Empowering Disco Documentary “I Was Born This Way” – produced by QuestLove, Billy Porter, and Jamie Lee Curtis – is opening night selection for Oscar®-qualifying Film Festival with Irish comedy/crowd-pleaser “Four Mothers” as closing night film
Actress/Transgender Rights Advocate Angelica Ross (“Pose”) – who lives in Atlanta – to Receive 2025 Icon Award
Centerpiece Screenings Include “Assembly,” “Exit Interviews,” “Fairyland,”
“Lesbian Space Princess,” “The Librarians” and “Plainclothes”
Other highlights – Second Annual Queer Film Summit; 10-year Anniversary Screening of “Blackbird” with appearance by Director Patrik-Ian Polk; Out On Film’s Annual
Horror Night; and one of the largest and most acclaimed collections of LGBTQ+ short films in the world, highlighted by U.S. premiere of “Old Dykes” with Lea Delaria, “Sunday Sauce” with Cathy Moriarty, and “Strangers on a Beach” with Zane Phillips and Jelani Alladin; and two local/Georgia Shorts blocks
Atlanta’s preeminent, Oscar®-qualifying and USA TODAY “10Best” film festival Out On Film today announces its provocative 2025 “Queer Propaganda”’-themed full lineup, marking the event’s 38th year of bringing the most anticipated LGBTQ+ films and documentaries to Southern audiences and nationwide via streaming. Festival ticket packages are available now at outonfilm.org. Presented by GILEAD, festival screenings, Q&As, and panels will take place at the historic Landmark’s Midtown Art Cinema and Out Front Theatre Company. 2025 Trailer: LINK
Out On Film 38 will offer a diverse selection that includes 38 features (20 narrative films, 18 documentaries, five of which are streaming-only films) and 105 shorts films (in 19 shorts programs) for a total of 153 films. In all, Out On Film will host nine world premieres, four international premieres, 10 U.S. premieres and 32 regional premieres as part of the 2025 festival.
Last year’s festival attracted more than 15,000 patrons both in person and virtually across the nation.
The Opening Night film set for the 11-day festival (September 25-October 5) is the documentary feature “I Was Born This Way,” directed by Daniel Junge and Sam Pollard, which spotlights how pioneering disco artist Carl Bean’s 1977 anthem became a cultural milestone for LGBTQ+ music. Through interviews with music legends such as Lady Gaga, Billy Porter, Questlove, and Dionne Warwick, the story unfolds of Archbishop Bean’s groundbreaking impact on queer representation in mainstream culture in this exceptional, empowering documentary.
The festival’s six Centerpiece films are:
- “Assembly” – A documentary feature directed by Rashaad Newsome and Johnny Symon and recipient of 2024’s inaugural Out On Film Filmmaker Fund Award, “Assembly” follows visionary artist Newsome as he transforms a historic military facility into a Black queer utopia, blending art, AI, and performance. Through stunning visuals and deeply personal performances, the film captures the transformative power of creativity as a fractured community comes together to find strength, solidarity, and liberation. Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvVF5c8ko5M
- “Exit Interviews” – Debut feature from GA-based Writer/Director/Executive Producer and Atlanta Comedy Theater Owner Garrett Abd (“ATL Comedy Arts Fest,” “Strip Off”). Starring Tuc Watkins (“Uncoupled,” “Desperate Housewives”) Thomas Dekker (“Swimming With Sharks,” “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles”), Adam Huss (“Power,” “General Hospital”) and Ray Santiago (“Ash vs. Evil Dead,” “Meet the Fockers”), the independent film explores the complicated emotional terrain of love, regret, and personal reflection through the lens of one man’s journey to confront the ghosts of his past relationships head on. Trailer: https://f.io/4C_zbTsn
- “Fairyland” – Based on the acclaimed memoir of the same name by Alysia Abbott, “Fairyland” is a coming-of-age story set against the backdrop of San Francisco’s vibrant cultural scene in the 1970s and ’80s. Written/Directed by Andrew Durham (in his feature directorial debut) and produced by Sofia Coppola, the film chronicles a father and daughter relationship as it evolves through an era of bohemian decadence to the sober and heartbreaking era of the AIDS crisis. Stars Emilia Jones (“CODA”), Scoot McNairy (“A Complete Unknown”), Cody Fern (“American Horror Story”), Maria Bakalova (“The Apprentice”) and Bella Murphy (“Coming 2 America”), with Adam Lambert (“Glee”) and Geena Davis (“Thelma & Louise”), and introducing Nessa Dougherty. Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Uu0hZRp7qM
- “Lesbian Space Princess” – In Emma Hough Hobbs and Leela Varghese’s crowd-pleasing, Teddy Award-winning animated feature, a space princess is thrust out of her sheltered life and into a galactic quest to save her bounty hunter ex-girlfriend from the Straight White Maliens. Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9iShMIQ1yE
- “The Librarians” – Documentary filmmaker Kim A. Snyder (2025 Oscar®-nominated “Death By Numbers,” “Newtown,” “Us Kids”) takes us to an unexpected front line where librarians emerge as first responders in the fight for democracy, free access to information, and our First Amendment Rights. As they well know, controlling the flow of ideas means control over communities. When an unprecedented wave of book banning largely addressing race and LGBTQ+ issues is sparked in Texas, Florida, and beyond, librarians under siege join forces as unlikely defenders fighting for intellectual freedom on the front lines of democracy.
- “Plainclothes” – Promising undercover agent Lucas (Tom Blyth, “Billy the Kid”), assigned to lure and arrest gay men, defies professional orders when he falls in love with a target, Andrew (Russell Tovey, “Looking”). Director Carmen Emmi’s gripping feature film charts the unexpected relationship between the two men and Lucas’ internal growth. Trailer: https://youtu.be/gsjULVBjlMk?si=Gkfo3WYwLNH535Up
The festival will conclude with the heartwarming Irish feature film “Four Mothers,” directed by Darren Thornton. A struggling novelist in Dublin, planning for an upcoming book tour, is forced to take care of three eccentric older women – and his own mother, recovering from a stroke – over the course of one chaotic weekend in Dublin in this warm and funny crowd pleaser. Starring James McArdle (“Andor,” “Sexy Beast”), this beauty won the Audience Award at the BFI London Film Festival.
In addition, Out On Film festival proudly names Actress/Singer-Songwriter/TransTech Social Enterprises Founder & CEO/Transgender Rights Advocate Angelica Ross (“Pose,” “American Horror Story”) as the 2025 Icon Award winner (see bio below). Her award will be presented at an in-person, free ceremony at the Landmark Midtown Art Cinema on Sept. 30 at noon.
“In a year where our rights are being threatened and taken away, it’s as important as ever to stand up and show we are around – and not going anywhere,” said Out On Film Festival Director Jim Farmer. “This year’s Out On Film is one of our biggest, most in-your-face events ever, with films around the world, a large representation from Atlanta, including Angelica Ross, our second annual Queer Summit and the best LGBTQ+ shorts program in the country. And we are incredibly honored to recognize the iconic Angelica Ross for her work and activism the last few decades.”
“I am deeply humbled and honored to accept this year’s Icon award from Out on Film, an organization that has been a part of amplifying narratives and talent in our LGBTQ+ community that often goes overlooked,” says Ross. “It means the world to me to have my work and those iconic moments over the years be recognized from ‘HerStory,’ ‘Transparent,’ ‘Claws,’ ‘Pose,’ and ‘American Horror Story.’ Thank you for seeing and uplifting me in a time when us Trans creatives need to feel and see the love. Thank you for showing me love!”
Regarding this year’s theme, Executive Director Justice Obiaya explains, “In a time when ‘Queer Propaganda’ is used as a political weapon to shame, censor, and vilify LGBTQ+ lives, we’re reclaiming it. At Out On Film, we’re turning the term on its head and making it our own. Queer Propaganda isn’t about pushing an agenda; it’s about telling the truth. It’s about reclaiming our right to be seen, to be heard, and to shape the narrative. Our stories build empathy. They reflect the world as it truly is: diverse, complex, and beautifully queer. In the face of rising backlash and politicized attacks, we’re not backing down. We’re leaning in, louder, prouder, and more united than ever.”
This year’s “Queer Propaganda” art campaign was designed by Out On Film’s graphic designer Alex Watson.
More films and events will be announced closer to the festival.