This week on Out Takes, we turned our attention to the representation of intimacy in contemporary lesbian cinema. Is same-sex female intimacy still depicted through a male gaze or is it celebrated on its own terms? Does it figure as an escape for certain characters from their stifled, suburban heterosexual narratives, or are we starting to see accurate and nuanced portrayals of same-sex female love?

Our guest was Olga Chajdas, the director of NINA, which screens at the Polish Film Festival in Melbourne later this month. Nina tells the story of an illicit sexual affair between a would-be-mother and her surrogate in modern day Poland. We spoke with Chajdas about her new film, and the politics of same-sex intimacy in which it is situated.

We also revisited our chat with April Mullen, the director of BELOW HER MOUTH, which was elsewhere described as ‘a cinematic voice for the female orgasm’.