Co-organizing with the Taiwan Academy of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in Houston and the Austin Asian American Film Festival, the 35th All Genders, Lifestyles, and Identities Film Festival (aGLIFF) presented the Taiwanese movie "Moneyboys (金錢男孩)" and the drama "Fragrance of the First Flower (第一次遇見花香的那刻)" on Aug. 27 in Austin, the United States. The two works received positive feedback from the members of aGLIFF.
The lesbian miniseries "Fragrance of the First Flower" was the first Taiwanese show to enter the biggest festival dedicated to television series in Europe, Series Mania, and it was also recognized by Frameline46: the San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival. In addition to screening, director Angel I-Han Teng (鄧依涵) shared behind-the-scene stories with the audience through an interview by aGLIFF.
Directed by C. B. Yi (陳熠霖) in collaboration with filmmakers from Taiwan, Austria, France, and Belgium, "Moneyboys" tells a story of a young man leaving his hometown to work as a male prostitute to support his family. The film was selected for the Un Certain Regard section of the 2021 Cannes Film Festival and nominated for Best New Director and Best Leading Actor at the 58th Golden Horse Awards.
Founded in 1987, aGLIFF is one of the oldest LGBTQ+ film festivals in the southern US. This year, over 85 movies in various genres including drama films, documentaries, short films, and more were screened at the festival. The festival took place from Aug. 24 to 28 at the Galaxy Theatres and the selected films were available online from Aug. 29 to Sep. 5. For more information, please visit the official website.