2023 OUTFEST FUSION

The Outfest Fusion Film Festival has been focused on highlighting the cinematic work of QTBIPOC storytellers since 2004. This year, the Los Angeles based annual event begins on March 24th and running through April 1st. In addition to films, the fest will offer free community workshops, masterclasses, the One Minute Movie Contest, live music and the debut of Family Day which will feature a short film program for children age 10 and up and their families at DTLA Lupe Ontiveros Cinema Center on April 1st.

The Opening Night Gala, held at the Aratani Theater in the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center, will feature a series of shorts that will showcase a wide spectrum of fascinating stories involving queer people of color. Elegance Bratton, the filmmaker who made a great impression last year with his directorial feature film debut, "The Inspection" which was loosely based on his experiences and Bird Runningwater, who heads the Native American and Indigenous Program at the Sundance Institute, will also both be honored this evening.

Two films that made a splash earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival will be screened at Outfest Fusion: The documentary, "The Stroll" examines a stretch of area in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District where trans women of color had survived by doing sex work and supporting each other amidst the constant threats of violence. "Little Richard: I Am Everything" is the long overdue historical exploration on the life of the true "king of rock & roll" from director Lisa Cortés. This riveting documentary follows Richard Wayne Penniman, a musician from Macon, Georgia, who helped give birth to an exciting new form of music. On stage, Richard may have been wild, flamboyant and unapologetically queer yet privately he struggled with this, at one point leaving the world of rock & roll behind to only serve God.



For the complete list of films, events and to purchase tickets, please click below:

2023 Outfest Fusion