Meet the winners of the Roze Filmdagen 2026 Awards!
During the 29th edition of Roze Filmdagen, awards were once again presented. These are the winners:
Jury Awards:
LA PETITE DERNIÈRE
Dir. Hafsia Herzi
About the film:
Fatima, 17, the youngest of three daughters, treads carefully as she searches for her own path, grappling with emerging desires, her attraction to women, and her loyalty to her caring French-Algerian family.
Starting university in Paris, she dates, makes friends, and explores a whole new world, all while confronting a timeless and heartrending dilemma: How can one stay true to oneself when reconciling different parts of one’s identity feels impossible?
The film has already won many awards; director Hafsia Herzi won the Queer Palm, and lead actress Nadia Melliti won Best Actress for her role.
PAKKA
dir. Iniyavan Elumalai
About the film:
The bond of four young queer Indian men is tested when one agrees to an arranged marriage.
Pakka will be nominated for Iris Prize (October 2026) and compete with 34 other short films to win 40.000 Pound in order to create a new short film
TWO PEOPLE EXCHANGING SALIVA
dir. Natalie Musteata / Alexandre Singh
About the film:
In a world where a kiss is illegal, and slaps are currency, a cheeky fascination risks everything.
MY BROTHER (mijn broer)
dir. Koert Davidse
About the film:
Bart, the 28-year-old brother of filmmaker Koert Davidse, died of AIDS in 1986. Their Zeeland family kept quiet about the disease and Bart's coming out. Forty years later, Koert explores his older brother's liberated life.
Alongside Koert's emotional, intimate, and personal story, this film also addresses broader themes, such as social developments in the 1980s. What was the impact of HIV on those infected, friends, family members, and medical science?
SECOND NATURE: GENDER & SEXUALITY IN THE ANIMAL WORLD
dir. Drew Denny
About the documentary:
In this hilarious, heartening and educational romp, narrator and co-producer Elliot Page takes us through the animal kingdom. We get to meet brave scientists fighting censorship, as they reveal the truth about nature.
However loud the propagandists may declare that homosexuality and gender diversity are ‘unnatural’, this documentary shows that they never really took a closer look at nature.
Using interviews, animations, and (of course!) a healthy dose of animal footage, this amazing documentary thoroughly takes apart the heteronormative and binary view of nature and shows its true diversity.
Audience Awards (powered by Mastercard):
DES PREUVES D'AMOUR
dir. Alice Douard
About the film:
In three months, Céline's wife Nadia will give birth to their daughter. To be a lawful mother, Céline must adopt her baby to be recognised by French law as the child’s mother. To this end, she must gather 15 letters from family and friends who will testify that she will be a good mother to her daughter.
A touching portrait of queer motherhood and the barriers it faces, intriguingly told from the perspective of the non-pregnant woman in the final trimester of pregnancy.
STIMULANTS & EMPATHOGENS
dir. Mateusz Pacewicz
About the film:
A wonderful recipe for disaster: inviting a drug dealer because you are secretly in love with him.
F*CK DRUGS
dir. Jesse Bleekemolen
About the film
Do you need drugs to have ecstatic sex? In the documentary F*CK DRUGS, we see how Davo (22), Anthony (33), and Erik (61) explore and push their boundaries in the world of chemsex. Chemsex is (group) sex under the influence of drugs, a phenomenon that is becoming increasingly common among queer men. Is it about boundless pleasure and sexual freedom, or perhaps also about the fear of true intimacy in an age of individualism and increasing loneliness?
The documentary explores the world of chemsex in a liberating, honest, and ecstatic way, but also looks at it critically and uncomfortably. It poses the question: Is there a way back after blissful sex under the influence of drugs? - a film by Jesse Bleekemolen and Rein van Leeuwen.
Hivos Free to be Me-Award
WE ARE FAHEEM & KARUN
dir. Onir
About the film:
In a Hollywood film, it would be a charming encounter if Faheem flirtatiously handed Karun an apple as they met, because their attraction is undeniable. But Karun is an Indian border guard at a checkpoint that Kashmiri student Faheem passes through on his way home to nearby Gurez. Both are constrained by traditional culture and religion. Moreover, centuries-old enmity and current unrest argue against any form of sexual or romantic relationship. Yet desire, and perhaps something deeper, flares between them.
Inspired by the story of a real Indian soldier, the film almost wasn't made when the Indian army refused to cooperate, and the co-writer/director lost his funding, production studio, and cast due to censorship. Against all odds, he persevered, resulting in a (partly) secretly filmed, sensual, and poignant romantic drama.
Fiction Film Competition Winner
HERE LIES LOLA
dir. Brandon Oelofse
The director of the 3rd film competition will receive 15.000 euros to realize the winning plan and turn it into an amazing short film. This will premiere during the next edition (March 2027).