LOS ANGELES, Calif.– St. John’s Well Child and Family Center, creators of one of the largest transgender health programs in the country, has announced the lineup of films and celebrity talent who will be featured at their first annual TransNation Festival. The event will raise funds for the Imperial Court of Los Angeles and Hollywood’s Nicole Murray Ramirez Scholarship Fund, and St. John’s Well Child and Family Center’s Transgender Health Program, which is an independent 501(c)3 community health center that serves one of the largest populations of transgender patients in the country with primary care, as well as socio-economic and social justice services.
Saturday Oct. 22, TransNation Festival will feature the 15th annual Queen USA transgender beauty pageant at The Theatre at the Ace Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles. The event will be emceed by Candis Cayne and Curly Velasquez, and will include performances by The Prancing Elites, Miss America 2016 Betty Cantrell and the Mariachi de Arcoiris de Los Angeles. The judges who will use their expertise in their respective fields to evaluate the contestants will include: Caitlyn Jenner, Geena Rocero, Angelica Ross, Alexandra Billings, iO Tillet Wright, Flawless Sabrina, Kelly Osbourne, Betty Cantrell, Gia Coppola, David Clark, Nikki Calabrese, City Commissioner Nicole Murray Ramirez, and Assistant Chief Beatrice M. Girmala of the L.A. Police Department. Contestants will compete in the categories of cocktail wear, swimsuit, evening wear and a question-and-answer portion, which will touch upon personal experiences as a transgender person, key issues facing the transgender community, identity, beauty, social responsibility, and activism.
Miss Major Griffin Gracy, Jill Soloway, and Tiq Milan will be honored during the festival for each of their individual contributions to transgender activism.
October 20, 21, and 23, the inaugural TransNation Film Festival, guest-curated and hosted by Zackary Drucker, will feature an eclectic program of the best new features and shorts, rare and underseen gems, and classic titles that reflect the trans experience.
Filmmakers, actors, and special guests present these works, including a sneak preview of the new film More Than T by Silas Howard, the Los Angeles premiere of the short Diane from the Moon starring Mya Taylor, the documentary MAJOR! about the life and times of transgender elder and activist Miss Major Griffin-Gracy, and a celebratory screening of the rarely-seen 1968 pageant documentary The Queen, with a special West Coast appearance from queer icon Flawless Sabrina. Tickets to the films range from $12-$14 and will be shown in the following schedule (subject to change):
OCT. 20
TransNation Jose Julio Sarria Award presentation to Miss Major Griffin Gracy
MAJOR!
Thursday, Oct. 20: 7:00pm
Dirs. Annalise Ophelian and StormMiguel Florez, 2015, 85 mins
(w/ Annalise Ophelian & Storm Miguel Florez in person)
Special Shorts Program I (curated by Zackary Drucker w/ special guests Dirs. Marco LaVia, Hanna Ladoul and Carman Spoto, Paul Monroe and more)
Thursday, Oct. 20th: 9:30 pm
“Alterations” (Dir. Juan Carlos Zaldivar, 2016, Digital Presentation, 19 min.)
“Soless” (Dir. Carman Spoto, 2016, DCP, 7 min.)
“Diane from the Moon” (Los Angeles premiere, Dir. Marco La Via & Hanna Ladoul, 2016,
11 min.)
“The Contortionist” (Dir. Greer Lankton)
FEMALE TROUBLE
Thursday, Oct. 20th: Midnight
Dir. John Waters, 1974, 35mm, 89 min.
OCT. 21
Special Industry Panel with Geena Rocero and Allison Hoffman of Gender Proud Productions
Friday, Oct. 21: 3:00pm
LA VISITA
Friday, Oct. 21: 5:00pm
Dir. Mauricio López Fernández, Chile, 2014, DCP, 82 min.
Special Shorts Program II (curated by Zackary Drucker w/ special guests Silas Howard, Jen Richards, Giselle Messina, Mia Yamamoto, Rain Valdez and more!)
Friday, Oct. 21st: 7:15pm
“More than T”—Sneak preview of three shorts! (23 mins)
Dir. Silas Howard, 2016)
“Elliot King Is Third”
(Director Rose Troche, 2013, 20 mins)
“Technical Difficulties of Intimacy” (LA premiere!)
Dir. Joel Moffett, 2015, 20 mins)
“Ryans“
Dir. Rain Valdez, 14:00
QUEENS AT HEART (w/ special guest Flawless Sabrina!)
Dir, 1967, 35mm, 22 min.
THE QUEEN
Friday, Oct. 21: 9:30pm
Dir. Frank Simon, 1968, 35mm, 68 min.
SOMETHING MUST BREAK
Friday, Oct. 21: Midnight
Dir. Ester Martin Bergsmark, Sweden, 2014, DCP, 85 min.
OCT. 23
IN A YEAR WITH 13 MOONS
Sunday, Oct. 23: 4:15pm
TransNation Sylvia Rivera Award presentation to Tiq Milan
FREE CECE (w/ Dir. Jacqueline Gares and other special guests in person!)
Sunday, Oct. 23: 7:00pm
Dir. Jacqueline Gares, 2016, DCP, 100 min.
A Tribute to Holly Woodlawn (presented by Zackary Drucker w/ special guests)
Sunday, Oct. 23: 9:30pm
WILDNESS (Special guests to be announced)
Sunday, Oct. 23: 11:45pm
Dir. Wu Tsang, 2012, Digital Presentation, 73 min.
