Queer as Punk

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Feature Film

This assured documentary follows the members of an openly queer punk band in Malaysia.

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Programme History

Part of Queer East Festival 2026

Director: Yihwen Chen
Runtime: 88 Mins
Year: 2025
Country: MalaysiaIndonesia

Faris is the transman lead singer of "Shh..Diam!" (Malay for “Shut up!”), an openly queer punk band in Malaysia. He and his bandmates Yon and Yoyo use their music to fight for LGBTQ+ rights in a country where human rights and freedom of expression are severely curtailed by a conservative Islamic society. Director Yihwen Chen follows the trio over several years, documenting their gigs, travels, and wide-ranging discussions. Despite increasing discrimination, the band are determined to continue using their nonconformist performances as a platform to advocate for freedom and equality, refusing to let social pressures silence their voice. Queer as Punk is an enthusiastic testament to the band’s determination to be themselves, and love themselves, and a reminder of the liberating power of queer music.

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Director Profile

Yihwen Chen

Yihwen Chen is a Malaysian documentary filmmaker and journalist. Her body of work primarily focuses on human rights, social issues and gender equality, politics and environmental justice. Her documentary on female circumcision, The Hidden Cut, won the Society Of Publishers in Asia 2019 Awards for Excellence in Reporting Women’s Issues.

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Queer as Punk

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