Outcry over John Cameron Mitchell's latest controversial film, which explores the permutations and vagaries of human sexuality, has been fairly muted in his native America. And the director thinks he knows why: "In the States, the conservatives and religious right have been a bit busy with their own sexual issues."

The impish mastermind of the hit play and film Hedwig and the Angry Inch was in Prague last week promoting his new film, Shortbus, which received its Czech premiere at the Mezipatra Gay and Lesbian Film Festival at Světozor. I had a chance to chat with Mitchell afterward in the cinema's Malý sál.

The principal characters are Sofia (Sook-Yin Lee), a couples counselor who is pre-orgasmic; a gay couple, Jamie and Jamie (Paul Dawson and P.J. DeBoy), looking to introduce a third partner into their relationship; and a lovelorn dominatrix, Severin (Lindsay Beamish). Each comes to Shortbus to seek carnal knowledge.

Mitchell's film is graphically frank in a style unknown to films with major backing, which typically depend upon air-brushing and innuendo to stage sex. Shortbus is full-on honesty itself. The actors are mostly unknowns and amateurs, all of whom approached Mitchell directly about participating in the film. "I had set up a Web site listing what I was looking for." he says. "The primary thing was that I was searching for collaborators."

"The primary thing was that I wanted my cast to be comfortable with the material and certainly with each other," he adds, and the trust and rapport between the actors comes through in the final film. From a cast made up primarily of nonprofessionals, Mitchell has pulled some excellent performances.

Shortbus is beautifully filmed by Frank G. DeMarco and is enhanced with John Bair's animation (fans of Hedwig will be familiar with his work). With a soundtrack by Yo La Tengo (plus an opportunity to hear Bond belt a song), Shortbus becomes as much a feast for the senses as Hedwig.

However, some of the pitfalls of a group-generated project are equally apparent. Not all of Cassavetes' films were masterpieces, and too often Mitchell's script takes on the tone of one of Cassavetes' lesser imitators, Henry Jaglom. In trying to cover so much territory, and at times losing sight of the film's principal theme, Shortbus finally seems diffuse. Also, tying Sofia's ability to achieve orgasm with the crashing and rise of ConEdison electrical generators seems heavy-handed.

One feels that had the film concentrated on the relationship between the two Jamies, Shortbus could have become a classic of gay cinema. There's a heartbreaking poignancy to their tale that is certainly the most powerful element of the film. Unfortunately, it's a story that must vie for attention among a scattering of competing narratives.

Having achieved cult status through Hedwig, as well as his videos for the band Scissor Sisters, Mitchell is certainly a potent force in America's counterculture. "I feel as if I've moved on from Hedwig," he says. "It's become like a child that you have sent out in the world. Perhaps a better analogy would be to say that it's an ex-mate that one happily sees again on occasion."