Lesbian Space Princess (2025)
While the world of animation has long battled against the notion that the medium was exclusively suited for simplistic stories designed for children and young audiences, it feels like the mainstream perception of the medium is finally changing to embrace that animation can be a tool for telling mature and adult stories, using great creativity and expression. With this increased recognition has come an increase in production. Screening as part of the 2025 Animation is Film festival, Lesbian Space Princess partners directors Leela Varghese and Emma Hough Hobbs to tell the story of a young isloated and anxious princess named Saira (Shabana Azeez) who must finally leave the house when her recently made ex-girlfriend, Kiki (Bernie Van Tiel), gets kidnapped by a trio of "Straight White Maliens" who wants to use Saira's mythical labrys to power their "chick magnet" to finally get girlfriends. To go on her journey, Saira steals a ship, which turns out to house a "Problematic Ship" (Richard Roxburgh) and befriends the always-positive former gay-pop star Willow (Gemma Chua-Tran).
From the plot description alone, it should be apparent that Lesbian Space Princess is an incredibly unserious film that embraces queer camp and creativity at every turn. Saira is from the planet of Clitopolis and has never ventured outside of Gay space, a particularly queer and colorful section of space. The film doesn't try to tone itself down or hide its identity; it embraces itself as a loud LGBTQ+ forward comedy that feels refreshingly focused and direct. As a comedy, the film is genuinely funny and shows incredible creativity in how it builds its world and characters. Especially for LGBTQ+ audiences who can see the film with a crowd or with friends, the film is guaranteed to be a hit.
However, just focusing on the film's comedy would ultimately be a disservice to what is at play within the feature. Harkening back to Varghese's previous work, the film uses this unserious worldbuilding and constant comedic voice to find a deeper message and journey. At its heart, Lesbian Space Princess is a coming-of-age story of a young adult pushing themselves through their anxiety and relationship trauma to grow and blossom with self-love and acceptance. Often left behind or discarded by her moms, Saira is in dire need of validation and connection, feeling like her relationship with Kiki is the only connection she has to positivity or life outside of her room. As Saira is pushed to go on this adventure, she is also pushed to recognize her own agency and ability, learning to love herself and be ok standing on her own. This arc is woven beautifully into the film, evolving naturally and finding a relatable poignance that is sure to touch many and serve as an empowering force. The film also offers the same uplifting energy towards others. While the antagonists of the film are representations of straight white men, the film finds a nuance in how it views and discusses their anger and loneliness, offering a final word of empathy and supportive understanding rather than rejection or mockery.
Playing into the strengths of Emma Hough Hobbs, who has a history working in animation, the film's animation is equally wonderful. The colors and character design are playful, with the film taking full advantage of having the ability to experiment with design and use it as a storytelling device. This element adds to the spectacle that is Lesbian Space Princess, building another layer of comedy and enjoyment. The presentation is also enhanced by the use of music and song. Music has been an important cornerstone of storytelling in animated features dating back to the very first animated feature project, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Since then, music has continued to play an important part in helping animated projects express complex ideas and inner dialogues of characters, a concept more recently boosted by the incorporation of music in projects like Adventure Time and Steven Universe. Lesbian Space Princess feels connected to this ideology, not only using song to continue the plot but also to vocalize some of the film's deeper angles.
Lesbian Space Princess is the perfect duality of what a film like this can be. Both using its energy to provide a creative stream of entertainment that takes advantage of every aspect of the film's identity and presentation, while also creating an empowering text that speaks to the heart of the modern moment in a time where rates of anxiety and isolation are rising, this is a great queer coming of age story and is going to instantly become a favorite for so many.
From the plot description alone, it should be apparent that Lesbian Space Princess is an incredibly unserious film that embraces queer camp and creativity at every turn. Saira is from the planet of Clitopolis and has never ventured outside of Gay space, a particularly queer and colorful section of space. The film doesn't try to tone itself down or hide its identity; it embraces itself as a loud LGBTQ+ forward comedy that feels refreshingly focused and direct. As a comedy, the film is genuinely funny and shows incredible creativity in how it builds its world and characters. Especially for LGBTQ+ audiences who can see the film with a crowd or with friends, the film is guaranteed to be a hit.
However, just focusing on the film's comedy would ultimately be a disservice to what is at play within the feature. Harkening back to Varghese's previous work, the film uses this unserious worldbuilding and constant comedic voice to find a deeper message and journey. At its heart, Lesbian Space Princess is a coming-of-age story of a young adult pushing themselves through their anxiety and relationship trauma to grow and blossom with self-love and acceptance. Often left behind or discarded by her moms, Saira is in dire need of validation and connection, feeling like her relationship with Kiki is the only connection she has to positivity or life outside of her room. As Saira is pushed to go on this adventure, she is also pushed to recognize her own agency and ability, learning to love herself and be ok standing on her own. This arc is woven beautifully into the film, evolving naturally and finding a relatable poignance that is sure to touch many and serve as an empowering force. The film also offers the same uplifting energy towards others. While the antagonists of the film are representations of straight white men, the film finds a nuance in how it views and discusses their anger and loneliness, offering a final word of empathy and supportive understanding rather than rejection or mockery.
Playing into the strengths of Emma Hough Hobbs, who has a history working in animation, the film's animation is equally wonderful. The colors and character design are playful, with the film taking full advantage of having the ability to experiment with design and use it as a storytelling device. This element adds to the spectacle that is Lesbian Space Princess, building another layer of comedy and enjoyment. The presentation is also enhanced by the use of music and song. Music has been an important cornerstone of storytelling in animated features dating back to the very first animated feature project, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Since then, music has continued to play an important part in helping animated projects express complex ideas and inner dialogues of characters, a concept more recently boosted by the incorporation of music in projects like Adventure Time and Steven Universe. Lesbian Space Princess feels connected to this ideology, not only using song to continue the plot but also to vocalize some of the film's deeper angles.
Lesbian Space Princess is the perfect duality of what a film like this can be. Both using its energy to provide a creative stream of entertainment that takes advantage of every aspect of the film's identity and presentation, while also creating an empowering text that speaks to the heart of the modern moment in a time where rates of anxiety and isolation are rising, this is a great queer coming of age story and is going to instantly become a favorite for so many.