I watched Lesbian Space Princess at the State Theatre as part of the Sydney Film Festival (4-15 June), and I haven’t stopped giggling since. The random and equally hilarious scenes keep popping in my head at the most absurd times. The seriousness of the grand State Theatre was contradicted by how absurd, queer and animated the movie was, which left the audience exclaiming at the million pop culture references, my favourite: their rendition of the Twilight post-breakup angst scene when Bella sits at the window staring at the changing seasons.
Source: Gunika Nakra (to show how beautiful the theatre is)
This animated movie marked the directorial debut of Emma Hough Hobbs and Leela Varghese. It follows the story of Saira, an anxious and introverted lesbian space princess who grows up under the shadow of her famous parents, the Queens of Clitopolis. She is left stumped when her girlfriend Kiki dumps her for being too needy. However, Kiki gets kidnapped, and Saira is forced to leave the safe bubble of the gay universe behind to save her ex-girlfriend from the forgotten incels of the future, the Straight While Maliens. The ransom is her royal Labrys, and she has to deliver it in 24 hours to save Kiki, which leads to a hilarious mix of adventure and self-discovery that helps Saira become her own person outside her identity as the Most Boring Royal (she was actually voted that by the public).
Source: IndianLink
Unlike many life-changing, thought-provoking movies that come out during Pride Month and the rest of the year, this one marked a fresh change as a piece of comedic entertainment. It reminds us to live our bold, queer lives out in the open in our own gay-laxies. It delivers a wild, laugh-out-loud ride through space with a defiant middle finger to seriousness. The movie is animated anarchy, where glitter, pop and ‘space goo’ collide in the most gloriously ridiculous way possible. The hilariousness is complemented by the original score written by Leela Verghese herself, and every song is guaranteed to make your head bop to the tune. Under all the comedy and adult jokes, the movie stands as a representation of gay, nerdy youth who are often sidelined in campy queer movies. It shows that nerdy is the new fabulous — messy, loud, and proud in all the best ways.
Source: Gunika Nakra
I was also lucky to attend a Q&A with the directors and some of the cast after the movie, where the audience could get to know about the thought process behind the scenes. Everyone was especially puzzled by the straightforward and somewhat silly name of the movie, which the directors explained was the first idea that popped into their heads and basically set the story and tone. The animation and the story are inspired by Adventure Time, anime and other live-action movies about breakups, like Legally Blonde and Forgetting Sarah Marshall. The directors also talked about the various small elements of the movie that added to its hilarity and absurdity. Like how all the characters had three fingers while Saira, the protagonist, had four because she was good with her hands (if you know what I mean). This is just one of the many jokes/tidbits throughout the movie, and if you blink, you may miss them. In a festival full of serious films and dramatic arcs, this one reminded me that sometimes joy, absurdity, and queer nonsense are revolutionary enough. And sometimes, that’s exactly what we need.
Lesbian Space Princess was screened at the Sydney Film Festival in the month of June, 2025. Keep up with the activities and future screenings at the SFF at www.sff.org.au.