Join us for an intimate conversation with Alex, director of the short film ”One Day This Kid,” which screened at the Hong Kong Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. Inspired by Polish American artist David Wojnarowicz's powerful photo-text collage from the AIDS crisis era, the film explores the coming-of-age journey of a young boy in an Afghan Canadian family in Vancouver.

In this episode, we discuss the nuances of depicting queer childhood curiosity on screen, the complicated relationship between masculinity and intimacy in Afghan culture, and the painful beauty of family relationships that drift apart without clear resolution. Alex shares candid insights about working with child actors, the challenges of being a queer Afghan filmmaker seeking visibility in a community with limited representation, and the reality of campaigning for Oscar recognition as an independent filmmaker.

From wrestling as homoerotic awakening to the limitations of expressing deep emotions in a second language, this conversation touches on the universal experiences that connect queer people across cultures while honouring the specific complexities of the Afghan diaspora experience.