Paris Is Burning

Hey pod and welcome back! This is the second segment of our Black August series, where we talk about the films that highlight Black resistance, freedom fighters, and political prisoners. Black resistance comes in many forms and tonight we are diving into Paris Is Burning, directed by Jennie Livingston and released in 1990. It’s a documentary that provides a vibrant snapshot of the 1980s through the eyes of New York City’s African American and Latinx Harlem drag-ball scene. Made over seven years, Paris Is Burning offers an intimate portrait of rival fashion “houses,” from fierce contests for trophies to house mothers offering sustenance in a world rampant with homophobia, transphobia, racism, AIDS, and poverty. Featuring legendary voguers, drag queens, and trans women — including Willi Ninja, Pepper LaBeija, Dorian Corey, and Venus Xtravaganza. Joining us on the podcast tonight is a podcast regular, Cocoa Rae David! She’s a New York-based visual artist, curator, photographer, filmmaker, and business owner of By Cocoa Rae LLC, who creates captivating portraits and art of unique and diverse people and captures their true essence. You can visit her website here and follow her on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/bycocoarae. (She’s also on TikTok under the same name.) Cocoa also has a studio, art gallery, and event space called Da Purp which you can follow here: https://www.instagram.com/da_purp. If you want to book her space for an upcoming event, art gallery or photography/videography session, you can visit Da Purp on Peerspace here: https://www.peerspace.com/pages/listings/649feb0b70383c000e8473c4. We also have a first-timer on the podcast, Kamyrn Ehlen Jerrel. Her pronouns are she/her/we. She’s the former host of Tranos and the Lived Experience Podcast. You can follow her on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/kamrynblaque. Wherever you’re listening from, hit that subscribe button, give us a 5-star rating, share this episode and leave a comment to let us know what you thought of tonight’s episode. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Tiktok, & Threads. Visit ourvoicesproject.com and sign up for our newsletter for more information about what we do. We’ll be back with more episodes continuing our Black August series, including Attica (which is on YouTube) and The Stroll, which you can watch on HBO Max before tuning into our next episodes. Chapters 00:00 Intro 07:04 Defining Community and the Role of Compassion 11:54 The Role of Compassion in Community 30:28 The Evolution & Revolutionary Nature of Ballroom Culture 37:53 Exploring Integrity in Documentary Filmmaking 41:43 The Controversy of Exploitation in 'Paris is Burning' 1:06:23 The Need for Authentic Representation in Black LGBTQIA2S+ Cinema Mentioned in this episode: Joe Bean Roasters Visit joebeanroasters.com to get fresh roasted specialty coffee either by the bag or with a Perpetual Joy subscription! Our Voices Project - Land Acknowledgement