There are films that arrive at Cannes with the weight of expectation, prestige dramas draped in auteur mythology, narratives engineered for awards glory. And then there is Club Kid, Jordan Firstman’s raucous, tender, and deeply human directorial debut, which stormed into the Un Certain Regard section of the 79th Cannes Film Festival and left the Théâtre Claude Debussy shaking with a six-minute standing ovation. This film is the kind of festivals were made for: brave, personal, electric, and impossible to forget. From its opening frames, it grabs you by the collar and pulls you onto the dance floor – and you follow willingly, breathlessly, grateful for the invitation.
Club Kid follows a washed-up New York City party promoter, forced to turn his life around when an unexpected visitor arrives. In Firstman’s hands, that simple premise becomes a canvas for something far richer – a meditation on chosen family, queer identity, and the profound, messy work of becoming a better human being.
The film pulses with an authenticity that no one can manufacture, capturing the essence of underground parties in New York City. These are real spaces, real communities, and real stakes. As a viewer, you feel the bass in your chest, the heat of bodies pressed into dark rooms, and the specific euphoria of belonging somewhere you were never supposed to be. And then, quietly, the film asks you to sit with what comes after the music stops.
But let’s talk about Diego Calva because Club Kid makes the undeniable case that he’s one of the most compelling actors working today.
The Mexican star plays a kind-hearted love interest to Firstman’s in-over-his-head protagonist, and what he does with that role is nothing short of stunning. After his explosive introduction to American audiences in Damien Chazelle’s Babylon, Calva’s mesmerizing debut performance earned him a Golden Globe nomination and mountains of speculation about what he’d do next. Club Kid answers that question with quiet confidence: he is choosing work that challenges him, surrounds him with bold storytelling, and allows him to inhabit humanity rather than simply portray it. Every time he appears on screen, you exhale without realizing you were holding your breath.
In Club Kid, Calva radiates warmth without sentimentality. His character functions as a moral and emotional anchor in a film that could easily tip into excess. Every scene he occupies feels grounded, lived-in, and honest. There is a gentleness to his work here that stands in beautiful contrast to the seductively complex adversary he plays in the second season of The Night Manager, proving once again that his range is not merely impressive; it is genuinely rare. He makes you lean forward. He makes you care in the way only the best screen performances do – not because the script demands it, but because something in his eyes simply will not let you look away.
The film has been nominated for both the Caméra d’Or and the Queer Palm honors that feel not only well-deserved but also emblematic of what Club Kid represents – a debut that refuses to play it safe, a story that centers queer lives with full humanity, and a cast that commits completely to Firstman’s singular vision. By the time the credits roll, you feel simultaneously wrung out and lifted up, the way only the best films manage. It’s like you have lived something, not merely watched it.
Club Kid is a triumph. And Diego Calva? He’s just getting started. Thankfully, A24 scooped up the distribution rights for Club Kid, so hopefully we’ll all be seeing it soon.
