Big Island’s Lesbian Sci-Fi Film Gets Acclaim

“Everyone needs heroes,” said G.B. Hajim, film producer, director, writer and lecturer at Hawai’i Community College.

Hajim hopes to provide some heroic models with his science-fiction animated film, “Strange Frame: Love and Sax,” which screens at the Palace Theater on Feb. 15 at 7 p.m.

It’s almost subconscious how the human mind can categorize, label, and create hierarchies dependent on a personal value system. It happens so quickly, sometimes too quickly for many to actually examine and discover why they think or believe the way they do. So, let’s ask some questions.

What would you think about a strong female lead? What about a strong female lesbian lead? What about a strong female lesbian protagonist of mixed heritage who is rescuing her lover? Hajim would call her a hero.

When asked why he made this movie with a lesbian female protagonist, Hajim’s amused response was “why not?”

His friend, co-writer and rock star Shelly Doty said, “growing up black, gay and an aspiring musician, I rarely saw my image reflected back via mainstream media… queer minority youth never have the luxury of watching television and seeing themselves represented as the dominant population.”

Strange Frame: Love and Sax, directed by G.B. Hajim.

This non-traditional story winds and wends across the galaxies to end, ironically, well in-line with the traditions of many love stories that came before. It just so happens that the sexes are the same.

Hajim doesn’t dwell, or lead the audience into accepting the two female protagonists who happen to be lovers. He doesn’t sell the audience on why, or what should or shouldn’t be normalized. The visuals are lush and the sound immerses the audience. The story simply is.

Expect great sound from this movie. Roger Waters of Pink Floyd and the best of Hollywood’s re-remixers, Gary Rizzo of Skywalker Sound, contributed to the project. Rizzo has worked on movies such as “Batman: The Dark Knight” and “Inception.”

Hollywood actors such as Tim Curry, George Takei, Ron Glass, Tara Strong, Alan Tudyk, Claudia Christian, Cree Summer, Michael Dorn, and Claudia Black lent their incredible voicing to give the film emotional realism.

While the movie is intriguing, the making of it is also another story. The film is one of only two feature animations made in Hawai’i. Local youth from the most impoverished portions of Hawai’i, according to Hajim, have contributed their talents and interned with him since 2005. “Our crew is made up of these young people.”

G.B. Hajim speaking at the DragonCon in Atlanta. Photo is courtesy of Hajim.

This director trained Big Island’s youth to animate in his style for two years before beginning production in 2007.

“We finished sound in May of 2012 at Skywalker Ranch, 48 hours before it was to screen in London. I jumped on a plane and hand carried the finished movie to the screening,” he said.

This film won Best Feature at the DragonCon, had been written up in the Huffington Post as the “world’s first animated lesbian sci-fi flick,” and garnered the interest of Hollywood’s household names, as the project to be involved with.

Putting all that aside, it’s a love story–just in time for Valentine’s Day weekend.

Tickets are $8, and the DVD is available through online outlets and in limited supply for $15 at the Honoka’a People’s Theater screening on March 8.