A screening of the queer film 'Love Lies Bleeding' at the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFFF) on Saturday was stopped after lesbophobic remarks came from several members of the audience, which resulted in a brawl.
The BIFFF takes place from 9 to 21 April annually at Palais 10 near the Atomium. It advertises itself as a festival open to all kinds of genres, from fantasy to horror and black comedy. On Saturday evening, a screening of the film 'Love Lies Bleeding' was on the agenda, a romantic thriller film directed by Rose Glass and starring Kristen Stewart.
However, several members of the audience soon started to shout crude comments about lesbians. One person who was attending the screening said people "even applauded a rape scene."
Translation: "When is it ok for a screening to be interrupted because of lesbophobic attacks by the public at the @bifff_festival. When is it ok to have lesbian people coming out of the cinema in tears? Thank you for this feeling of fear."
Members of the LGBTQ community who were at the screening called on the people making offensive comments to stop, but the perpetrators shouted back at them, according to several social media users. The organisers of the event reportedly failed to intervene or remove the people making the remarks.
This led to heated discussions in the auditorium and the film being stopped. Later, "blows were also dealt" and the organisers decided to close the auditorium completely. The police were called in to control the brawl among the audience, the Brussels City/Ixelles police zone confirmed to The Brussels Times.
Several people reported that the police mainly focused on removing the victims of the lesbophobic remarks.
'Unacceptable'
In a response on social media, the organisers of the festival – which is notorious for having rowdy audiences – said the events that took place during the session were "unacceptable" and in no way reflect the "libertarian spirit of the festival".
"Discriminating remarks against any community have and never will have a place at the festival, just like any other manifestation of moral or physical violence to express disagreement," they said. "We offer our sincere apologies to the public."
However, this too received criticism from people who attended the screening, with many arguing the response did not reflect the gravity of the situation, and failed to address the "homophobic" and "lesbophobic" nature of the remarks.
"It's better to remain silent than to publish this kind of half-hearted response," one person said. Others have argued that the organisers of the BIFFF should better manage the audience and that they should implement measures to avoid similar situations occurring in the future.
The Brussels Times contacted the organisers of the BIFFF for a response but received no reply at the time of publication.
