Reflective Encounters

“On one level Naïla Guiguet’s Dustin is a revealing and bold examination of modern-day identity politics as our titular and transgender protagonist wistfully states “Let’s say it’s a good day when everyone calls me Miss.” With friends in tow – representing a rainbow of sexualities, nationalities and identities – Dustin becomes the focal point of a film that shows a generation both at ease with the fluidity of sexuality and gender yet knowing that the path throughout life is still a complex and difficult one.

Yet, as much as the film is a political statement, it’s also an evocation of the freedom of youth. There’s the pounding 145bpm music at the start (one of the rare times when a film does clubbing ‘right’) and the sense of hedonism as our crew of protagonists find pleasure in drugs, alcohol and the promise of sex.  Even in the cold light of a melancholic day, when adrenaline begins to turn to regret and recriminations, there’s always a sense that this generation has a world ready for the taking and they’ll be doing it on their own terms.”

— Laurence Boyce