Conventional perceptions around sexuality, gender and manliness are challenged in a new documentary about Kings Cross Steelers – the world’s first gay rugby club.
The feature, it was announced on Thursday, will get its UK premiere online next month at the virtual Glasgow Film Festival, after last year’s BFI London Flare Festival- where it was due to screen – was cancelled due to coronavirus. The film is narrated by Ashton-Atkinson, whose personal experiences establish its emotional backdrop.
The Australian’s own story begins with him as a young rugby-playing kid slowly coming to terms with his sexuality. He is then callously outed by another guy at school, who records the two of them having sex together and shares it around. The “unrelenting bullying” that followed left “scars” that took him “to the brink”.
Years later, seeking an escape from his depressive state, Ashton-Atkinson quit his job and moved to the other side of the world. What he found there was a club full of like-minded competitors who helped him to get fit again, get his life back on track and ultimately meet his future husband, John.
https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-51734341
Inspiration Archive By Charles Ghose 