With two top noms at the renowned Sunrise Film Festival, a BIFA-qualifying affair showcasing indie film and varied narrative, a London-based short featuring Maltese multidisciplinary artist and trans actor Romeo Roxman Gatt has arisen.
Passage is among four movies to get awards from a field of 187 contenders. Two of the most prestigious honors of the festival are “Best Story” and “Best British Short,” for which it competes. Passage, written and directed by Orion Isaacs and produced by Emily Eyre, features Romeo along with co-actor Jimmy Maslin Fong in an unfiltered, emotionally complex depiction of a father and child searching for refuge in a desolate, rough landscape.
Romeo, who divides his time between London and Malta, lends the role of short-lived experience and creative complexity. Founder of the Malta-based Rosa Kwir archive devoted to preserving the stories and lives of trans men, nonbinary people, and LBQI mascpresenting individuals spanning the islands, he is also known for his screen endeavors. His creative portfolio covers performance, curation, and writing, including Berlin exhibitions and the authorship of a reflective novel born from an unexpectedly long stay in Malta after life changes.
Passage allows Romeo to enter a new chapter where he uses cinema to investigate ideas of displacement, bonding, and survival. Particularly within independent movie circles, his performance contributes to the increasing acceptance of trans narratives in cinema.
Running from May 22 to 25 in Lowestoft, the Sunrise Film Festival will give a venue for underrepresented groups and fledgling voices in British cinema. A great showing at the festival might open up an opportunity for Passage and its innovative staff to be considered for more honors by the British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) next year.
