The third Sunny Bunny festival opened this year with documentary “Queens of Joy,” featuring Kyiv drag queens who raise money for the Armed Forces – one of whom is an active soldier by day. A discussion of queer activism in Ukraine reveals that there are many ways to fight the aggressor.
Ukrainian Drag Queens Launch a Film Festival
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Last Easter weekend, in the splendor of the Hegemon auditorium, the 3rd Sunny Bunny queer international film festival opened. It was fitting for the Zhovten Cinema to host, as Kyiv’s oldest operating cinema and a favorite of independent cinephiles. Likewise, the downtown Podil location, with this hipster district offering creative energy, progressive thought and a more tolerant environment.
Still, there was a notable police presence outside the cinema, and a thorough security check upon entering. Apparently, there had been protests on the street, though I did not see any disruption on the three days I had attended. Apparently, Good Friday was the wrong day to launch a film festival.
I was excited to learn that the festival would open with the premiere of a Ukrainian film, “Queens of Joy.” This feature-length documentary paints a touching portrait of three drag queens: Monroe, Aura, and Marlene. Amongst its many triumphs, is the representation of three three-dimensional characters – all quite different to each other.
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The unstoppable Monroe finds herself on a journey of transition, embracing her femininity while contemplating her gender identity. The dazzling Aura by night is the humble Arthur by day; a serving member of the Ukrainian Armed Forces who is openly gay, but most content in a rural farm, tending to bees and hens. Equally surprising is the man behind Marlene, Sasha, who spends time with his cis girlfriend when not delivering food by bike to make ends meet. One of the funniest and most ironic scenes must be the rejection Sasha receives when chasing a classified job ad over the phone: “I am sorry that we cannot hire you sir. This position is for a woman!”
Arthur, Aura & Olga
I found the story of an active soldier – who was also a drag queen – fascinating. So much so, that when I learned of Aura/Arthur on social media in 2023, I reached out to set up a photoshoot. I went to document the cosmetic transformation of Arthur into Aura, at the gay venue where they were about to perform in Kyiv.
The day that I visited, I met Olga Gibelinda – a filmmaker also capturing Arthur/Aura. Just as she appears in my image above, so I also appear in her documentary footage! I only learned this two years later, while bumping into Olga at the Zhovten foyer, ahead of the premiere.
“Marco, so great that you could make it,” Olga says. “Did you know that you are in the film?” This was one bizarre coincidence, as I had planned to attend Sunny Bunny anyhow, regardless of the program. So it was even more surreal to glimpse my T-shirt, reflected in a dressing room mirror, projected on the historic Hegemon screen.
Unlike Olga, Arthur’s English is not so strong. When we first met, few words were exchanged – and Google Translate played a large role in what we did try to say. Arthur is quite a reserved man anyhow, so I was left somewhat intrigued and dissatisfied in 2023. In that sense, Olga’s film has been hugely helpful in allowing me to get to know who Arthur is, and how brave he has been. He is clearly a kind, hardworking and authentic man. And in many respects, a pioneer.
As with many Ukrainians in 2022, Arthur volunteered to join the military after the full-scale invasion. He wanted to play his part in defending the country and helping others. He then realized that there was an opportunity for quiet activism – that he could campaign for LGBTQ rights just by visibly existing. He started combining stories of Aura & Arthur on social media, resulting in a huge following.
It is an interesting strategy to contrast two supposedly unrelated categories of public opinion: the universal adoration and support of Ukrainian soldiers and the still significant condemnation of LGBTQ “lifestyles.” What if the two were not mutually exclusive? The outcome of such a battle is net positive: your average Ukrainian would love a gay soldier for being a soldier far more than they might hate them for being gay.
LGBT+ Military & Veterans
This contrast is precisely the territory that @LgbtiqMilitary fight for across social media. It is a space where hundreds of brave LGBTQ soldiers can share images and stories of their day-to-day lives – military, civilian, and social. Homophobia is just fear of the unknown, so the empathy such representation brings can only construct pathways towards greater tolerance and eventual acceptance. Soldiers are soldiers; people are people; love is love. Some brave fighters openly show their faces across @LgbtiqMilitary, whereas others who are not ready simply participate with an image of two hands held over military camouflage. Indeed, @LgbtiqMilitary are very good at protecting and respecting anyone still in the closet.
The leader of @LgbtiqMilitary, officially a NGO called Ukrainian LGBT+ Military & Veterans for Equal Rights, is gay military veteran Viktor Pylypenko. He helps run a small hub in Kyiv where the 500+ members can go to seek support and advice, and where various events are run. There was a beautiful photography display when I visited; many large portraits of dignified queer soldiers, which I only wish I had taken myself. It would be a hugely encouraging space for any young soldier questioning their identity and looking for answers.
Viktor also assumes a more political role in activism, often talking at conferences and other media events, to remind the country that he exists. I was fortunate to attend the BAM Allied Forum in October 2024, where he spoke on a panel alongside Ukrainian (opposition) MP Inna Sovsun, a long-standing ally of Ukraine’s queer community. The theme was “Civil Partnerships in Ukraine: Equal rights for equal opportunities.” They also confirmed something I had long believed: such legislation could only bring Ukraine closer to western Europe and the EU – and even further from Russia.
Inna Sovsun, on her side, was the original proponent of 2023 Draft Law 9103, which hopes to pave the way towards same-sex civil partnerships. This is particularly urgent in a country where gay, lesbian, and bi soldiers are literally fighting on the front line, with a very real possibility of death. So basic rights such as inheriting the property of a deceased partner become critical.
Of course, Viktor campaigns for this law and other big issues, but he also promotes soft power. @LgbtiqMilitary have developed a unicorn symbol, a subtle yet strong emblem that soldiers can wear as a patch when in combat. Sadly, there is already a small group of unicorn flags at Maidan Nezalezhnosti, remembering queer soldiers who have fallen.
And so it was with great pride that I read the name @LgbtiqMilitary projected onto the screens of Sunny Bunny, as a sponsor. Not too surprising that both the NGO and the film festival mutually support each other. Though actually any serving military members, of any persuasion, are offered a free pass to the festival!
Making ‘Queens of Joy’
“The style of ‘Queens of Joy,’ the message of the film, it’s not what you’d expect from a film about the war,” Olga explains. “Even if I make a documentary, I like to do some unexpected things. To sell blood is a very simple way to talk about the war, come on! We have TV and social media for this. Cinema and art are deeper; we need some reflection.”
Indeed, the film is quite philosophical at times and is always very intimate. Olga chose not to have a large crew on location, nor a separate director of photography, to achieve this. It allowed her to develop closer connections with Arthur and Sasha (i.e. drag queens Aura and Marlene), whom she did not know so well to begin with. Despite their flamboyant on-stage personas, both could be quite secretive regarding their private lives.
While not a close friend at first, however, Olga did already know Monroe from their common media circles.
Monroe
“Monroe is like the voice of a generation, she reflects much of how we became Not Russia,” Olga confides. “I’d been following her on socials and noticed how much she’d changed during the first weeks of the war. So I asked about the state of underground queer clubs, and Monroe said they were now operating as underground bomb shelters... What a metaphor!”
It had not escaped Olga’s attention that spaces of emotional refuge for the queer community could now act as physical safe spaces – while still entertaining. The drag shows to fundraise for the military that Olga captured on camera provided the motivation to complete a feature-length documentary; a true case of meaningful joy.
Olga finds it interesting how many male directors might work with queer or transgender characters but portray them in a slightly freaky way – like something exotic. For this very reason, Monroe suffered a somewhat traumatic early career in the media spotlight.
“I just wanted to show Monroe as a girl. To show how beautiful she is, and how I see her. Very intelligent. Great sense of humor. Smart. Absolutely charming,” Olga beams. “I gave her a lot of time and space within the film to share her ideas – I think we achieved a good result with this.”
Whether walking past the thousands of tribute flags at Maidan Nezalezhnosti or deciding that she had no reason to flee Ukraine once the full-scale invasion had begun, Monroe provides a perspective on the war that is both unique and very much universal.
Activist Olga
Olga is not queer herself, but a firm heterosexual ally – not that labels matter.
“The fight for queer rights is actually the fight for women’s rights,” she declares. “I don’t need to be queer. We don’t need segregation. Neither queers for queers nor females for females – every film for everyone!”
Olga is grateful that the national broadcaster of Ukraine, Suspilne, has taken on the project and will stream it later in the year, after a theatrical release in the autumn. This will become a far more important platform than the film festival auditoria already filled with parishes of the converted. She hopes that all sorts of Ukrainians might suddenly find themselves empathizing with her three protagonists, on a random rainy Sunday at home.
Activist Bohdan
Sunny Bunny Festival director Bohdan Zhuk agrees with Olga: “Showing ‘Queens of Joy’ as the opening film confirms that it gives a very appropriate message. We should not refuse the joy that we want to feel, despite all the darkness and all the death.”
Bohdan, admits that there were protests on the opening day – as announced by far-right youth on social media – but either the police did a very good job with arrests or many just did not show up, as the disruption to the festival by a few dozen protestors was minimal.
“We received a lot of anger, insults and threats for coinciding with the Easter weekend,” Bohdan explains. “But that’s just an excuse to cover up underlying hatred for the queer community itself, and the existence of an actual festival.”
But no publicity is bad publicity, with Bohdan seizing the opportunity to campaign further on various television interviews.
It was particularly important for him to offer an official response to some members of parliament, who were hoping to win a few more traditional voters with their hateful comments.
“What they said was unacceptable,” Bohdan complains. “They democratically represent us, the people, yet dare to insult thousands by declaring that homosexuality is not right. Their ignorance included ridiculous ideas like questioning how the festival could even take place given Trump cutting funds to Ukraine!”
The irony is that – ultimately – homophobia is a very Russian response. Bohdan often points this out, as do many younger voices in their comments on social media. Russia is the common enemy, not queers! Bohdan tells me that while a poll in 2021 had 40% of Ukrainians supporting equal rights and civil partnerships for all, by 2023 this had risen to over 70%. Somehow the full-scale invasion, alongside the presence of @LgbtiqMilitary etc., has made Ukraine a more tolerant country.
While Sunny Bunny is supported by the State Film Agency, and by extension the government, Zelensky has not said anything either way. Bohdan is grateful for their official backing on paper, but thinks Zelensky’s party chooses media silence, since they also fear losing more traditional voters.
A Brief History of Sunny Bunny
Sunny Bunny used to be a strand of the ‘Molodist’ Film Festival, when Bohdan began as a volunteer in 2014. The queer program began in 2001, screening a selection of international films that would have been very difficult to find elsewhere in Ukraine. What a breath of fresh air that must have been for Kyiv’s LGBTQ community at the time.
In fact, while on stage during the Sunny Bunny opening this year, seasoned Molodist artistic director Yakovych Khalpakhchi remembered screening films in the 1990s like “Caravaggio,” from gay British director Derek Jarman. He also recalled reading a newspaper article then about how such ‘Blue Cinema’ had become “out and open” for the Ukrainian public. Khalpakhchi stressed the importance of diversity then, and diversity now.
In some respects, Sunny Bunny proper was born out of the full-scale invasion. Delays and restrictions led to a reduced version of Molodist in December 2022, and so an opportunity for Bohdan to lead a separate queer festival in June 2023.
“Legend has it that the ‘Bunny’ is in reference to the Berlin film festival’s queer Teddy award,” Bohdan chuckles. “But actually, the Ukrainian phrase for a bright spot of sunlight reflected by a mirror is sonyachnyy zaychyk, this literally means ‘solar rabbit’!”
A Premature End?
In a fitting display of the times, air raid sirens interrupted a late Saturday screening of Jarman’s “Caravaggio” (part of a British queer retrospective, with “Maurice,” “Weekend,” et al). As per law, all cinemagoers were forced to exit the auditorium into the darkness, their suspension of disbelief suspended. With a limited metro schedule from Podil and the wartime curfew looming, attendees just went home. A similar interruption had occurred earlier that day, during the high-profile national premiere of Daniel Craig’s film “Queer,” directed by Luca Guadagnino.
“It is a huge problem for those of us needing to reschedule the screenings we had promised. It’s not so easy,” Bohdan admits. “We rent the Zhovten Cinema which isn’t cheap; we have a schedule and a budget. It’s complicated technically and logistically.”
While some matters are beyond their control, it is laudable that Sunny Bunny could go ahead at all, and at such scale. Although many people were disappointed by the air raid interruptions, Bohdan assures me that they were very much angry at the Russians, not at the festival team...
Note: Kyiv recently hosted its annual Pride event for LGBT+. It took place peacefully, however with a small counterprotest nearby, broken up by police. The number of protesters was notably lower than in previous years, reflecting a possible shift toward broader social acceptance. Viktor Pylypenko was present, as was the Canadian ambassador.
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