Lea DeLaria Wants a Lesbian Rom-Com — And So Do We!
Funny lady (and lesbian icon) Lea DeLaria recently spoke to The Advocate about lesbian cinema. The Orange Is The New Black star is helping to narrate a selection of film collections presents by FilmStruck to commemorate Pride Month.
On June 22, she will offer insight on the importance of lesbian cinema by examining seven films including The Watermelon Woman, the first feature film directed by a black lesbian, as well as Desert Hearts and Blue Is the Warmest Color.
As The Advocate points out, for the stand-up comic and cultural “dyke-con,” seeing these movies for the first time was a monumental experience. “I’d love to make a lesbian rom-com,” she said. “That’s just something I’ve never seen. Of course we have laughter and humor and love in our lives, like everybody else. That’s the best part when I saw The Watermelon Woman — I saw us talking about us.”
“I think it’s very important for me to be visible as butch because butch is not the same as any other lesbian,” she says of the importance of telling butch stories. “When we start to forget that there are other kinds of us out there, that’s not a good thing.” When talking of the LGBT community as a whole, DeLaria chooses to classify us all as “queer” but is adamant about calling herself “butch” “because butches are invisible. I need people to recognize, yes, I’m a lesbian, but I’m a butch.”
Read more at The Advocate.
Check out the list of film collections at FilmStruck:
“Dressing the Part” streams June 1: Alan Cumming and Charles Busch discuss their experiences and thoughts on this cinematic look at cross-dressing as an art form.
Star of the Week: Liza Minnelli streams June 8. Named one of Out‘s “12 Greatest Female Gay Icons of All Time,” Minnelli shines in films like Cabaret (1970) and Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon (1972)
Written by Tennessee Williams streams June 8, featuring films based on the iconic playwright’s works, such as Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958) and A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
Director of the Week: Derek Jarman streams June 15, featuring nine feature films from director and AIDS activist Jarman, including Sebastiane (1976) and Jubilee (1978) as well as a documentary about his life and work, Derek (2008), narrated by Tilda Swinton.
Classics of Lesbian Cinema streams June 22, featuring DeLaria as she examines seven lesbian films, including the first feature film directed by a black lesbian, The Watermelon Woman (1996); Desert Hearts, an adaptation of Jane Rule’s novel (1986); and Palme d’Or winner Blue Is the Warmest Color (2013).