Busan: Australian Film ‘Pulse’ Is Tale of Triumph Over Adversity

U.S.-based sales agent Oration is handling rights to “Pulse,” the Australian fantasy drama that has its international premiere Monday in the Busan Film Festival’s Flash Forward section.

The film is an intensely personal tale about a gay young man with disabilities who changes into the body of a beautiful woman, in order to be loved.

It was written by Daniel Monks, who also has disabilities and who also stars with Caroline Brazier. Three years in the making, the picture was directed by female filmmaker Stevie Cruz-Martin. The pair have previously collaborated on several shorts.

“The film raises questions such as how much our bodies shape who we are, where is the line between compromising for love and changing yourself to be loved, and why we fall in love with the people we fall in love with,” said Monks. “It is a parable for young people, queer people, disabled people; but more than that, for anyone who has ever struggled with their body, their appearance, their sexuality, their desires and essentially, themselves.”

The ultra-low budget film, which screened in Australia at the Sydney Film Festival and the Melbourne Queer Film Festival, scored the bulk of its financing from crowdfunding. Having set a target of A$15,000 on the Pozible website, it succeeded in raising A$23,600 ($20,100).

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