''My Partner'' is a 2023 American
romantic drama
Romance films involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion (emotion), passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their ...
film directed by Keli’i Grace and starring Jayron Munoz and
Kaipo Dudoit. The film was described as the first Hawaiian gay film and the last film to be shot in
Lahaina
Lahaina (; ) or Lāhainā is a census-designated place (CDP) in Maui County, Hawaii, United States. On the northwest coast of the island of Maui, it encompasses Lahaina town and the Kaanapali, Hawaii, Kaanapali and Kapalua, Hawaii, Kapalua beac ...
due to the
2023 wildfires
3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious and cultural significance in many societies ...
.
Plot
The film follows two
Lahainaluna High School
Lahainaluna High School is a public high school serving grades 9–12, located in Lahaina on the island of Maui. Operated by the Hawaii Department of Education, Lahainaluna High School is also a public boarding school. It was founded in 1831 as ...
seniors Edmar, a smart Filipino student, and Pili, a native Hawaiian athlete, who work together on a school project about ''
kalo
Kalo or KALO may refer to:
*A member of certain subgroups of the Romani people of Western and Northern Europe (plural ''kale''):
**Calé
**Kale (Welsh Roma)
**Finnish Kale
*The dialects of the Romani language spoken by these groups:
** Caló
** We ...
''.
Despite initially being reluctant due to being part of different friend groups, they agree to work on the project together and later better understand each other's cultural struggles.
Cast
*Jayron Munoz as Edmar
*
Kaipo Dudoit as Pili
*Charieze Lianne Cacayorin as Maymay
Production
The cast and crew of the film are from Hawaii and the cast are all newcomers.
Reception
Devin Hung reviewing the film at the ''
HIFF'' wrote, "''MY PARTNER'' is a cute and necessary addition to the Boys Love genre. By showing two boys of Pacific Island heritage falling in love, the film is saying that everyone, no matter what cultural background you come from, should be able to be in a relationship that makes them happy".
Bradley Gibson of ''
Film Threat
''Film Threat'' is an American online film review publication, and earlier, a national magazine that focused primarily on independent film, although it also reviewed videos and DVDs of mainstream films, as well as Hollywood movies in theaters. ...
'' rated the film 7.5/10 and wrote, "''My Partner'' is a slick, polished romance targeted at a specific audience. Even if you aren’t part of that demographic, Grace manages to infuse this wispy-thin cotton candy film with culturally and historically significant elements that inform and entertain".
Accolades and festivals
Additionally, the film was selected to be a part of the following film festivals in 2023:
*Hālāwai Film Festival
*16th Festival de Cine Indígena de Barcelona (IndiFest)
*Palm Springs LGBTQ+ Film Festival
*
Beijing Queer Film Festival
Beijing Queer Film Festival (BJQFF), (), is an LGBT film festival, held annually in Beijing, the capital city of the People's Republic of China. It was the first LGBT film festival to be established in mainland China, founded in 2001 by the Chines ...
*Golden Isles Film Festival
*San Diego Filipino Film Festival
References
External links
*
*{{Rotten Tomatoes, my_partner_2023
American romantic drama films
Gay-related films