Frame and Preparation
Lola und Bilidikid
Conceptual Frames and Background
- Race and racism
- Migration
- Turkish diaspora
- Islam
- Transgender
- Gender expression and identity
- Homophobia/transphobia and violence
- Berlin
- Prostitution
Introduction
This 1999 film by Kutluğ Ataman follows Murat, a gay 17-year-old who spends his nights in the Kreuzberg transvestite and gay scene in Berlin. The film depicts his coming out, including specific problems he experiences within the gay Turkish-German subculture in Berlin.
Preparation
Some students may not be aware of the large population of migrants from Turkey or people with Turkish ethnic backgrounds in Germany, so a short synopsis of the history of this community may be necessary to increase comprehension and help contextualize the film within contemporary German society.
Text and Discussion
- How do the various characters navigate and inhabit the city? How are these inflected by their racial, gender, and sexual subject positions?
- How does the film portray gender as a social identity? And sex as a biological fact?
- What are the intersections of race and sexuality in the film? And race and gender?
- How does sexual behavior come to define and influence (sexual) identity? Is behavior the same or different than identity in this film?
- How do the different characters embody their bodies? How do they control and dispose of them, especially via-a-vis race, gender, and sexuality?
- What role does violence play in molding each character’s understanding of themselves?