China now has its own lesbian dating show – "LeLaLes: Fluid Love" follows 8 queer women on their journey to find love.
China has very strict laws regarding LGBT representation in the media. While same-sex relationships are not illegal per se, their representation on TV is heavily censored. However, what once seemed impossible has now become a reality – China now has its own lesbian dating show!
LeLaLes: Fluid Love
“LeLaLes: Fluid Love” was very difficult to make. Since official production companies definitely wouldn’t fund a project like this, the team had to find an alternative way to raise enough money. Director Ashley Jiang started a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter and raised over $56,000.
One of the many challenges they faced was not being allowed to film in China itself. The series is therefore set in Chiang Mai, a large city in northern Thailand which is far more accepting of the LGBT community than China. Ashley refers to this as a “blessing in disguise”, as the people in Thailand were very supportive of the project, with venue owners sometimes even allowing them to film in their locations for free.
The show follows eight queer Chinese women on their journey to find love at a “summer camp.” What makes it special is that there was no prewritten script, allowing the participants to form genuine connections. The story is told in a documentary style to capture the women's actual emotions.
“LeLaLes” clearly is a passion project. Most of the crew are queer, and some even worked for free. Ashley calls it "a project of love for the community from the community."
The first episode premiered on May 20, with more episodes coming out weekly. You can watch “LeLaLes: Fluid Love” with English subtitles for free on the ChinaLGBT YouTube channel, or join watch parties taking place around the world.
