Short Film Starring My Beloved's Red Bronco: Poems

A short film named "Short Film Starring My Beloveds Red Bronco" was selected for the 2022 Ballard Spahr Prize for Poetry. It is a poignant tribute to the strength and vulnerability of queer love, depicting a child assigned 'woman' and a boy forced to call himself a girl loving each other from a distance in small-town Mississippi before the aughts. The boy becomes a soldier, and years later, he dies by suicide, kicking up a riptide of memory. The film combines love poetry and elegy, conjuring dorm-room landlines, shared candy, ballet straps, and fairy tales. It punctuates depictions of familial abuse and the cruel politics of the Deep South with fantasies of queer youth kissing fearlessly and bodies transcending the violence of a reductive gender binary. The film encourages us to advocate for a world in which queer love fantasies become reality and queer love poems "swaddle the impossible contours of joy."

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 96 pages
Publication date: 03 February 2023
Publisher: Milkweed Editions

In a small-town nestled in the heart of Mississippi, a tale of love and longing unfolds, set against the backdrop of a time before the turn of the century. A child, assigned the gender of "woman" at birth, and a boy, compelled to identify as a girl, find solace in their distant connection, nurturing their love behind closed doors in motels. Despite the challenges they face, including an abusive mother and the menacing presence of beast-shaped men she brings home, the child survives and grows into a soldier. Years later, the boy, known as Missy, takes his own life, leaving behind a riptide of memories that intertwine with the poetic essence of K. Iver's writing.

At the confluence of love poem and elegy, Iver's words evoke a sense of longing and memory, transporting us to a world of dorm-room landlines, shared candies, and delicate ballet straps. They delicately trace the contours of these objects, afraid to touch the skin, as if capturing the essence of youthful innocence and vulnerability. In the midst of these poignant portrayals, Iver also weaves fairy tales into the narrative, offering glimpses of resilience and hope. A girl who endures abuse refuses to become the very mother who inflicts it upon her, queer youth embrace their love fearlessly, and bodies transcend the limitations imposed by a reductive gender binary. These fantasies offer a reprieve from the harsh realities of their lives, painting a picture of a world where there is no reason to leave town and no hidden torches waiting to extinguish their dreams.

Short Film Starring My Beloveds Red Bronco is a poignant exploration of grief, one that refuses to let go. It forces us to confront the preciousness of love and the relentless pursuit of a world where queer love fantasies can become a reality. It reminds us that queer love poems have the power to "swaddle the impossible contours of joy," offering solace and inspiration to those who dare to dream. Through its vivid imagery and heartfelt storytelling, this short film serves as a testament to the enduring power of love and the resilience of the human spirit.

Dimension: 215 x 139 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781639550609