JIM QUEEN

France, Belgium | 2026 | 85′
In French with Slovenian and English subtitles

ABOUT THE FILM

Jim is the king of Gym Queens, the sexiest community in the Parisian gay scene, made of muscles, sweat and parties. Everything goes well for him up to the day he gets Heterosis, a strange new virus turning gay men into… straights!

Stripped of his crown and abandoned by everyone except his last remaining follower, Lucien, a closeted young Twink, Jim must team up with him to crisscross the city in search of a mysterious cure. Their mission? Heal Jim… and save the LGBTQIA+ community from total extinction.

CREW

Directed by: Marco Nguyen, Nicolas Athané
Written by: Simon Balteaux, Marco Nguyen, Nicolas Athané, Brice Chevillard
Music: Kirosen (Mathieu Rosenzweig, Benjamin Nakache)
Editing: Ivy Buirette
Sound Design: Badje
Animation Directors: Stefan Thaler, Julien Licata, Estelle Antonini
2D Layout Directors: Loris Pilorget, Yoann Gourru
Producers: David Alric, Arthur Delabays, Cédric Iland, Bastien Sirodot
Production: Bobbypills, Umedia
Cast: Alex Ramirès, Jérémy Gillet, Shirley Souagnon, Elisabeth Wiener, François Sagat, Alex Brik, Harald Marlot, Philippe Katerine

DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT

I had this project in mind because I was organizing [afterworks and LGBTQIA+ parties]. I was very active in the gay community, and I wanted to be inspired by this universe. With Simon, we wondered how we could give form to the community. […] But at the time, there was no political hardening around us. Today, it resonates differently. We had to adapt. What we wanted to criticize was not straight people as such, but heteronormativity, that is, this imposed model: a father, a mother, children, a house, a car…

We wanted to incorporate conversion therapies right from the start. Since Jim Queen is a satire, we aimed to turn the world upside down by depicting certain gay characters mimicking the very actions of their tormentors. […] This serves to underscore, all the more powerfully, just how violent and horrific conversion therapies truly are, and that, under no circumstances, can one ever impose an identity upon another person.

Animation is a medium where everything is possible. With Jim Queen, we wanted people to know about the life we lead. To make people want tolerance, living together, acceptance and the courage to be oneself. To tell young people today that one can be gay and happy, even if we still have to fight against a very virile and patriarchal world.

AWARDS AND FESTIVALS (SELECTION)

  • Golden Camera Nominee, Queer Palm Nominee, Cannes FF 2026
  • Silver Audience Award, Fantasia IFF, Canada, 2026
  • Official Selection, Fantastic Fest, USA, 2026
  • After Hours, Karlovy Vary IFF, 2026
  • World Cinema, BIFF, South Korea, 2026