LGBTQIA+ documentaries from Latin America
A list of French, Portuguese and Spanish language films featuring interviews with queer and trans people from the Western Hemisphere
Somos Krudas (Cuba/United States)
A 2015 documentary about the Afro Cuban queer hip hop duo Krudxs Cubensi whose lyrics tackle politics and sexuality. Odaymar and Oli are queer nonbinary artists who launched their music careers in Cuba as a couple before relocating to the U.S. in 2006.
Yo, indocumentada (Venezuela)
“I, Undocumented” is a 2011 documentary about the efforts of three transgender women - a law professor, a hairdresser, and an art student - to seek a legal name change in Venezuela. Although they come from different walks of life, none of them are immune to the social vulnerability and discrimination that comes with the lack of legal recognition for their identities.
Muxes (México)
This 2022 HBO Max documentary chronicles the lives of five unique Oaxaca residents - a photographer, a poet, a teacher, a social worker and an activist - who identify as muxes, a unique gender acknowledged in the Zapotec culture of Mexico. They talk about their relationship to transfemininity, the attitudes of larger society, and the La Vela de las Auténticas Intrépidas Buscadoras del Peligro fiesta organized by the muxe community in Juchitán.
Amor a paso de gigante (Argentina)
“Love at a Giant’s Pace” is a 2016 documentary exploring the legacy of Mariela Muñoz, an Argentinian mother who adopted 17 children over her lifetime of 73 years. In 1993, Muñoz, a transgender woman, was accused by a judge of being a child kidnapper, but the publicity around her court case increased public awareness about transgender rights in Argentina. This documentary features interviews with some of Mariela Muñoz’s children. (Content note: Deadnaming, pre-transition photos.)
Señorita María, la falda de la montaña (Colombia)
The 2017 documentary “Miss Maria, Skirting the Mountain” follows the life of María Luisa Fuentes, a transgender woman living as her authentic self in rural Colombia. Señorita Maria had been shunned by members of her mountainous farming community since childhood, but she holds fast to her faith in God in the midst of isolation. (Content note: misgendering, threats of transphobic violence.)
Chavela (México)
This award-winning 2017 documentary depicts the life and times of Costa Rican-born Chavela Vargas, who became a famous ranchera singer in Mexico. The masculine-presenting Vargas sang love songs addressed to women. A known lesbian, Vargas had many lovers, including Frida Kahlo, over her long life.
Des hommes et dieux (Haiti)
This 2002 documentary “Of Men and Gods” follows the lives of several transfeminine and gay people in Haiti, including Blondine, who encounters queerphobic slurs while working as a street vendor; Denis, who finds solace in the Vodou religion; and Innocente, whose father accepted Innocente’s transfemme expression since Innocente’s childhood.
Germino pétalas no asfalto (Brazil)
The 2022 documentary Blooming in the Asphalt covers 5 years of a trans youth’s life: Jack undergoes his gender transition while the Brazilian LGBTQI+ community is under pressure from an ultra right-wing government, all while dealing with a devastating pandemic.
Etiqueta no Rigurosa (México)
“No Dress Code Required” is a 2017 documentary chronicling the attempts of Fernando and Victor to register their marriage in their home city of Mexicali. Despite the 2015 Mexican Supreme Court ruling legalizing marriage equality nationally, the city government of Mexicali seemed intent on denying the two men their constitutional rights…
Imperdonable (El Salvador)
This 2020 documentary explores the life of a gay ex-hitman now serving time in an evangelical prison in El Salvador. Geovany, who joined the 18th Street Gang at age 11, did not expect to fall in love with a fellow inmate Steven in prison. The full documentary (35min) is available on YouTube, followed by an interview with the filmmaker Marlén Viñayo.
Not an exhaustive list. Possible future updates.