Logo Documentary Films today announced its 2018 slate which includes Light in the Water, When the Beat Drops and Quiet Heroes. The first film, Light in the Water, premiering Thursday, July 19th on Logo, details the humble beginnings of one of the first openly gay masters swim and water polo club in 1982. When the Beat Drops, premiering August 9th, follows a crew of gay African-American men as they pioneer the Southern-rooted underground dance scene known as “bucking.” The Sundance Film Festival favorite, Quiet Heroes, which tells the story of one female doctor fighting to save the denigrated and largely male AIDS population in the socially conservative Salt Lake City area, premieres August 23rd. Logo Documentary Films division recently received the 2018 Television Academy Honor for Forbidden: Undocumented and Queer in Rural America as well as its third Daytime Emmy for KEVYN AUCOIN Beauty & The Beast in Me.
“Now more than ever, it is imperative for us to tell the stories of our community’s ability to triumph over adversity,” said Taj Paxton, VP of Logo Documentary Films. “These documentaries represent our bravery and our continued fight against stigma and the sting of hatred and intolerance.”
The 2018 slate includes:
LIGHT IN THE WATER / Premieres Thursday, July 19th at 8PM ET/PT on Logo
Light in the Water reveals the untold story of a group of gay men and women who found one another through their love of competitive swimming, ultimately becoming a family and a force for the LGBTQ sports movement.
The West Hollywood Aquatics Team were pioneers in gay sports, from registering as one of the first openly gay Masters swim teams in 1982, to pushing through the devastation of the AIDS crisis. This documentary reveals the inside story of a group of trailblazers who personified the change they wanted to see and created a legacy for equality in sports that lives on in the team today.
Light in The Water is produced by Patty Ivins Specht and Lis Bartlett and directed by Bartlett. Executive Producers from Logo Documentary Films are Pamela Post and Taj Paxton.
WHEN THE BEAT DROPS / Premieres Thursday, August 9th at 8PM ET/PT on Logo
As Voguing exploded out of the ballroom scene of NYC, “bucking,” an electric and subversive underground dance scene, was boldly pioneered in the clubs of the Deep South as a new form of self-expression and education. Together with his crew of fellow gay African-American men, Anthony Davis, a heavy-set, Atlanta-born kid with a love of dance, helped grow bucking into a national movement, complete with fierce competitions. In the process, Davis created a haven for a generation of displaced black gay men.
When the Beat Drops had its premiere at the 2018 Miami Film Festival where is won the “Knight Documentary Achievement Award” and recently received the “Outstanding Documentary Jury Award” at Frameline42: San Francisco International LGBTQ Film Festival. The film will also serve as the Documentary Centerpiece at Outfest Film Festival in Los Angeles on July 19th.
It is a World of Wonder (WOW) production and is the directorial debut of internationally acclaimed choreographer Jamal Sims, who brings a sensitive intimacy to the subject’s brilliant artistry and their inspiring lives. When the Beat Drops is produced by WOW’s Emmy Award-winning Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato, along with Jordan Finnegan. Pamela Post and Taj Paxton serve as executive producers from Logo Documentary Films.
QUIET HEROES / Premieres Thursday, August 23rd at 8PM ET/PT on Logo
In Salt Lake City, Utah, the socially conservative religious monoculture complicated the AIDS crisis, where patients in the entire state and intermountain region relied on only one doctor, Dr. Kristen Ries. Quiet Heroes is the story of her fight – against stigma, shame and ignorance – to save a maligned population everyone else seemed willing to just let die.
Quiet Heroes had its world premiere at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. It is directed and produced by Jenny Mackenzie, Jared Ruga and Amanda Stoddard. Pamela Post and Taj Paxton serve as executive producers from Logo Documentary Films.