FILM PARTNERSHIPS
FILM PARTNERSHIPS
THE PEABODY BALLROOM EXPERIENCE
Project director Joseph Plaster launched a collaboration between the Johns Hopkins Film & Media Studies MA program and members of Baltimore’s ballroom scene. MA students documented the Peabody Ballroom Experience, profiled members of the ballroom community, filmed the April 2019 ball competition, and created a ten-minute film about the project.
Directed and edited by Jason Gray; written by Joseph Plaster and Enrique St. Laurent; and produced by Katherine Martin, Jason Gray, Tim Perell, Director of the Hopkins Film MA program, and Annette Porter, Director of the Saul Zaetnz Innovation Fund.
INTO THE LIGHT: A TRIP THROUGH BALTIMORE BALLROOM
MA students Jason Gray and Kathryn Martin directed “Into The Light: A Trip Through Baltimore Ballroom,” a short film about ballroom performers as they prepared to compete at the inaugural Peabody ball. The film was released in 2021.
THE 2022 FIRE!! SHOWCASE
This 30-minute film about the 2022 FIRE!! Showcase, which incorporates cell phone footage shot by performers, was produced by Ballroom Throwbacks TV. Ballroom Throwbacks offers ballroom media on its popular Youtube page and a variety of LGBTQ programming, aiming to bridge the gap between underground ballroom culture and mainstream exposure.
On March 9, 2023, the Peabody Ballroom Experience screened Into the Light: A Trip Through Baltimore Ballroom (2021) and FIRE!! (2022) at the George Peabody Library. The screening was followed by a panel discussion with filmmakers and Baltimore ballroom leaders.
On November 30, 2018, the Peabody Ballroom Experience held a screening of the documentary KIKI, followed by a panel discussion with members of Baltimore’s ballroom community: Legendary Deandré Balenciaga, Legendary Mook Mizrahi, Legendary Lil James West, and Icon Uncle Mike Ebony. The panel was moderated by Keith Ebony Holt and Dr. Joseph Plaster.
Read about this event: Cole Douglas, “Documentary Kiki Highlights the Ballroom Scene in Baltimore,” Johns Hopkins News-Letter, Dec. 6, 2018.
On November 30, 2018, the Peabody Ballroom Experience held a screening of the documentary KIKI, followed by a panel discussion with members of Baltimore’s ballroom community: Legendary Deandré Balenciaga, Legendary Mook Mizrahi, Legendary Lil James West, and Icon Uncle Mike Ebony. The panel was moderated by Keith Ebony Holt and Dr. Joseph Plaster.
Read about this event: Cole Douglas, “Documentary Kiki Highlights the Ballroom Scene in Baltimore,” Johns Hopkins News-Letter, Dec. 6, 2018.
