David-Jan Bronsgeest’s Binary presents a captivating, culturally unique work of body horror. Nisha, a trans woman from Pakistan working as a dancer in the Netherlands, is conflicted about proceeding with gender-affirming surgery. Every time she embraces her identity, she is subjected to strange attacks and visions. Chaos ensues when her inner demons decide to take on the demons outside.

Propelled by a dignified and sensitive performance by Inaya Zarakhel, the film examines Nisha’s experience as a double outsider: as a South-Asian trans woman with a strained relationship with her family and as a blue-collar migrant at the mercy of exploitative employers. With striking use of space, colour and décor, Binary tells a richly textured tale about the struggle for acceptance, from the world and from oneself.

– Srikanth Srinivasan