Saturday Church
Ulysses is a shy and effeminate boy who finds himself coping with new responsibilities as man of the house after the death of his father. Living alongside his mother, younger brother, and conservative aunt, Ulysses is also struggling with questions about his gender identity. He finds an escape by creating a world of fantasy filled with dance and music. Ulysses' journey takes a turn for the better when he finds a vibrant transgender community.
Rafiki
Kena and Ziki long for something more. Despite the political rivalry between their families, the girls resist and remain close friends, supporting each other to pursue their dreams in a conservative society. When love blossoms between them, the two girls will be forced to choose between happiness and safety.
Blackbird
Seventeen-year-old Randy tries very hard to be a good person. Since his father left, Randy takes care of his emotionally disturbed mother, and he's the kind of friend all of his classmates can depend on. As strong as he seems on the outside, Randy is hiding a secret inner struggle and denial of his true self. It's not until he opens himself up to love that he discovers that becoming a man means accepting who you really are.
Kiki
25 years after Paris is Burning, we dive back into the fierce world of voguing battles in the Kiki scene of New York City, where competition between Houses demands leadership, painstaking practice, and performances on point. A film collaboration between Kiki gatekeeper, Twiggy Pucci Garçon, and Swedish filmmaker Sara Jordenö, we’re granted exclusive access into this high stakes world, where tough competitions act as a gateway into the daily lives of LGBTQ youth of color in NYC. The new generation of ballroom youth use the motto, “Not About us Without Us”. Twiggy and Sara’s insider-outsider approach to their stories breathes fresh life into the representation of a marginalized community who demand visibility and real political power.
District
A young adult learns that some boys in the hood are simply just goods to wealthy men in the area. It's a tale that truly questions how much you value your self-worth.
Affirmations
A look at what it's like to be gay and black in America.
Tongues Untied
Marlon Riggs, with assistance from other gay Black men, especially poet Essex Hemphill, celebrates Black men loving Black men as a revolutionary act. The film intercuts footage of Hemphill reciting his poetry, Riggs telling the story of his growing up, scenes of men in social intercourse and dance, and various comic riffs, including a visit to the "Institute of Snap!thology," where men take lessons in how to snap their fingers: the sling snap, the point snap, the diva snap.
Naz & Maalik
Two closeted Muslim teens hawk goods across Brooklyn and struggle to come clean about their sexuality, as their secretive behavior leads them unknowingly into the cross-hairs of the War on Terror.
Being BeBe
The intimate journey and unpublished backstory of BeBe Zahara Benet – a charismatic drag performer originally from Cameroon, and the very first winner of the culture-changing phenomenon, RuPaul’s Drag Race. With over a decade of unprecedented access, we observe BeBe’s struggles with celebrity, authenticity, success, and failure.
As I Am
A story of a young man running from the truth about his childhood returns in order to correct his past but ends up discovering a side of himself that he suppressed.
Black Is... Black Ain't
African-American documentary filmmaker Marlon Riggs was working on this final film as he died from AIDS-related complications in 1994; he addresses the camera from his hospital bed in several scenes. The film directly addresses sexism and homophobia within the black community, with snippets of misogynistic and anti-gay slurs from popular hip-hop songs juxtaposed with interviews with African-American intellectuals and political theorists, including Cornel West, bell hooks and Angela Davis.
Mars One
A middle-class Black family in Brazil copes with the election of a far-right extremist president. The mother believes that she's cursed after an unexpected encounter, while her husband puts all of his hopes into their son's soccer career.
Portrait of Jason
Interview with Jason Holliday aka Aaron Payne. House-boy, would-be cabaret performer, and self-proclaimed hustler giving one man's gin-soaked, pill-popped view of what it was like to be black and gay in 1960s United States. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in partnership with Milestone Films in 2013.
Stud Life
Stud lesbian JJ works with her gay best friend Seb as wedding photographers. When JJ falls in love with a beautiful diva, JJ and Seb's friendship is tested, and she’s forced to chose between her hot new lover and her best friend.
Bessie
The story of legendary blues performer, Bessie Smith, who rose to fame during the 1920s and '30s.
More Than Friends
A love story based around two characters - Angela and Tennille. Growing up through out the years Angela, a heterosexual female, never realizes that Tennille, a dominant female, is deeply in love with her. After several years of Angela being in the dark about Tennille's true feelings, she soon discovers the love that Tennille has for her and realizes those feelings are mutual.
Game Face
Game Face shows the quest to self-realization of LGBT athletes and the acceptance in society. The film follows athletes during their coming out process, and sheds light on the obstacles LGBT sports players deal with throughout their career.
The Watermelon Woman
A young black lesbian filmmaker probes into the life of The Watermelon Woman, a 1930s black actress who played 'mammy' archetypes.
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Damon Cardasis
Director
Indya Moore
as
Margot Bingham
as
Amara
Wanuri Kahiu
Director
Patrik-Ian Polk
Director
Dorothy Parker
as
Choir Member
Katherine Jackson
as
Choir Member
Mo'Nique
as
Claire Rousseau
Gary LeRoi Gray
as
Efrem
Michael Bell
as
Self
RuPaul
as
Self
Jerimiyah Dunbar
as
Demetrius
Carlos Francisco
as
Wellington
Vineeta Rishi
as
Indian Bride
Doña Croll
as
Jamaican Hairdresser
T'Nia Miller
as
JJ
Queen Latifah
as
Bessie Smith
Oliver Platt
as
Carl Van Vechten
Tika Sumpter
as
Lucille
Khandi Alexander
as
Viola
Guinevere Turner
as
Diana
70%