Queer as Punk
By Kit Macdonald
Here's a fascinating documentary about the struggle of being a trans man leading a punk band in a Malaysia intent on suppressing and repressing queer identities. Faris leads the band Shh…Diam! (Shut Up!), and along with his bandmates Yon and Yoko they rage against silence enforced by Muslim conservative and laws that criminalise their existence and identity.
Malaysian-Indonesian filmmaker Yihwen Chen follows the trio as they try to carve out their own space for free expression, joy and protest. The Film beautifully captures the joy and camaraderie of this “chosen family” amid all kinds of adversity: rehearsals, gig performances, flirty banter, lockdowns during Covid and the pressure of “pink migration” (queer people leaving the country for safer lives) are all covered in a fascinating and deeply heartfelt hour and a half.