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Dragtivists

Dragtivists is a short documentary about the intersection of activism and drag performance.

  • Savannah Rodgers
    Director
    Sketches, Politically Correct
  • Savannah Rodgers
    Writer
    Politically Correct
  • Savannah Rodgers
    Producer
    Sketches, Politically Correct
  • Rayfield Lawrence
    Key Cast
  • Caithe Alexander
    Key Cast
  • Madison D. Lacy
    Executive Producer
    Paris Is Burning, Beyond Tara: The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel
  • Alex Robinson
    Co-Director
  • Alex Robinson
    Cinematographer
  • Alex Robinson
    Co-Producer
  • Addie Fahrlander
    Associate Producer
  • Jaidan Royal
    Associate Producer
  • Addie Fahrlander
    Camera Operator
  • Jaidan Royal
    Editor
  • Nathan Towns
    Composer
    Arbor Demon
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short, Student
  • Genres:
    LGBT, Biography
  • Runtime:
    6 minutes 55 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    May 1, 2017
  • Production Budget:
    100 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes
  • Tallgrass Film Festival
    Wichita, KS
    United States
    October 21, 2017
    World Premiere
    Best Kansas Documentary Short Film
  • Kansas International Film Festival
    Overland Park, KS
    United States
    November 4, 2017
    Official Selection
  • North By Midwest Micro-Budget Film Festival
    Kalamazoo, MI
    United States
    March 17, 2018
    Michigan Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Socially Relevant Film Festival
    New York, NY
    United States
    March 16, 2018
    New York Premiere
    Official Selection
  • First City Film Festival
    Leavenworth, KS
    United States
    March 22, 2018
    Nominated: Best Documentary
  • Deep in the Heart Film Festival
    Waco, TX
    United States
    March 25, 2018
    Texas Premiere
    Nominated: Best Documentary
  • Nevada Women's Film Festival
    Las Vegas, NV
    United States
    March 22, 2018
    Nevada Premiere
    Official Selection
  • St. Louis QFest
    St. Louis, MO
    United States
    April 6, 2018
    Missouri Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Vail Film Festival
    Vail, CO
    United States
    April 6, 2018
    Colorado Premiere
    Official Selection
  • The Victoria TX Independent Film Festival
    Victoria, TX
    United States
    April 7, 2018
    Nominated: Best Documentary Short Film
  • SpringOut! Middle Tennessee LGBT+ Film Festival
    Murfreesboro, TN
    United States
    April 5, 2018
    Tennessee Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Riverside Short Film Festival
    New Haven, MO
    United States
    April 6, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Pine River Student Film Festival
    Alma, MI
    United States
    April 7, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Kansas City FilmFest
    Kansas City, MO
    United States
    April 13, 2018
    Kansas City Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Twister Alley International Film Festival
    Woodward, OK
    United States
    May 5, 2018
    Oklahoma Premiere
    Winner: Best Documentary Short Film / Nominated: Best of Fest - Short Film, Best Director - Documentary Short, Best Poster
  • New Haven International Film Festival
    New Haven, CT
    United States
    May 5, 2018
    Connecticut Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Pride Film Festival
    Chicago, IL
    United States
    May 8, 2018
    Illinois Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Doc Sunback Film Festival
    Mulvane, KS
    United States
    June 22, 2018
    Best Kansas Documentary
  • OUT HERE NOW: Kansas City LGBT Film Festival
    Kansas CIty, MO
    United States
    June 21, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Drunken Film Festival
    Bradford, ENG
    United Kingdom
    July 21, 2018
    United Kingdom Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Windy City International Film Festival
    Chicago, IL
    United States
    June 16, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Fort Worth Indie Film Showcase
    Fort Worth, TX
    United States
    July 21, 2018
    Fort Worth Premiere
    Best "Foreign" Documentary Short
  • doclAHOMA
    Oklahoma City, OK
    United States
    July 22, 2018
    Oklahoma City Premiere
    Official Selection
  • GLITTER! Oklahoma LGBT Film Festival
    McAlester, OK
    United States
    July 28, 2018
    Best Micro Short Film, Cedric Thomas Smith Visionary Award (Savannah Rodgers)
  • Lionshead Film Festival
    Dallas, TX
    United States
    August 4, 2018
    Dallas Premiere
    Best Activist Film
  • Film Festival of Columbus
    Columbus, OH
    United States
    August 8, 2018
    Ohio Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Action on Film International Film Festival
    Las Vegas, NV
    United States
    August 16, 2018
    Official Selection
  • North Carolina Gay & Lesbian Film Festival
    Durham, NC
    United States
    August 18, 2018
    North Carolina Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Women's Film Fest - GKC WPC
    Kansas City, MO
    United States
    August 19, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Cindependent Film Festival
    Cincinnati, OH
    United States
    August 24, 2018
    Cincinnati Premiere
    Nominated: Best Documentary Short
  • STAMPED: Pensacola LGBT Film Festival
    Pensacola, FL
    United States
    August 25, 2018
    Florida Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Genreblast Film Festival
    Winchester, VA
    United States
    August 31, 2018
    Virginia Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Long Beach Indie International Film Festival
    Long Beach, CA
    United States
    September 2, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Gig Harbor Film Festival
    Gig Harbor, WA
    United States
    September 16, 2018
    Washington Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Free State Film Festival
    Lawrence, KS
    United States
    September 22, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Austin Revolution Film Festival
    Austin, TX
    United States
    September 22, 2018
    Austin Premiere
    Nominated: Best Documentary Short, Best Documentary Director
  • Rendezvous Film Festival
    Fernandina Beach, FL
    United States
    September 22, 2018
    Official Selection
  • North Carolina Black Film Festival
    Wilmington, NC
    United States
    September 23, 2018
    North Carolina Premiere
  • Queen City Film Festival
    Cumberland, MD
    United States
    October 7, 2018
    Maryland Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Buffalo International Film Festival
    Buffalo, NY
    United States
    October 6, 2018
    Western NY Premiere
    Official Selection
  • San Antonio QFest
    San Antonio, TX
    United States
    October 13, 2018
    San Antonio Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Adirondack Film Festival
    Glens Falls, NY
    United States
    October 20, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Everybody Digital Film Festival
    Brooklyn, NY
    United States
    October 21, 2018
    Brooklyn Premiere
  • Gender Reel
    St. Paul, MN
    United States
    October 20, 2018
    Minnesota Premiere
    Official Selection
  • QUEER-Streifen Regensburg
    Regensburg, Bayern
    Germany
    October 21, 2018
    German Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Las Vegas Queer Arts Film Festival
    Las Vegas, NV
    United States
    November 4, 2018
    Official Selection
  • EyeCatcher International Film Festival
    McAlester, OK
    United States
    November 8, 2018
    Official Selection
  • South Carolina Underground Film Festival
    Charleston, SC
    United States
    November 10, 2018
    South Carolina Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Queerbee LGBT Film Festival
    London
    United Kingdom
    December 16, 2018
    London Premiere
    Official Selection
  • WIFTI International Short Film Showcase

    United States
    Official Selection
  • Pennsylvania Indie Shorts Film Festival
    East Stroudsburg, PA
    United States
    December 8, 2018
    Pennsylvania Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Queer Kampala International Film Festival
    Kampala
    Uganda
    December 9, 2018
    Uganda Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Red Dirt International Film Festival
    Stillwater, OK
    United States
    March 9, 2019
    WINNER: Best Director - Documentary Short, NOMINATED: Best Documentary Short
  • Queens World Film Festival
    Queens, NY
    United States
    March 16, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Oregon Documentary Film Festival
    Portland, OR
    United States
    March 23, 2019
    Oregon Premiere
    Official Selection
Director Biography - Savannah Rodgers

Savannah Rodgers is an award-winning director, writer, and producer. Her accolades include the 2017 Next Gen Award from the Twister Alley Film Festival, one of MovieMaker’s 50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee, and the 2016 Fred G. Andrews Emerging Filmmaker Award from Kansas City FilmFest.

Most recently, Savannah’s Film DRAGTIVISTS won Best Kansas Documentary Short Film at the Tallgrass Film Festival. Savannah’s 2016 award-winning short film SKETCHES premiered at the Slamdance Film Festival. Her directorial debut, POLITICALLY CORRECT, was named Cinema Constant’s 2016 Best Comedy Short and has received honors from Kansas City FilmFest, Austin Revolution Film Festival, and other festivals worldwide. She is currently in post-production on a new short called QUEEN FOR A DAY.

In addition to creating short films, Savannah is developing her first feature film and episodic content for emerging streaming platforms. She is an artist-in-residence at the Charlotte Street Foundation and a Narrative Shorts Programmer at the Slamdance Film Festival.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

When I told my mom I wanted to make movies, she initially told me I should do documentaries.

"I just feel that's a thing you'd be good at."

I, being an all-knowing sixteen-year-old, wanted to strictly direct comedies which incorporated my intersectional ideas. But, moms tend to know a thing or two.

Documentary work fell into my lap the more I worked alongside activists within the community. Rich stories were plentiful. The marginalized were (are) being largely ignored by those with a platform.

With the great Madison D. Lacy (Paris Is Burning) behind us, my co-director Alex Robinson and I got to work on a little piece about student activists who moonlight as drag queens. With generous subjects, we were able to craft a short about the intersections of identity, something that will never cease to interest me.