The Ministry of Lesbian Affairs Cinema Season

Kiln is proud to present a season of queer cinema, co-programmed with the creatives behind our latest production, The Ministry Of Lesbian Affairs by Iman Qureshi (13 June to 12 July). During the play’s run in our theatre we will be screening three contemporary classics, offering distinct perspectives on queerness in society, from Hollywood opulence to radical independent cinema. These screenings will all feature on-stage introductions from the creatives behind the play, illuminating their influence on the production, resonances across the LGBTQ+ community and celebrating the vital contributions of great queer artists in cinema.

Wednesday 25 June | Carol
This screening will be introduced by playwright Iman Qureshi

This season kicks off with a contemporary classic and a landmark moment in mainstream queer cinema, named the ‘Best LGBT Film of All Time’ by the BFI only months after its 2015 release. It’s 1952: Photographer Therese (Rooney Mara) encounters the glamorous and soon-to-be-divorced Carol (Cate Blanchett) while working at a department store over Christmas and soon embarks upon a whirlwind romance that will challenge the homophobic strictures of American high society. This adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s The Price Of Salt was nominated for six Academy Awards, and remains a crucial touchstone of LGBT storytelling and looks as stunning as anything you’ll see on our cinema screen this year.

Wednesday 2 July | Disobedience
This screening will be introduced by playwright Iman Qureshi

Based on Naomi Alderman’s extraordinary novel, Disobedience is an intense, unforgettable queer romance with career-best performances from its outstanding cast. Chilean director Sebastian Lelio (A Fantastic Woman, The Wonder) presents a vivid, uncompromising look at the position of women in the Orthodox Jewish community of Hendon and Golders Green, in an expertly-crafted drama that explores the tensions between life-changing passion and religious tradition.

Wednesday 9 July | Watermelon Woman
This screening will be introduced by playwright Iman Qureshi

For anyone who found their love in the video shop (or wishes they did!), this ’90s cult classic is the first American feature directed by an ‘out’ Black lesbian and a recent arrival in the BFI’s ‘Greatest Films Of All Time’ critics’ poll. Filmmaker Cheryl (playing herself), in investigating the erasure of Black actresses from Hollywood history, challenges the complexities of representation, interracial relationships and the nature of film form. This landmark title of New Queer Cinema is a vital, interrogative take on the rom-com that’s full of surprises and laugh-out-loud moments and deserves to be seen with a captivated audience.