FINDING QUEER JOY (BECAUSE IT’S GENUINELY IMPORTANT FOR YOUR WELLBEING)

Words by Cileme Venkateswar (she/her)

Sometimes the weight of queerness in a profoundly heteronormative world needs easy ways to care for your wellbeing by yourself. It might surprise you that the genuine wellbeing resource I’m offering here is media.

Queer affirmation and representation in media is a vital part of self-acceptance and pride. Especially when for many of us, our first experience of queer representation was a token queer in TV/movies. Now, queer people are on the front lines telling their own stories. Don’t underestimate just how beneficial it is to have queer art saturated throughout your life.

TV:

With Heartstopper already covered, let’s shine light on other great queer rep on TV right now:

Our Flag Means Death – a period piece romantic comedy starring Aotearoa’s very own Rhys Darby and Taika Waititi as real historical pirates Stede Bonnet and Blackbeard. In this show, these pirates happen to be in love. Funny and heartfelt, itis full of queer joy.

First Kill – Netflix’s First Kill fits all the criteria of delightfully trashy teen supernatural drama without atrociously butchering its queerness. Juliette, a vampire, falls for Calliope, a vampire-hunter. Calliope is quickly charmed by the girl meant to be her mortal enemy. This show finally gives in to all the queer themes that vampire stories are just waiting to capitalise on.

Movies:

Saving Face dir. Alice Wu – a funny, heartfelt, romantic comedy-drama. This movie delves into nuanced negotiation between family and being a queer POC.

Pride dir. Matthew Warchus – based on a true story, this hilarious and heart-warming movie tells the story of gay and lesbian activists in 1980s UK. The movie depicts the events that occured when these activists decided to help a small Welsh mining community also striking against the Thatcher administration.

Books:

Greta and Valdin by Rebecca K Reilly – a beautiful story about queerness, messy but loveable families, romance, and explorations of whakapapa and diaspora. It follows three Māori/Russian/Catalonian siblings. It’s no surprise that it won the Okham New Zealand Book Awards’ best work of debut fiction in 2021.

I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey Mcquiston – this rom-com has (less alarmingly toxic) Pretty Little Liars vibes. It is set in a conservative small-town while everyone is secretly queer. It’s fast-paced and full of fun. It has spunky characters, and is a love-letter to the strength of accepting your queer identity against all odds.

The Argonauts by Maggie Nelson – this non-fiction memoir. Nelson uses philosophical theory throughout the book to recount  her relationship with trans artist Harry Dodge. It is fierce and thought-provoking, exploring queerness, death, family, academia, and the limitations of language.

Music:

Astu – retro soul,nineties R&B,new-wave synth pop exploring blackness, queerness, and gender expression.

Hollie Col – alt pop akin to Taylor Swift, HAIM, and Maggie Rogers, with an amazing self-directed video series accompanying the Julie Stevens album.

Noah Slee – smooth, electronic hip/hop celebrating culture and queerness.

Paige – soft pop, funky R&B with some mellow Te Reo tunes too.

Sammy Rae and Friends – alt, indie, jazz rock that’s fun, upbeat, musically clever, and just pure queer joy vibes.

When good shows, movies, and tunes aren’t quite enough, remember that you can always pop on down to Manawa Ora—Student Wellbeing in SU201 to utilise our Rainbow Services  (and recommend us your favourite queer media too)!