Vingarne

Probably the first film to address the issue of homosexuality was screened as early as 1916 – the Swedish film “Vingarne” (“The Wings”) by Mauritz Stiller based on the novel by Danish author Hermann Bang. The sculptor Claude Zoret meets the young and good-looking Mikaël on a walk in the woods. He falls in love with the young man, and accepts him as a model and pupil. Later he adopts him as his son, sharing his house with him. Both enjoy their mutual affection and understanding, until Mikaël falls in love with Countess Lucia, an acquaintance of Zoret’s, and sells a gift he received from the master…

The English film theorist and author Richard Dyer (“Gays and Film”, “Now You See It”, “Stars”) will introduce us to the historical background in context with censorship of the oldest obtainable film featuring a gay topic (albeit cleverly hidden). He will sharpen our senses for what cannot be seen: prohibition mechanisms and discrimination strategies.

There will be a live accompaniment by musician Ruth Bieri.