Storytime
“Storytime” explores the clash over Drag Story Hour, a flashpoint in debates on LGBTQ+ rights. The documentary follows two New Yorkers: Bear Spiegel, a drag artist who sees storytelling as a tool for acceptance, and Amaya Perez, a leader of Gays Against Groomers, who argues such events are inappropriate for kids.
With rare access to protests and personal interviews, the film reveals Amaya’s motivations and Bear’s efforts to counter misconceptions about drag — even within his own family. Guided by journalist Imara Jones, “Storytime” weaves protest footage, social media, and interviews to examine how drag story hours reflect deeper tensions around identity, family, and public values.
Why you have to be Black and gay
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"If you are Black and gay in South Africa, then it really is all the same closet…inside is darkness and oppression. Outside is freedom.” – Simon Tseko Nkoli
The short film features Odidi Odidiva, an internationally renowned drag queen, who developed a drag persona in the shadow of South African apartheid. The film was created from a series of interviews conducted over Zoom. Odidi talks about his formative years, his religious upbringing as the son of an Anglican priest, and the historical and contemporary art and queer community.
The student doc was selected for several film festivals in New York and Los Angeles and was awarded 'Best LGBTQ Short' at the Independent Shorts Awards.
Are you there, Andy?
The comedian Andy Kaufman supposedly died of lung cancer in 1984. But many of his fans hold on to the belief that Andy is alive, a theory fueled by claims made by his friend Bob Zmuda that Andy faked his own death and is living somewhere off-the-grid. This documentary chronicles my quest to find out – if Andy is living – where the comedian has been hiding all these years.
The student doc was selected for several film festivals in New York and Los Angeles and was awarded "Best Student Documentary Short" at the IndieX Film Fest and "Best Web and New Media" at the Independent Shorts Awards and Indie Short Fest.