Review: ‘Because of You’ is a poignant snapshot of queer pioneers
2026 / Dir. Desireena Almoradie and Barbara Malaran
Rating: 3/5
Watch if you like: Girls Like Girls, The Lesbian Bar Project, Rebel Dykes, having to unpack your youth 30 years later to cement your identity and cultural legacy.
Right now, a group of young people is sitting together in a room trying to make the world a better place, or at least to create something they can call their own. The odds are against them, but no matter what they do or how long they’re together for, they matter. Such is the story of Kilawin Kolektibo, a ‘90s lesbian Filipinx group in New York City, revealed in the documentary short, Because of You: A History of Kilawin Kolektibo by two of its principal members.
Told in three parts over the course of a little more than 30 minutes, Because of You traces the group from idealistic beginnings to coming apart and then back together through the creation of a document that combines kaleidoscopic archival images, VHS footage shot by the group, radio interviews, and public access television. While it’s easy to understand the broad strokes of the group, Because of You tells its story through an experimental approach to amplify the group’s collective voice.
Kilawin Kolektibo was originally formed when its members found themselves without a home, so to speak, in the growing culture of the ‘90s social justice movement, encountering racism in white lesbian groups on one end and a traditional Filipino culture that didn’t have space for non-traditional women on the other. Through Kilawin, they found community as a social group, launched campaigns, increased visibility, and connected with similar groups around the world.
Besides its cultural and historical value, one of the most interesting aspects of Because of You is how it takes a retrospective magnifying glass to the different ways this group fell apart, serving as a playbook for anyone looking to follow in their footsteps. For some members, Kilawin Kolektibo was primarily a social group, and others an activist group launching campaigns against harmful Filipina mail-order bride stereotypes in films like The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. There are tensions between members born in the Philippines and those born in America. In one poignant scene, a member comes out on camera as a trans man and feels now alienated from their community that was supposed to be a refuge from the rest of the world that had already alienated them.
For the now-older members of the group making this documentary short, its existence is certainly a triumph and a testament to their history and identity. For anyone looking in from the outside, this feels like a first taste. There are so many funny and interesting voices and intriguing stories that we only get a snapshot of. I wanted to spend more time with these people, both back when they were in Kilawin Kolektibo and now, to learn more about their lives. If this is all there is, I’m glad to have been introduced to a world I knew little of, but I’m hoping this is just the beginning and a longer version of Because of You may one day see the light of day.
Because of You: A History of Kilawin Kolektibo is available to stream on OTV.