Comfrey Films

Calling all emerging and aspiring actors, theater kids, and performers — we asked @the_brianmichael to make this Level Up Lab just for you! Brian Michael Smith is partnering with Comfrey Films to launch the first ever Level Up Lab at this year’s film festival. This acting intensive is designed to give you an inside look into the professional aspects of film and TV acting. You’ll get tips and insights to sharpen your performance skills and practical steps for how to strategically position yourself in the film & TV industry as an actor or director. RSVP at the link in our bio! This is for anyone who wants an inside look into how to prepare for an audition or a role or how to work with actors. And if you’re not an actor, come witness Brian coach emerging actors and see them grow in real time! Brian Michael Smith is an actor, filmmaker, and advocate known for his roles in 9-1-1: Lone Star, Queen Sugar, and The L Word: Generation Q, making history as the first Black openly trans man cast as a series regular on network television. With a career spanning drama, action, and comedy, he is dedicated to expanding trans and Black representation in film and TV through authentic, character-driven storytelling. As a filmmaker, he is passionate about exploring themes of masculinity, identity, and resilience in new and compelling ways.

The seats are filling up! Don’t wait— save yours today! Can’t come to Durham? Staying in for the weekend? We got a virtual option for you! Head to our bio or Comfreyfilms.org/festival 🖤

Just two days until our next video drops on Trans Day of Visibility!!! Spend some time with us on 3/31 - head to our YouTube Channel’s 🔗 in bio to check out our latest video! We’ve got a great line up of episodes for yall this summer! Thanks for all the love and support as we grow and try new things! If you haven’t watched Chemistry: The Trans Dating Show, run to the 🔗 in bio to get caught up before TDOV!!! We’re sending so much love and gratitude to the cast of Episode 1 and can’t wait to share more of these beautiful humans with yall! To everyone who showed up on set to help make this production a success, THANK YOU!!! @officialmalay_ @signsofbreana @gemynii @alextheerabbit @kenzocole_ @jasmenedanielle @joieloushakur @teddy_gigi @bruklynmiller @courtneyreneegrowing @allthingsbaileyjo Theme song by @neverendingninanotes featuring @2amricky and produced by @radcityofficial !

Black queer stories have been looted, sanitized, and buried throughout this country's history. That is not accident or an oversight. Severing communities from their own archive, leaving the next generation without a mirror or a map, that is a deliberate act of suppression. We have been answering that call for 22 years. #QWOCFF2026 Opening Night brings four films about Black queer people making space and taking it. From searching for permission to exist in your own hometown to staging a heist against the luxury brands displacing your community, QUEER BLACK JOY LIKE FIRE opens the 22nd Annual QWOCFF on Friday, June 12 at 7pm at Presidio Theatre, 99 Moraga Avenue, San Francisco. Films and Directors: HANNAH MAYREE: SONGS OF RECLAMATION by Ebony Marie Bailey DAMN Y'ALL FINE by Kalima Young & Ti Malik Coleman BUDGET PARADISE by LaTajh Simmons-Weaver RAINBOW GIRLS by Nana Duffuor. Community Partners: African American Art and Culture Complex, Atlas of Blackness, Cinemama, Comfrey Films, Jingletown Films, National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, Rada Collaborative, SF Black Pride Free East Bay shuttles, childcare during daytime screenings, ASL interpretation, audio description, open captions, COVID-conscious protocols, and alternative approaches to safety are all in place. Reserve your free tickets at qwocmap.org/festival/schedule/queer-black-joy-like-fire

WE believe in the power of creativity. WE believe in the power of our culture. WE believe in the power of our community. About two weeks ago, the TransLash team was in Durham, NC to attend @ComfryFilms ’s Black Trans Short Film Festival for the second time. ⁠ ⁠ Surrounded in a room full of Black trans and queer creatives was a powerful showcase and reminder of what happens when we’re in community and collaboration with one another.⁠ ⁠ On night one, a panel session about creating ecosystems and collaboration featuring @imara_jones_ , Joie Lou from @ComfryFilms , and Elijah McKinnon from @opentelevision included a SPECIAL announcement about our Brave Futures partnership.

Sistahood: A Story of Strength, produced by Kayla Gore, won the 2026 People’s Choice Award!! 🏆🎉👏🏽 This powerful film opened hearts across the festival and highlighted the transformative care work Kayla is leading in Memphis. This year’s People’s Choice Award was lovingly presented by Grand Jury Members, Olympia Sudan (@theolympiasudan ), co-director of @blacktransmedia and Jordyn Jay (@itsjordynjay ), founder and executive director of @btfacollective 🖤. @ms_kaylagore accepted the award with @vanitydeterville at her side! Let’s just say, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house 😭❤️ Sistahood: A Story of Strength reminds us all what it means to fight for safety, dignity, and thriving futures for our communities.  Learn more about and support the life-saving work of My Sistah’s House @mshmemphis ! Please join us in the comments to celebrate @ms_kaylagore and this gorgeous film! Photos by @michaeldajour ! 🖤🖤

This year, we set out to highlight someone who has not only been building media infrastructure, but also charting a path wide enough for all of us to move forward together. With the guidance of extraordinary visionaries, especially one of our very own jury members, @raquel_willis , we created a new honor: an inaugural award recognizing one individual in our ecosystem each year. Imara Jones, founder and CEO of TransLash Media, is the inaugural recipient of the Media Legacy Award!  On behalf of the Black Trans Short Film Festival and Comfrey Films, it was an absolute honor to invite Imara Jones to accept this award. This recognition celebrates Imara’s extraordinary contributions to media, her visionary leadership in shaping Black trans storytelling, and her enduring impact on culture, journalism, and advocacy. Imara Jones’ work lives at the intersection of intellect, artistry, and justice. As a creator, commentator, and thought leader, Imara has redefined how stories about Black trans lives are told, centering nuance, truth, and humanity in ways that challenge convention and expand public understanding. Imara’s voice carries both clarity and courage, illuminating stories too often overlooked while insisting on dignity and complexity in representation. Through Imara’s leadership and commitment to building platforms that amplify marginalized voices, she has helped construct a vital infrastructure for Black trans storytelling. Imara Jones’ influence extends far beyond individual projects, it lives in the generations of filmmakers, writers, and artists who now see greater possibility because of the path she has forged. The Black Trans Short Film Festival exists to celebrate and uplift the brilliance of Black trans filmmakers, and to honor stories that both preserve our histories and imagine new futures. Presenting Imara Jones with our first-ever Media Legacy Award feels especially meaningful, as her work embodies the very essence of what this festival stands for: creative excellence, fearless storytelling, and transformative cultural impact. Please join us in celebrating Imara Jones in the comments! 🥳 Photos by @michaeldajour 🖤

Thank you @comfreyfilms for inviting us to this year’s ‘Black Trans Short Film Festival”. Being able to celebrate & share space with other Black Trans/NB creators was truly wonderful. Cant wait until next year! 💜✨ #transisbeautiful #blacktransshortfilmfestival #btfahighlights

Sistahood: A Story of Strength screened this past Saturday at the Comfrey Film Festival, and we’re beyond honored to have received the People’s Choice Award This moment belongs to a powerful collective. Deep thanks to our incredible cast Michelle Anderson, Lucretia Springer, Vanity Reid Deterville, and Tori Cooper for bringing truth, depth, and brilliance to this story. Endless appreciation to our production team, especially Millennium Media Label, Jesica Chaney for her visionary direction, and to Joie Lou for creating such an affirming and necessary space for Black trans artists and creatives to thrive. We’re grateful for everyone who showed up, supported, and poured into this moment. Especially @jerrigreen4tn for@lending her voice alongside @mayorleeharris . This is what community looks like and we’re just getting started. Link in bio!

It’s the night we’ve all been waiting for. We’re so excited to share the Official Selected Shorts of the 2026 Black Trans Short Film Festival! Deep gratitude to our spotlight sponsor, @translashmedia , for making this festival possible, abundant, and accessible to our community! Thank you to our filmmakers sharing their work tonight, swipe to hear them talk about their films ➡️ And if you’re not joining us in person you can watch virtually! Head to the link in our bio or comfreyfilms.org/virtual 🎥

We’re so proud of our comrades @comfreyfilms Films and their Black Trans Short Film Festival. The intention and care contributes a powerful legacy of collective power and imagination. This year in addition to attending the festival and supporting other Black Trans artist in getting there we’re holding a film screening in NYC for Black Trans folks who aren’t in Durham to see the films. RSVP at [email protected] for info to pull up at 6:30pm Saturday 5/2 at our space in nyc for the virtual film festival program.

We believe in the power of creativity. We believe in the power of our culture. We believe in the power of our community. Thrilled to be at @comfreyfilms Black Trans Short Film Festival in Durham, NC. Come check out the festivities this weekend! Proud to say @translashmedia was a sponsor for the second year in a row. And to announce our Brave Futures partnership with @weareotv and Comfrey Films.