REFRAMING QUEER EXILE
Chapter I : Victoria
Written & Directed by Em Rose Hamilton
Produced by Adventice
Victoria, is the first chapter of Reframing Queer Exile ; a series of immersive non-fiction installations that centre the voices and lives of LGBTQ+ asylum seekers and refugees.
Conceived as a space for deep listening, RQE transforms audiovisual portraits into experiential artworks—merging first person narration, spatial design, and sensory effects to place audiences at the heart of each testimony. Here, stories are not only witnessed but felt.
Once complete, the feature length experience will unfold as a journey through several uniquely designed spaces, each chapter crafted to amplify a powerful memoir. These intimate encounters culminate in a final interactive ‘postcode lottery’ environment, where each attendee is assigned a random set of geographical coordinates—representing a birthplace somewhere in the world.
Through a large-scale projected map, audiences will discover this new ‘place of origin’ and explore what life there would mean as an LGBTQ+ person, revealing how something as arbitrary as birthplace can determine access to safety, dignity, and fundamental freedoms.
In an era marked by rising reactionary politics and the erosion of fundamental LGBTQ+ rights, Reframing Queer Exile confronts harmful portrayals of queer refugees. By dismantling the dangerous myth that seeking asylum is ever a matter of “choice,” the project creates a space for empathy, encourages solidarity, and advocates for a more humane and compassionate response to those forced to flee.
Chapter I: Victoria is complete and awaiting its premiere release. The full-length experience will enter production in 2026, with a release and tour anticipated for 2027. The project has so far received financial support from the CNC for writing and the Ville de Paris for development, followed by in-kind technical support from Marshmallow Laser Feast.
Full Credits
Created + Directed by
Em Rose Hamilton
Produced by
Adventice
Producer
Anne-Lise Miller
Director of Photography
Mathis D’Angelo
Sound Designer + Composer
Dr Emma Jane Lloyd
Editor
Deliya Sassikova
Technical DIrector
Andrew Robinson
Technical Artist
Amy Johnson
Technical Partner - Development Phase Marshmallow Laser Feast
Gaffer
Valentin Juhel
Supported by
Centre national du cinéma et de l’image animée
Ville de Paris