In the newest release by WeMAT Studios, Princess Saira, the most boring royal in the history of Clitopolis (as voted by the people), leaves Lesbian utopia and goes on an intergalactic mission to rescue her ex from ‘Straight White Maliens’.
After going through a devastating breakup with ex-girlfriend Kiki (Bernie Van Tiel), the titular Lesbian Space Princess, Princess Saira (Shabana Azeez) receives an ultimatum from her ex’s kidnappers: she has 24 hours to deliver the most powerful weapon known to lesbian kind—her royal labrys—or else risk Kiki’s life.
What follows is the story of Saira leaving the safety bubble of gay space to bail out bounty-hunter Kiki from her impending doom.
With endearing yet outrageously hilarious adult animation, South Australian writers/directors Leela Varghese and Emma Hough Hobbs combine their years of experience in animation, production design and musical comedy to make their directorial feature debut in the most iconic way possible.
Following a successful world premiere at the Berlinale Film Festival in Germany earlier this year, the Australian film has already been picked up by distributors worldwide, including the United States, Canada, Germany, Spain, Singapore, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, and Ireland.
And now, the WeMAT Studios’ original has received its long-awaited Australian theatrical release via Umbrella Entertainment with one thing for sure: Lesbian Space Princess is a highly quotable delight with the early makings of a cult classic.
Animated films (across several genres) have really been taking off this year. K-Pop Demon Hunters and Ne Zha 2 have been massive successes, with the former becoming the most-streamed title (ever) on Netflix after only two months and the latter becoming the first animated film in history to surpass $2 billion at the global box office (landing itself in the top five highest-grossing films of all time).
Now, Australia is taking its very own piece of the pie with Lesbian Space Princess, a much more indie production and, unlike KPDH and NZ2, most definitely not for kids.
In conversation with Not Safe For Queers, Leela Varghese, award-winning Australian writer/director, explains that they, “just wanted to make something that was joyful and silly and fun and didn’t take itself too seriously.”
“We wanted it to be like this fun night at the cinema.”
Testament to their directorial abilities, Lesbian Space Princess is absolutely a comfort watch. Leaning into the campy sci-fi tropes we’ve all grown up loving while making room for fresh ideas, what I loved most was that Saira’s queerness wasn’t something she ever had to battle or come to terms with. Living on a planet aptly named ‘Clitapolis’, everyone is a Lesbian, and her main struggles are instead focused on her sadness and negative self-criticism.
Varghese shares, “at the beginning of the movie, [Princess Saira] hasn’t really found comfort with herself. She doesn’t feel like she fits in where she’s grown up. It’s that classic coming-of-age thing where you have to leave where you’re from in order to find yourself—because sometimes you’re not the problem, you’re just not in the right environment; you haven’t made the right friends yet; you haven’t met the right romantic love interests.”
As Saira sets off on her mission, we’re taken on a wild ride too, all while devouring the film’s razor-sharp script and memorable soundtrack.
In a later conversation with lead actress Shabana Azeez, we bond over hilarious moments with ‘Problematic Spaceship’ and the ‘D&M Bathroom Girl’. Azeez shares, “There are so many iconic lines in this movie,” comparing the laugh-out-loud script to classic American teen flicks like Mean Girls and She’s The Man.
When asked about the different audience reactions as it premiered at film festivals around the world, Azeez reveals that when it played at Frameline49 in San Francisco, “they were like, hooting and hollering and like, banging things. They were screaming, and I mean screaming. I love American audiences. Oh my God, the passion!”
One other audience reaction I was keen to ask about was from the Germans, after a character called the ‘gay space safety bubble’ playfully mocks the accent by speaking gibberish. Co-writer/director and animator Emma Hough Hobbs shares that at Berlinale75, where the film went on to win the coveted Teddy Award for Best Feature Film, “they loved that joke. They definitely took it very well. I forgot that that joke was in there until we sat down and I was like, oh no…”
Visually, there isn’t a shot in Lesbian Space Princess that doesn’t feel purposeful, the backgrounds are packed with detail, and the cast absolutely delivers, featuring a mix of voiceover newbies and seasoned actors, including familiar voices like Richard Roxburgh, Aunty Donna, and RuPaul’s Drag Race alumnus Kween Kong.
Actress Azeez mentions, “there’s so much detail in this movie that I feel like you can watch it 15 times and then you’ll get all the jokes…they packed it full of humour in every possible crevice.”
For those with watchful eyes, pay close attention to some of the seriously dark stickers aboard the problematic spaceship.
The soundtrack of this film deserves an essay of its own. With incredibly memorable tracks voiced by Gemma Chua-Tran, Varghese reveals that, “the idea behind it was that Willow, the character, that album that they write, which is called ‘Songs Specifically About Saira’, are the songs you hear throughout the movie.”
Lesbian Space Princess is a fresh, campy, heartfelt queer adult animation with killer jokes, standout writing, and a catchy soundtrack that delivers something genuinely exceptional, with a hand-made charm.
To support Aussie, queer, indie film (that also happens to be one of 2025’s highlights), catch Lesbian Space Princess in cinemas now.