Hang On, Hang Tight
09.06.2022 - 19.06.2022
Nikolaj Kunsthal, Kopenhagen
Lasse Lau & Flo Maak: Hang On, Hang Tight
Hang On, Hang Tight is a short film exploring an almost forgotten riot during which queer patrons of a bar in New Orleans fought back against police harassment. This happened during the 1950s, one of the most repressive times for homosexuals in US history, long before the Stonewall riots and the rise of the LGBTQIA+ movement. The incident has never been commemorated and is almost forgotten today.
The film tries to reconstruct what happened through interviews with witnesses and historians. These accounts are intersected with sequences of young dancers performing a possible unfolding of the events and empty streetscapes from the infamous Bourbon Street. They are giving space for speculation and relating the presence and past through the leftovers of an intense night of partying.
The dance vignettes were developed in collaboration with choreographer Diogo de Lima.
The film was supposed to premiere during WorldPride last year, but due to the Covid pandemic, its production was delayed. It was made possible with the financial support of the Danish Arts Council, The Senate of Berlin, and the Association of Danish Film Directors.
Lasse Lau (b. 1974 in Denmark) and Flo Maak (b. 1980 in Germany) have collaborated since 2006. They live and work in Brooklyn and Copenhagen, respectively, as well as in Berlin. Their works have been shown in Mexico, USA, Germany, Denmark and South Korea.
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