through a rollercoaster ride of love, heartbreak, and many other complex feelings that make him human. This youth-oriented romance earned four awards at the Jeonju International Film Festival last year.

Lesbian Space Princess (2025) from Australia

Science fiction, animation, and sapphic pride join forces in this action-packed adventure that’ll leave you in stitches. There’s never a dull moment in Emma Hough Hobbs’s and Leela Varghese’s Lesbian Space Princess, which follows the sheltered Saira (Shabana Azeez) as she traverses the cosmos to save her ex-girlfriend from “evil incel aliens.” 

Tiger (2025) from Japan

Anshul Chauhan explores complex moral conflict in Tiger, which won the Hylife Vision Award at last year’s Busan International Film Festival. Takashi Kawaguchi plays the titular protagonist, a gay masseuse in his 30s whose escalating family feud puts his beliefs to the test.

Iván and Hadoum (2026) from Spain, Germany, and Belgium

A queer workplace romance fueled by tough decisions and lifelong passions? Sign us up! Ian de la Rosa’s Iván and Hadoum tells the story of a trans man (Silver Chicón) who falls in love with his newly hired Moroccan co-worker (Herminia Loh). Together, they endure the wounds of their pasts and stay hopeful for a brighter future that nurtures their dreams amid class disparities.

Trial of Hein (2026) from Germany

Trial of Hein stars Paul Boche as the film’s titular character—a man returning to his remote island village after 14 years, only for the community he once loved to shun him and refuse to accept who he has become. Bleak, sentimental, and immensely heartfelt, this award-winning period drama by Kai Stanicke confronts questions surrounding identity, memory, and social exclusion.

The Birdcage (1996) from the U.S.

We can’t celebrate Pride Month in film without Mike Nichols’s The Birdcage, one of the most influential queer stories to ever reach mainstream media. In this beloved comedy, a gay couple (played by Nathan Lane and the late Robin Williams) goes to great lengths to appease the conservative parents of their son’s fiancée. You wouldn’t want to miss this sharp yet affectionate satire on family dynamics, social expectations, and overcoming hindrances to your identity and self-expression.

ALSO READ: Heading to Love Laban Pride Festival 2026? Here Are the Celebrity Hosts You’ll See Onstage

Are you excited for this year’s QCinema Pride Film Festival? Which movies will you be watching? Share your picks with us in the comments below!


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