Meanwhile King, who prides himself on being a mentor for those in the queer community and supporting organizations like God’s Love We Deliver, says seeing queer romance on screen can demonstrate how to romantically connect with others.
“As a queer person … growing up, there wasn’t a lot of depictions to tell the love story of queer people, so I did not have any role models that I saw that could tell me what that was going to be like for me dating, when I got older, or what relationships of queer people look like,” he says.
Not seeing this type of on screen representation can be “damaging” for young people, he adds.
“When you start dating … you really start to adapt the heterosexual norms into your queer relationship, because that’s the only device and examples that you have,” King says. “And that obviously doesn’t make any sense for us to apply our relationships to a heterosexual couple, because it’s not the same.”
That’s why telling these stories has become a personal focus for Bratton. The filmmaker recently released his doc “Move Ya Body: The Birth of House,” which he says explores the “roots and evolution of house music” and how it has provided a sense of community for queer individuals, particularly LGBTQ+ people of color.
“As a filmmaker my journey in telling LGBTQ stories is that telling these tales … will always be difficult but ultimately worth it,” he says. “Whether from the funding or distribution angle, we deal with an industry that consistently sidelines anything that is seen as niche.”
As a creative in the film industry, Bratton says he often feels like Sisyphus, a figure from Greek mythology who, after being punished by the gods, was eternally tasked with rolling a massive boulder up a steep hill in the Underworld, only to have it roll back down and start from the beginning.
“Yet somehow I keep going,” he explains. “When I make it to the other side and the work is out in the world, I am consistently moved by my audience’s attachment to my expression. The fans seek this work out and eventually it takes root and makes it possible for more LGBTQ stories.”
When I make it to the other side and the work is out in the world, I am consistently moved by my audience’s attachment to my expression. The fans seek this work out and eventually it takes root and makes it possible for more LGBTQ stories.”
Elegance Bratton
So what does inclusive queer representation actually look like? King offers a simple answer: It mirrors our world.
“Inclusive representation looks like to me … a show or a program or an institution that truly reflects the real world we are, a world filled with different genders, different races and that should be constantly shown across all media platforms,” he says. “It needs to be shown because we’re here and we exist and we’re not this minority of people that are living in one hub of the world. We’re spread all over.”
Along with that representation, Bratton adds he hopes to see a vibrant “variety of LGBTQ life on screen.”
“I want to see fantasy films and sci fi. I really want to see more queer body horror and documentaries,” he shares. “More than anything just more avenues for authentic storytelling that capture the fabric of our existence so that we have images that push against the mainstream notions of queer deviance and obsolescence.”
Read below to see TODAY.com’s list of queer romance films that not only gives you all the feels, but plenty of main character energy.
‘Anything’s Possible,’ 2022
Directed by “Pose” star Billy Porter, this PG-13 flick is a coming-of-age story. It tells the story of Kelsa, a trans high school girl, who dates Khal, her classmate, during her senior year. After revealing he has a crush on her, the two explore their connection amid a series of obstacles from the rest of their class.
‘Beautiful Thing,’ 1996
“Beautiful Thing” shows the wonderful friendship turned relationship between Jamie, a shy teenager who gets bullied at school, and his neighbor, Ste, who’s been facing problems at home. As they lean on each other for support, the two end up becoming something more as they navigate life together.
‘Bottoms,’ 2023
“Bottoms” stars Ayo Edebiri and Rachel Sennott as two queer high school students who start a fight club to teach girls how to defend themselves. Only, their goal behind the club has less to do with self-defense and more to do with wanting to spend time with their crushes.
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