The Princess and the Peacock

A short, experimental and visually striking documentary, produced by an entirely queer team, which foregrounds the importance of ＇freak-show＇ performances amongst the queer community in Berlin. 22-year old trans ＇freak-show＇ performer Mona Guyard has built a cult FLINTA (femme, lesbian, intersex, non-binary, trans, a-gender) following in Europe with her courageous performances. We follow Mona from a rural childhood through her discovery of drag, to the development and premiere in Berlin of an astonishing performance involving 39 needles and peacock feathers. The Princess & the Peacock is a rare and intimate glimpse into the transformative role ＇freak show＇ performance can play in the FLINTA community, as a powerful ritual space for catharsis and healing. The film is explicitly queer in execution- refusing realist and normative representation of LGBTQI+ subjects. Instead it pays homage to the queer magic of Jarman and Kenneth Anger through visceral and phantasmagoric imagery.