This film takes a hard look at masculinity & the pressure it puts on gay men

MTV just released the winning video from its  Look Different Creator Competition, which invited up-and-coming filmmakers to create work surrounding the topic of privilege.

American Male, focuses on one man navigating his life through a very masculine driven environment while suppressing his more effeminate traits. Throughout the short, we see the main character putting on his masc mask while partying at a frat house. In a voiceover he talks about the differences between men and women, and how he actively works to come across as macho as possible.

We see him practice playing beer pong, a predominately straight male pass time, using both workout supplements and steroids — which are also pretty common in the queer world — and flirting with women while eyeballing a fellow fraternity brother. The short takes a shocking turn at the end, which is both homoerotic and wildly disturbing.

Filmmaker Michael Rohrbaugh told The Huffington Post that he wanted to showcase the ways in which young, American men navigate a culture of overcompensation to “prove their manhood,” resulting in a heavy psychological toll.

“I would like for viewers to gain a better understanding of what life feels like in the closet. I also hope they’ll reflect upon their own lives and think about falsehoods that might be holding them back. So many of the social norms we’ve been taught are rooted in discrimination, and so many young people are taught to feel ashamed of who they are, raised to believe that ‘there’s something wrong with them,’ that ‘they’re not normal’ or ‘not who they should be.’ Those types of lies are really destructive, which is why they must be exposed and debunked.”

Check out the video below …