Raquela is a transsexual from the Philippines who dreams of escaping the streets of Cebu City for a fairy tale life in Paris. In order to make her dreams come true, she turns from prostitution toward the more lucrative business of Internet porn. Her success as a porn star brings new friends, including Valerie, a ladyboy in Iceland, and Michael, the owner of the website Raquela works for. Valerie helps Raquela get as far as Iceland. From there, Michael offers her a rendezvous in Paris. Will Paris be everything she dreamed of? And will Michael turn out to be her Prince Charming? Part fact and part fairytale, Olaf de Fleur Johannesson’s dazzling docudrama blends gritty vérité and fictional flights of fancy to chronicle this truly transtastic character’s life. Winner of this year’s prestigious Teddy Award at the Berlin Film Festival.
Olaf de Fleur Johannesson studied physics in Reykjavik, graduating in 1995. Since then he has participated in numerous film projects, including both feature and documentary films. After working for two years for a production company, focusing primarily on TV documentaries, he founded the independent production company Poppoli Pictures. Headed by Johannesson as director and producer, the team created Blindsker that won the “Best Documentary” in the Icelandic Film Awards 2004 and Africa United that won the same prize in 2005.
He was nominated as the best Icelandic Filmmaker in 2005 and 2006 at cultural DV (newspaper) awards and best director in 2005 at the Icelandic Film Awards. Selected for the Berlinale Talent Campus in 2003 and 2004.