This Is Drag

An inside look into the effort to preserve Philadelphia's ballroom scene, a black LGBTQ safe-space that has endured for 30 years.

Crash 'n' Burn is an experimental film shot in and named after Toronto, Ontario's first punk rock club. (Not to be confused with Peter Vronsky's similarly titled 1977 documentary on the Toronto punk scene made for the CBC television network.) The film, shot on 16mm black-and-white stock, features performances by Dead Boys, Teenage Head, The Boyfriends, and The Diodes".

Follow Ruby Chopstix, Canada’s first drag artist-in-residence, as they navigate the complexity of being an underrepresented drag performer while creating a special showcase to create space for other queer BIPOC performers.

The intimate journey and unpublished backstory of BeBe Zahara Benet – a charismatic drag performer originally from Cameroon, and the very first winner of the culture-changing phenomenon, RuPaul’s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.

A tribute to drag superstar, The Vivienne. Friends and family share touching stories of the RuPaul's Drag Race UK winner and her legacy. Her spirit lives on through unreleased footage, showcasing her unique personality and how her passion for entertaining left a mark in the world. Interviews with her dearest drag sisters Baga Chipz, Michael Marouli, Danny Beard, Tia Kofi, Cheryl Hole and more.

Baltimore-based drag queen Shaunda Leer (Scott Murdock) discusses why she's chosen to perform in drag for over ten years. She also recounts several stories about her family relationships and concerns about her physical safety as a member of the GLBTIQ community.

In Córdoba, far from the Argentine capital, the end of a military regime promises a spring that is all too brief. “La Delpi” is the only survivor of a group of friends who are transgender women and drag-queens, who began to die of aids in the late 80s. In a Catholic and conservative city, the Grupo Kalas made their weapons and trenches out of improvised dresses and lip-syncing. Today the images of unique and unknown footage are not only a farewell letter, but a manifesto to friendship.

A short film narrated by the drag queen Paloma, in interview with the filmmaker.

Portrait documentary of the Swedish drag show pioneer Christer Lindarw and his life both on and off the stage.

From a boy on the streets of the Congo to becoming an NBA champion, Serge Ibaka has risen to a level even he can hardly believe. Watch as he brings the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy back to Africa for the first time, and re-visits all the places he used to go as a young man in this emotional journey.

A backstage and on-stage look at Nicki Minaj's career during the Pink Friday Tour, festivals, and more.

A retrospective documentary on 9/11 in connection with the 2001 Toronto International Film Festival.

Night falls on the city, and More′s splendid and daring show begins. More, a drag queen at a club in Itaewon, Seoul, is a transgender who wanted to become a ballerina. The audience cheers, but More is fed up with the gig he/she has been doing for 20 years. Around that time, he/she is cast for the "Stonewall Riots 50th Anniversary" performance in New York and finally get a chance to go on stage in toe shoes.

“It ain’t easy…being green” is the favorite expression of Stormé DeLarverie, a woman whose life flouted prescriptions of gender and race. During the 1950s and '60s she toured the black theater circuit as a mistress of ceremonies and the sole male impersonator of the legendary Jewel Box Revue, America’s first integrated female impersonation show and forerunner of La Cage aux Folles.

A vibrant kaleidoscopic tribute to the guitar that meshes dance, mime, visual art, and virtuoso performances to create a spectacular yet intimate celebration of the instrument. For one exciting week the city of Toronto plays host to the International Guitar Festival. The streets echo with the sounds of the instrument as the great masters from every tradition gather to play for each other -- John Williams from England, Leo Brouwer from Cuba (classical), Turibio Santos from Brazil (folk), Vladimir Mikulka from Czechoslovakia (avant-garde), Rik Emmett and Kim Mitchell from Canada, Steve Morse from the USA (rock).

When temporary solutions become the status quo, who gets left behind? A Stop Gap Measure follows disability activist Luke Anderson in his fight for accessibility to be a right, not a privilege.

Intimate documentary exploring how Paul O'Grady's creation, Lily Savage, took mainstream TV by storm. Unravel the real story of Lily with insights from Paul's daughter and famous pals.

Thanks to shows like RuPaul's Drag Race, drag performers everywhere are seeing increased recognition and demand for their talents- and Ottawa is no exception. Ottawa is a Drag showcases some of these local talents and tells a bit of their stories.

The Bruce McArthur serial killer case shocked Canada’s largest city, and the whole country, when he was convicted of eight grisly murders. How did McArthur avoid arrest for nearly a decade? This film explores the untold story of Toronto’s Gay Village, and the victims of these horrific crimes.

In 1999, the largely conservative Wairarapa district in New Zealand elected a former cabaret performer/actress named Georgina Beyer to the country's House of Parliament -- a seemingly unremarkable event in that country's history except for the fact that Beyer is a transsexual and may very well be the first transsexual in the world to be elected to a national office. In their 2002 biographical documentary Georgie Girl, co-directors Peter Wells and Annie Goldson highlight the popular Member of Parliament's rapid rise through local government to prominence in the New Zealand national government.