Get ready for the 25th annual Reelout Queer Film Festival from Feb 1-11, 2024! Explore our readalikes, paired with the vibrant stories told in 90+ films from 35 different countries.
Camp by Lev AC Rosen
This pick is inspired by Summer Qamp. At Camp Outland, a camp for LGBTQIA teens, sixteen-year-old Randall "Del" Kapplehoff's plan to have Hudson Aaronson-Lim fall in love with him succeeds — but both are hiding their true selves.
The Big Reveal by Sasha Velour
This pick is inspired by The Floating Man. This book is a quilt, piecing memoir, history and theory into a living portrait of an artist and an art. Within these pages, illustrated throughout with photos and original artwork, Sasha Velour illuminates drag as a unique form of expression with a rich history and a revolutionary spirit.
Family Meal by Bryan Washington
This pick is inspired by Susan Feniger: Forked. Cam is haunted (literally) after Kai, the love of his life, dies. When he returns to his hometown, he crashes back into the orbit of his former best friend, TJ. Can they find a way past all that has been said — and left unsaid — to save each other?
Lush Lives by J. Vanessa Lyon
This pick is inspired by Leilani’s Fortune. Featuring queer African American artists in New York City, this novel is perfect for any struggling artists, readers interested in diverse queer fiction, or those looking for the next great love story.
I Wish You All the Best by Mason Deaver
This novel is inspired by Outed. When Ben comes out, they are kicked out and forced to move in with their estranged older sister. Forced to keep their gender identity private due to an unsupportive family, Ben struggles through their senior year of high school. When they make friends with Nathan, they are compelled to look inwardly at their feelings and the future.
Jonny Appleseed by Joshua Whitehead
This pick is inspired by the short film Mawitai’kw and Wigudun. Jonny is a two-spirit Indigenous person who moves from the rez to the big city, struggling to make it while dealing with his sexuality in the process. This novel discusses family and the complexity of gender identity in Canada and within Indigenous communities and connects strongly to Wigudun and the short film accompaniment.
She is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran
This pick is inspired by Saint Drogo. Jade visits her estranged father in his haunted house in Vietnam – each night, she is paralyzed, frozen in bed and seeing ghosts. This creepy novel about haunted houses and broken families will appeal to queer horror lovers and fans of Saint Drogo or the creators’ previous project, Drop Dead Gorgeous.
We Have Always Been Here by Samra Habib
This pick is inspired by The Radical. This memoir by Samra Habib discusses her growing up as a Muslim lesbian in Pakistan and her life in Canada after she came as a refugee. We Have Always Been Here is an inspirational read for anyone who has struggled to find a sense of place or has struggled to balance religion, cultural values and the person you are.
