What may be a fad for many television fans and weekend hoofers is a lifelong passion for some queer folk. With writhing Latin motion or smooth standard moves, same-sex ballroom dancing is an enormous source of pride and visibility for the LGBT community, as testified by this swinging set of short films.

In Milonga Gay, stunning dancers with fiery and precise footwork create an atmospheric mix at La Marshal, “the first gay tango hall in the entire world” and the Buenos Aires hot spot for tangled limbs and smoldering looks. A Peek Behind the Boerewors Curtain is a lesson in the conflicting languages, cultures and politics that inform members of the gay community in post-apartheid Cape Town — and an introduction to their unique Afrikaans langarm two-step-style dancing. OUTBallroom showcases the efforts of local queers to carve their own space in a world of sequins, sweat and marabou feathers, while the ladies of Frontbum Dancin’ remind us that if you lose your dance partner, you still have your elephant thong. In the East Bay, award-winning dancers and instructors Citabria and Zoe cultivate the local and international same-sex dance communities, working with first-timers, lesbian moms and life partners who share their challenges and successes while training for the Chicago Gay Games and, in the process, Learning to Fly.