Taiwanese short film "Tank Fairy (桶妝仙女)" has recently won the Asia-Pacific Queer Film Festival Alliance (APQFFA) short film award following its win for Best Narrative Short at the San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival, Frameline46.
To mark the start of Sydney WorldPride 2023, Queer Screen’s 30th Mardi Gras Film Festival hosted the APQFFA screening and awards ceremony at Event Cinemas on February 18. After the screening of nominated films, the Festival Director Lisa Rose announced the winner and presented a US$1,000 cash prize to Erich Rettstadt, the director of "Tank Fairy."
During his speech, Rettstadt mentioned that "Tank Fairy" is a film produced in collaboration with Taiwan's drag queens and members of LGBTQ+ communities, adding that all the actors and crew are Taiwanese, apart from himself. Taiwan is the beacon of LGBTQ+ rights in Asia and the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex marriages; the biggest pride event in Asia was also held in Taiwan, and Taiwan enjoys the right to freedom of speech, which is why drag culture flourishes in Taiwan, he said.
Rettstadt thanked the organizer Queer Screen, the Cultural Division of TECO in Sydney, and the Taiwan International Queer Film Festival for selecting "Tank Fairy" to represent Taiwan in the competition.
"Tank Fairy" is a lighthearted queer film from Taiwan that tells a story of a lonely ten-year-old who dreams of dancing and drag, and the boy embarks on a journey to explore gender identity after meeting a drag queen who is also a gas worker. It is a musical extravaganza that encourages us all to embrace our authentic selves.