Experiencing Interruptions?

The Night It Rained

After losing his scholarship, a queer college student makes a life-altering decision in his hopes to stay enrolled.

Set in San Francisco, The Night It Rained depicts the experiences of a queer, college student named Malachi. He is determined to stay enrolled in his college’s program and turns to sex work as a way to make money while having greater control over his daily schedule. Unfortunately, the demands of college prove more difficult than he expects and Malachi loses his scholarship due to sustained poor academic performance. The stress of losing his scholarship pushes him further into sex work, and in riskier entanglements. After reaching his breaking point, Malachi finally makes a vulnerable call home.

  • Lamont Lamar
    Director
  • Lamont Lamar
    Writer
    "Black Men Don't Cry", Premiered at Black Star Festival
  • Mustafaa Tajuddin
    Writer
  • Briauna Draper
    Producer
  • Parker Gayan
    Producer
  • Andres Gimenez
    Producer
  • Mustafaa Tajuddin
    Producer
  • Evan Joelle
    Key Cast
    "Malachi"
    "A Broken Rose", Premiered at Bronze Lens Film Festival
  • Aland Brifkani
    Key Cast
    "Andrew"
    Theatre of Arts Conservatory Fellow
  • Keren Southall
    Key Cast
    "Financial Aid Officer"
    Darla on "Doucheaholics", Amazon Video
  • Levi Smocks
    Supporting Role
  • Bri Smocks
    Supporting Role
  • Evan Weidenkeller
    Director of Photography
    Bit, R.L. Allman's Peter Pan, Go with the Flow (AFI Conservatory Fellow)
  • Isabella Rivera Suazo
    Production Designer
    Office Magazine NY, Alicia Keys "Underdog" at Oscar
  • Richard Valencia
    Editor
    "Fake Heartbreak", "My Own Mecca", "Bit"
  • Ben Stanbridge
    Music
    "Odyssey Omega"
  • Chris Camacho
    Sound Mixer
    "This Is Your Song" , "Into The Night", "Pride Jewel"
  • Ryan Nelson
    Gaffer
  • Ryan Moore
    Key Grip
  • Aaron Ware
    Electric Swing
  • Ayumi Ashley
    Color
    Ntropic NY
  • Project Type:
    Short, Student
  • Genres:
    LGBTQ, Drama
  • Runtime:
    12 minutes 48 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    March 15, 2021
  • Production Budget:
    22,600 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2:39:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes - California College of the Arts
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
  • BronzeLens Film Festival
    Atlanta, Georgia
    United States
    Official Selection
  • Diversity in Cannes Short Film Showcase
    Cannes
    France
    International Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Toronto LGBTQ+ Film Festival
    Toronto
    Canada
    Canadian Priemere
    Official Selection
  • Kaleidoscope LGBTQ+ Film Festival
    North Little Rock, Arkansas
    United States
    Official Selection
  • San Francisco Black Film Festival
    San Francisco
    United States
    Official Selection
Director Biography - Lamont Lamar

Raised in Philadelphia, and now based in Los Angeles, Lamar is a producer, director, and writer. Lamar has worked with award-winning VFX production house NTROPIC leading him to catch the attention of Founder/President Rhea Scott, of Little Minx, where he worked as her personal assistant.

With East Coast roots and cultivating West Coast stories, Lamar has pulled from inspiration from his mentor Cheryl Duyne, the work of Lee Daniels and Marlon Riggs. Sharing an array of Queer experiences, Lamar has dedicated his work thus far to understand the collective experience of Black people within the LGBTQIA+ community. With his distinctive voice, his work extends from short films, commercials, and documentaries.

Lamar expertly contextualizes his film’s emotional narratives through their lighting and color palettes. From dramatic reds to saddening blues, his films invite viewers to follow provocative visuals and heart-wrenching shots. It is without a doubt that Lamar’s distinct cinematic style offers a voice to the collective experiences of black youth in the LGBTQ+ community. Lamar already has a new project in post-production, a reimagining of an iconic James Baldwin interview played by Netflix's The Get Down star Tory Devon Smith.

When he looks back someday on his career, Lamar hopes he will have helped create generational growth for the next young creatives to fearlessly tell their own stories.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

Growing up in Philadelphia, my friends and I were not expected to attend college. We grew up in a city where we had to hustle in order to make ends meet. We were part of families that gave us everything they could and we had to pray for the rest. Despite the obstacles, some of us were privileged to graduate high school and go off to college.

Every year in higher education, tuition increases causing hundreds of thousands of students to struggle financially. Because of this, students across the country are turning to dangerous or underpaying jobs in hopes of securing a better future. This film is dedicated to this largely unseen struggle. It is at that length in which Malachi crosses in order to survive and keep his own education going.

During the development of the film, I consulted with other college students and listened to their stories. Sometimes I shared my own. Their vulnerability and feedback helped preserve the film’s authenticity. It is my honor to share this story and raise awareness of the nightmare that often follows the American dream.