Bacon sizzling in fat, a young woman thanking the subscribers of her YouTube channel, a corpse neatly wrapped up in black garbage bags and floating down a river – as clear as the first few images of Travis Mathews’ mystery thriller may be, the connections only become clearer gradually, as if they were emerging from the subconscious. This elliptically edited story, which revolves around a man who can no longer be described as young, is accompanied by an eerie soundscape. Filmmaker Alex lives in a van. He sets up his camera in rural areas in the US, in the no-man’s land near highways. During a visit to his mother, a former alcoholic, she shares with him a well-kept secret. There is also a small boy, with whom Alex develops an unexpectedly close relationship. Director Mathews chronicles a modern day gay existence in the West – from anonymous sex to heterosexual porn in a sex bar cabin, or as a service in a motel room. A small house and a life on the margins of society. Meanwhile, on the radio, we are treated to a steady stream of right-wing slogans against everything that is not white and heterosexual, here in Texas. Desc. courtesy of the Berlin International Film Festival.

Prepare to be dazzled! "Thirsty" is the compelling story of Scott Townsend a.k.a., Thirsty Burlington, who caught the filmmaker's eye during Thirsty's striking performance as Cher. The film lays bare Scott's life growing up as a girl-boy in Cambridge public housing and eventually becoming a revered drag queen delighting club-goers with her spot on impersonation of Cher. Using an array of storytelling techniques within a non-linear structure, the film moves through dramatic, fantasy and musical sequences, capturing both the harsh realities of living a life with a slippery gender and the sparkle that Thirsty exudes. Townsend embodies this natural phenomenon of a gender that roams between male and female. "A bouquet from a single stem," as Thirsty sings. "Thirsty" asks that we let everyone be beautiful and create the world they want. For Townsend that means, "To be safe and comfortable in all his skins, and loved for all that he is." Desc. courtesy of the Woodstock International Film Festival.

Princess Shaw placed her dreams on YouTube. Then they became a reality. This is the extraordinary true story of an aspiring musician down on her luck, who inspired internationally famous YouTube artist Kutiman to create a magical collaboration that would bring her music to a whole new audience.