About 2.0 Theme: ImagiNATIONS

Too often, modern nation-states have failed the peoples of Southeast Asia. Governments across the political spectrum have used their power to oppress those on the margins—especially LGBTQIAN+ individuals and communities—instead of granting us the protection and dignity we deserve. As a result, we are left to navigate an ever-shrinking civic space due to ongoing discrimination.

This is why, for this festival, we call upon fellow queers to imagine new nations and communities: societies that sustain us and celebrate our existence. What histories can we share about how we thrived in the past? What collectives do activists build in the present? How can we—the queer activists—work for a more sustainable environment, a safer future? And what queer utopias can artists dream up to inspire our current realities?

Together, we weave a vibrant tapestry woven from the rich arts and cultural expressions of Southeast Asia's diverse queer communities. We celebrate identities that transcend borders and shatter biases, fostering unity and sustainability, respect for all in democratic space. With our imaginations, we plant the seeds for a more caring, more inclusive tomorrow.

Sub-Theme

To facilitate discussions around the concept of ImagiNATIONS and provide a framework for potential topics, we have identified several key sub-themes to guide our exploration. They serve as a roadmap for our conversations, ensuring a comprehensive and focused approach to imagining and building new, supportive societies. The sub-themes include:

1. Resisting Boundaries: Building Queer Resilience Amidst Shrinking Spaces

The LGBTQIAN+ community in Southeast Asia faces significant challenges and restrictions on their identities and freedoms. This sub-theme explores how the community builds resilience to thrive and push back against these limitations.

2. Decolonizing Our Stories: Unearthing the Voices of Southeast Asia's LGBTQIAN+ Past

Focusing on the impact of colonialism and imagination of a modern nation state in erasing or distorting the histories of Southeast Asian LGBTQIAN+ communities. This sub-theme emphasizes the importance of reclaiming queer narratives from a decolonial perspective.

3. Collective Care, Collective Joy

Emphasizing the importance of creating a system of care and support, this theme underscores how activism thrives on community members supporting each other. Celebrating our community reaffirms our collective identity and resilience, transforming resistance into a celebration of who we are, and our collective wellbeing within the spaces we create together.

4. Queering Our Way to Environmental Justice

This sub-theme presents a unique and thought-provoking approach to environmental activism, advocating for a more inclusive and effective environmental movement that leverages the strengths and perspectives of LGBTQIAN+ individuals in Southeast Asia.

5. Fostering Regional Solidarity and Intersectionality

Promoting and fostering regional solidarity actions through an intersectional lens, this sub-theme aims to create a more powerful and inclusive movement for LGBTQIAN+ rights in Southeast Asia, ensuring that no group is isolated in the fight for a just and equal future.

Submission Guidelines

Are you a queer artist, cultural practitioner, writer, or community organizer working on a project that addresses marginalized histories or imagines a more caring and a more inclusive future? We invite you to apply for SEAQCF 2.0: ImagiNATIONS.

This open call is for those with finished or in-progress works—whether literary, visual arts, audio-based, moving image, audiovisuals, performances, or other mediums—focused on reimagining and celebrating queer communities. Join us in exploring and strengthening creative practices that reconsider historical legacies and explore emancipatory movements.

We're extending this open call to queer artists, cultural practitioners, and community organizers who:

• Are Southeast Asian (from Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, The Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor Leste, Vietnam) based in Southeast Asia or outside the region.
• Work with digital or digitizable mediums (literary, visual arts, games, audio-based works, moving images, audiovisuals, performances, etc.).*
• Have finished or in-progress work for the submission.
• Explore queer life experiences relevant to SEAQCF 2.0 theme: ImagiNATIONS and its sub-themes.
• Have experience creating works or collaborating on projects for personal, professional, or community purposes.
• SEAQCF provides budget support ranging from $500 to $1,500 for those in need. You can propose your budget in the submission form, detailing how you plan to spend it.
• Download submission form guidelines here to know the questions in submission form.

Important Dates

*The deadline to express interest to join SEAQCF 2.0 is July 31th, 2024 at 23:59 Bangkok Time (GMT+7). Selected artists/cultural practitioner/writer/community organizer will be announced by August 15th, 2024. For selected artworks, the deadline of submission is September 15th, 2024 at 23:59 Bangkok Time (GMT+7).

SEAQCF 2.0: The ImagiNATIONS exhibition and programs will start from November 2024 to January 2025.

To apply, please submit your express of interest through our online submission form. This will include a series of questions and a required set of materials (portfolio, concept sketches/final work, etc).

Find Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) here.

Feel free to contact us at coordinator.seaqcf@gmail.com if you have any inquiries.

Meet Our Team

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. What artistic and cultural practices does the festival accept?

Queer artists, artivists, cultural practitioners, writers, and community organizers are encouraged to participate in the SEAQCF 2.0 exhibition. We welcome a diverse range of digital or digitizable artworks including illustrations, songs, photography, performances, films, zines, games, poetry, short stories, comics, and more.

2. How is the festival going to present the selected works?

This year, we will feature both online and in-person programs. The online exhibition will be showcased on our seaqcf.net platform, while in-person programs will take place across six countries: Indonesia, Cambodia, The Philippines, Timor Leste, Malaysia, and Thailand. Selected works from each country may also be exhibited during the in-person exhibitions along with other invited artists.

3. How is the festival going to organize the in-person programs?

The festival team and advisory members will develop program options for an in-person festival across six countries: Indonesia, Cambodia, The Philippines, Timor Leste, Malaysia, and Thailand. In October, we will issue an open call inviting community organizers from these countries to collaborate with us in coordinating the in-person programs.

4. Can I join as part of a collective?

Yes, you are welcome to join with your collective. On the submission form, please list and describe your collective.

5. Can my applications written in a language different than English?

You are welcome to write the application in your national language.

6. Does my work need to be in English?

Your work does not necessarily need to be in English. For audio or audiovisual works, it can be in your local language with English subtitles. For literary and other works, you can provide translations to ensure broader accessibility within Southeast Asia and beyond. If needed, you can include a translation budget in the submission form's budget proposal.

7. Can I initiate a collaborative project inviting artists/writers/cultural practitioners from Southeast Asia to work on something new?

Absolutely! You can initiate collaborative projects. In SEAQCF #1: be/longing, we had initiatives that collected short stories from Southeast Asian writers.

8. May I submit an unfinished work?

Yes, you can submit unfinished work. We accept both finished and in-progress pieces. Please note that for selected works/projects, the deadline for completion is September 15th. In the application form, you will need to outline your plan for meeting this deadline.

9. Can I submit work that has been exhibited before?

Yes, you may submit previously exhibited work. When filling out the submission form, please list the events, exhibitions, or platforms where your work has been previously showcased. Additionally, indicate if there are any distribution clearances required for featuring the piece in SEAQCF 2.0: ImagiNATIONS.

10. When is the Festival and what programs you will have?

SEAQCF 2.0: The ImagiNATIONS exhibition and programs will run from November 2024 to January 2025.

11. What does portfolio mean here? If I apply as a collective, what kind of portfolio should we submit?

A portfolio is a record of your past activities or work, both public and personal, from at least the past year. For collectives, you can mention your activities as a collective or compile the past works of your collective members in a document.

12. Will there be budget support to help finish my project?

Yes, SEAQCF provides budget support ranging from $500 to $1,500 for those in need. You can propose your budget in the submission form, detailing how you plan to spend it.

13. Are there any restrictions on how we should spend the proposed budget?

No, there are no restrictions as long as the spending is related to the proposed project/work.

14. What if I involve individuals below 18 in this project?

As per ASEAN SOGIE Caucus' child rights standards, the project initiator/artists/cultural practitioners/writers must obtain consent from the guardians of any participants under 18.

15. What if I’m not from Southeast Asia?

This festival is designed to discuss and explore Southeast Asian queer lives and experiences. If you are not a Southeast Asian living in or outside Southeast Asia, you are not eligible to apply. 

16. What do you mean by Southeast Asians and Southeast Asians who live outside the region?

This identity is not restricted to citizenship; we acknowledge that some Southeast Asians may not be registered in Southeast Asian countries for various reasons. We recognize that some Southeast Asians seek refuge in other regions due to political climates, or are studying abroad, etc.

17. What are the questions on the submission form?

You can download our submission guidelines here to see our list of questions.