This June, LGBTQIA+ World Pride Month is celebrated. Now is the time to give more attention and focus on the more colorful side of the rainbow. This time, the colorful flags are to be waved with pride and joy.
After “Baka Bukas (2017),” Director Samantha Lee once again had written and produced a film about LGBTQIA+. Billie and Emma, released in 2018, is a coming-of-age film about a lesbian, and a pansexual, and their every experience in society.
Many people know about LGBT but how much do they know about Queers? That's what Billie and Emma is all about. It is not new to the Millennials and Generation Z to know about the LGBTQIA+ community; the recognition of identities is evolving more each day, and the gender and sexual orientation spectrum is getting broader, recognizing and embracing the differences of one another.
The Philippines’ Film Industry is making more films that involve the LGBTQIA+ Community now than ever. “Billie and Emma” is one excellent movie that is at this time underrated still, but is very much worthy of your time. Not only would you feel kilig, you’ll also learn about the experiences of queers.
The movie was about a star student, Emma, who met a transferee who doesn’t seem to meet the standards of being a lady. Billie got sent to the town of St. Isidro from Manila when the father of their household found out that Billie was a lesbian. Billie and Emma had a lot of differences; Emma was more feminine, as expected by society, especially in an all-girls school, and Billie was considered to be more on the masculine side in terms of physical style and actions. Billie was seen and treated differently in their school while Emma was looked up to. At first, Emma didn't like Billie, but despite this, they managed to get along very well when they got paired for a school project. Then, their story started as they find out more about themselves.
The film was great in tackling what must be in a society that’s not that much open. Billie and Emma was a light queer movie yet raised a lot of social issues concerning gender, feminism, and even teenage pregnancy. However known, the LGBTQIA+ community is still not completely accepted in society.
There was a lot to learn in the movie, from the significance of gender orientation to knowing the importance of understanding each other’s differences. What also made the movie fascinating is its cast. Billie was portrayed by a real-life LGBTQIA+ actor Zar Donato, and Emma was portrayed by a versatile actress Gabby Padilla. The film was full of aesthetics which was also a factor in films. The director and the crew did very well in the film that it looked nostalgic and relaxing; from the casts to the setting and camera techniques.
To get to know Emma’s sexual orientation, pansexual people are the ones who get physically, sexually, or emotionally attracted to another person without basing on their gender identity or sex.
To get to know Billie’s sexual orientation, lesbians are the ones who are physically, sexually, or emotionally attracted to only cisgender females.
There are also similarities between pansexual and bisexual people—both get attracted to cisgender males and cisgender females. Confuse the two not; the main difference is that a bisexual person gets attracted to people both alike and opposite to their gender while a pansexual person gets attracted to all genders such as cisgender males and females, non-binary men and women, agender, transgender men and women, and other gender non-conforming individuals.
“Billie and Emma” is a very much recommended movie to watch to get to know queers as they deserve recognition too. Also, you might want to read Billie’s favorite book entitled, “Rubyfruit Jungle” by Rita Mae Brown—a novel about being different and loving it.
Overall, the film was excellent in showing the life of queers. I greatly recommend the movie as there were many to learn and understand while keeping the film entertaining and at the same time thought-provoking. Its purpose which was to show the experiences of queers and how differently they are sometimes treated was well-presented. Surely, the audience would pick up a lesson or two from this entertaining yet informative movie.
Although World Pride Month is celebrated only in June annually, may we recognize differences every day all throughout the year. Every day is a beautiful day to embrace differences and support one another.
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