The British Council builds connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and other countries through arts and culture, education and the English language. Our work is based on building meaningful, enduring and respectful relationships across different cultures. We cannot do this without a strong commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion.
Five Films For Freedom is a global, online short film programme in support of LGBTIQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer) rights, in partnership with BFI Flare: London LGBTIQ+ Film Festival. Running since 2015, the programme has been seen by more than 15 million people. The films have been watched in over 200 countries and principalities, and we invite audiences everywhere to watch the films in solidarity with LGBTIQ+ communities in places where freedom and equal rights are limited.
British Council in Japan invites you to watch ‘The Men Who Speak Gayle’ from More Films for Freedom* on the occasion of Tokyo Pride 2021.
*More Films for Freedom is a new short film commissioning programme, building on the success of Five Films for Freedom.
The Men Who Speak Gayle (2020), directed by Andrew Brukman
‘Welcome to the greatest diva show and Gayle language comedy.’
Young drag performer Nathan is one of the last people to speak Gayle - a secret language the gay community were forced to invent during Apartheid. He finds out about Louis, an original Gayle speaker living in a conservative desert town in South Africa and wants to put on a performance with him. These men, two generations apart and from different cultural and racial backgrounds have never met - and have no idea how the town will react.