Coming to virtual theatrical tomorrow, Friday, June 19:
QUEEN OF LAPA
Directors:
Theodore Collatos and Carolina Monnerat
World Premiere:
Maryland 2019
Select Festivals:
Göteborg, RiverRun, Antenna Doc, NewFest, San Francisco IndieFest, Sidewalk, Rhode Island, Oxford, Philadelphia Latino
About:
A portrait of a legendary Brazilian sex worker activist.
Nearing sixty at the time of filming, unforgettable trans cabaret performer and activist Luana Muniz has been a sex worker since age eleven. More than two decades ago, she created a hostel in the seedy Lapa district of Rio de Janeiro to provide a safe space for other trans sex workers in a society mired by transphobia and corruption. Filmmakers Theodore Collatos and Carolina Monnerat train their camera on the outspoken, larger-than-life Luana, highlighting her no-nonsense relationships with her surrogate daughters, and capturing the atmosphere of the community they’ve created with a relaxed familiarity. The result is a refreshingly nonjudgemental immersion into Luana’s world, made all the more poignant when it’s revealed that the house mother has since passed away.
