Fridae

QueerDoc 2001 which commenced last Thursday and through the weekend in Sydney is into its fourth running year. It is also the only festival of its kind in the world which dedicates an entire programme to the work of queer documentary filmmakers. This year 23 local and overseas documentaries covering topics such as gay adoption, gay rodeos and Internet gay love are featured. Features included acclaimed films such as Keep the River on Your Right, Undetectable, Out in Nature, and Scout's Honor.

Being a melting pot of diverse cultures, Sydney has definitely more to offer other than its breathtaking harbour view and beautiful beaches. Walking around the city, one can easily spot many multi-cultural gay couples. One of the local documentaries featured, Different Shades of Pink, thus attempts to examine inter-racial relationships in Sydney.

The 45-minute documentary consists of interviews with three multi-cultural gay couples. James and his partner Paul, originally from Singapore, talk about their lives together for the last five years. Howard, a Chinese from Malaysia, and his boyfriend David relive the moment they first met on Lady Jane Beach (Sydney's famous nude beach); and Dan recalls memories of his greatest love, Bruce, an African American man who passed away six years ago due to HIV complications. They also talk about how they "come out" to their family; what it means to have an open relationship and how it feels to be with someone so different.

Dan's story is the most heart-warming when he talks about his lost lover, Bruce. Dan is also a good interview subject as he talks about how much he believe in true love despite that his lover Bruce is suffering from AIDS when they first met.

The director Alexander Ku captures his solitary effectively as he travels alone in the train and walking in the busy city of Sydney.

The documentary should be praised for its effort in portraying inter-racial relationship is not just a "rice and potato queens" issue but emphasizes love as the main ingredient regardless it is a straight or gay relationship. The witty and touching parts of the interviews also save the documentary from going into the drain completely. It is wise enough that the couples featured in the documentary do not fall into the group of "old Caucasian with young Asian guys"; a stereotype of inter-racial relationships.

However, what is missing is that little is mentioned about the problems the couples face with each other. Surely there exists communication difficulties due to cultural difference in such a relationship. Just as one of the interviewee Howard has said in the film: "Nothing is perfect, so don't ask for perfection". Thus, Difference would be more credible if the couples could also share the other side of their stories.

With not much of a budget, Different is however credited for its good cinematography, making it not ended up like a home video which most amateur productions tend to be.

The event was held at the Chauvel in Paddington from 6-9 September was organised by Queerscreen, presenter of Sydney's Mardi Gras Film Festival.