“THE BEAUTY PRESIDENT”
presented by
BREAKWATER STUDIOS, HILLMAN GRAD PRODUCTIONS & LA TIMES STUDIOS
Meet America’s First Drag Queen for President
“If a bad actor can be president, why not a good drag queen?” In 1992, Joan Jett Blakk made a historic bid for the White House as one of the first openly queer write-in candidates. Today, Terence Smith, the man behind the persona, reflects back on his place in gay rights history.
Executive produced by Emmy®-winning actor-writer-producer Lena Waithe and Rishi Rajani through their Hillman Grad Productions banner, Oscar®-nominated Ben Proudfoot, Abby Lynn Kang Davis and Dawn O’Keeffe.
A CONVERSATION WITH DIRECTOR WHITNEY SKAUGE AND TERENCE ALAN SMITH
AWARDS
Newfest: New York LGBTQ+ Film Festival, Audience Award Best Short Documentary
Newfest: New York LGBTQ+ Film Festival, Emerging Black Filmmaker Award
Outfest: Los Angeles LGBTQ+ Film Festival, Special Programming Award: Freedom
Mountainfilm Women in Film Award
PRESS
DEADLINE – L.A. Times Enters Short Doc Space, Premieres Oscar-Contender ‘The Beauty President,’ On “Queer, Black Drag Queen” Candidate For Nation’s Highest Office
IDA Blog – Outfest Documentary Lineup A Reminder of LGBTQ Resilience
The Queer Review – SXSW Online 2021 Film Review: The Beauty President [4 Stars]
The Nerds of Color – A Beautiful Presidential Conversation w/ Whitney Skauge and Terence Smith
SELECT FESTIVALS
SXSW
Outfest: Los Angeles LGBTQ Film Festival
Newfest: New York LGBTQ Film Festival
Frameline: the San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival
Blackstar Film Festival
Camden International Film Festival
AFI DOCS
Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival
Chicago International Film Festival
Mountainfilm
Hollyshorts Film Festival
ABOUT THE DIRECTOR
Whitney Skauge is an award-winning filmmaker dedicated to diverse storytelling and representation. Their films act as an extension of social and political activism with hopes of helping audiences understand themselves and the world around them better.