Chinese censors have passed their first film which depicts a homosexual relationship, which will be screened publically in China later this year.
‘Seek McCartney’, a French/Chinese production directed by Wang Chao, follows the romance of two male characters played by Jeremie Elkaim and Chinese pop star Han Geng.
“It was not easy, but it was delightful,” director Wang posted online, “a small step for the regulator and a big step for filmmakers.”
China had homosexuality on a list of banned content which could be described as ‘pornographic’ or ‘vulgar’ until just four years ago, when authorities had it removed.
Films with queer content are still not allowed in cinemas, though LGBTI content may still be streamed online.
LGBT community members and allies have warned that this is not a sure sign of a change in public attitudes. “China’s system for evaluating films is still very unstable,” queer filmmaker Fan Popo told The China Post, “The rules are very unclear. It depends heavily on the individual censor’s whims.”
OIP Staff
