Alan and Ben have an instant connection during a breakup party. They both leave the party to get a room to have a night of sex.
However, every place they go they find reserved rooms. It's a Saturday night, and many couples long to have sex and live a few hours of adventure.
As they wander through the streets and alleys of Hong Kong, from hotel to hotel, which at that time are completely booked, the two young men get closer and open up about their past: Alan tells Ben about his first hookup experience, At the age of 17, in a school uniform, he went with the only boyfriend he has had to a villa, where they do not allow two men to rent a room, and since then he has not found a place where she could have sex. Therefore, tonight, with Alan, she would have her first sexual experience.
While they spend the night walking together, Alan will confess that he hates McDonald's food and everything related to the services of this food chain, because he went with his ex-boyfriend to one of these places every day after class, and it was there where the boy ended the relationship.
For his part, Ben will reveal that he was also in one of these establishments when he last saw his mother, since the woman abandoned him with his younger sister, and since then he has not seen her again.
With his father dead for years, he had to separate from his sister when he was taken in by another relative, while he went to live with the family of the girl who organized the party where they met.
Answering questions, Ben also reveals his Chinese name: Won Ka Chun, and having been in five or six relationships up to that point.
As they chat about which male celebrities they would both like to sleep with, their day surprises them. At this point, their conversations have opened up many possibilities beyond erection and lust: Is love possible? Will there be a chance to move forward? Is sex the only bond that unites them?
With a duration of 20 minutes, 'After Erection', the short film filmed in Hong Kong in 2017, stars Lei Jeun Sek and Lee Wai Lok. The first, an actor, screenwriter and director known for directing the film 'Tracey' (2018), which tells the story of a transgender man and his struggles in Hong Kong, takes on the role of Ben.
In his fight to make the LGBT+ community visible, Lei Jeun Sek has worked on the films 'Drifting' (2021), 'Forever 17' (2019), and 'I Miss You When I See You' (2018), among others.
Meanwhile, Lee Wai Lok, who plays Alan, has his acting debut and only role in his career to date in this short film.
'After Erection' appears to be a version of the Taiwanese LGBT+ themed romantic short film 'YuXiang & Mark' (鈺翔和馬克), filmed in 2016, written and directed by Huang Sheng Tim, but in it instead of Ben and Alan the The names of the two characters are the same as those that give the work its title, as well as the setting is not Hong Kong, but Taiwan.
And although neither of the two short films has high levels of production and interpretation, I like the one produced in Hong Kong better, because I find greater depth in the script, I manage to empathize better with its protagonists by providing greater strength in their human connections, without ignoring music, editing, dramaturgy, photography, sets, among other technical aspects.
'After Erection' reflects some of the difficulties faced by the LGBT+ community in Hong Kong at the time it was filmed, specifically having trouble trying to find public places to have sex.
'However, films like this and actions such as those carried out by activists for the rights of this human group, such as Lei Jeun Sek, have made it possible for today, 7 years later, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Hong Kong to celebrate some achievements, such as that granted by the Court of Final Appeal, which in a historic ruling on September 5, 2023, urges the Hong Kong government to establish a legal framework for the recognition of same-sex couples, marking a milestone in the fight for equality and human rights.
Although it does not grant full marriage rights, this ruling represents a hopeful victory for the community, by supporting civil unions between people of the same sex, a legal process that has not yet concluded.