Paintings by Julie Mehretu 

E verything Everywhere All at Once, our June film selection, is a hilarious and big-hearted sci-fi action adventure about an aging Chinese immigrant swept up in a wild adventure, where she alone can save the world by exploring other universes connecting with the lives she could have led. The film addresses themes of love, family, and the human condition, and has been hailed by a number of critics for its themes of queer acceptance and identity.

Also featured this month is Ethiopian American contemporary visual artist, Julie Mehretu—MacArthur Fellowship recipient, Time 100’s Most Influential People of 2020, and in 2021, the subject of a mid-career survey co-organized by Los Angeles County Museum of Art and The Whitney Museum of American Art! It isn’t easy to to discern themes of revolt, migration, and rebellion in Mehretu’s multi-layered, large-scale abstract paintings, but as one astute reviewer remarked, “Even if her work can’t succinctly be explained, it’s self-evidently brilliant.”

Consistent with JusticeAid’s mission to promote justice through the arts, and in keeping with our 2022 focus on LGBTQ civil rights, throughout the year we will feature films that address important issues to the LGBTQ community. Our film picks do not aim to represent the broad spectrum of this community—that is an impossible feat. Rather, they offer a glimpse into the complexities and strengths inherent in queer and gender non-conforming identities. We hope these films also offer inspiration, deepen our collective understanding, and prompt candid conversations with family and friends. We suggest artworks, songs, books, TV shows, and viewpoints to supplement the films below.

We welcome your reactions and suggestions and look forward to taking this journey with you throughout 2022 as we strive to forge greater empathy and deeper commitment to providing access to justice and protections for the civil rights of all persons.

Everything Everywhere All at Once

2022

The world is raving about this stunning new film, and the unexpected queer plot line makes it even better.

DIRECTED BY

Daniel Kwan
and Daniel Scheinert

STARRING

AWARDS

95% approval rating,
Rotten Tomatoes
2022 SXSW Film Festival Night Opener

SEE IT ON

In theaters

MUSIC THAT MATTERS
June Pick: Gender-bending rapper star, Bad Bunny, is using his platform to pay it forward as an ally to the LGBTQ Latinx community and the world at large. Watch his inclusive spotlight in the flashy clip, “Caro.”


QUEER ART FILM ARCHIVE
May 2022, Heartstopper
April 2022, Angels of America
March 2022, Blue Is the Warmest Color
February 2022, Flee
January 2022, Moonlight

Also Recommended

More teenagers than ever are seeking transitions, but the medical community that treats them is deeply divided about why — and what to do to help them. More


She’s Not There: A Life in Two Genders
By Jennifer Finney Boylan

The bestselling story of a transition—for its author, as well as the woman who loves her.  Updated 10th anniversary edition contains new introduction, new update chapter, and a new epilogue by Deirdre “Grace” Boylan.

“Beautifully crafted, fearless, painfully honest, inspiring, and extremely witty. Jennifer Finney Boylan is an exquisite writer with a fascinating story, and this combination has resulted in one of the most remarkable, moving, and unforgettable memoirs in recent history.”


Framing Agnes (documentary film)

After discovering case files from a 1950s gender clinic, a cast of trans actors turn a talk show inside out to confront the legacy of a young trans woman forced to choose between honesty and access. Director Chase Joynt blends fiction and nonfiction to tell the story of Agnes, the pioneering, pseudonymized, transgender woman who participated in Harold Garfinkel’s gender health research at UCLA in the 1960s, bringing to life groundbreaking artifacts of trans healthcare. An official 2022 Sundance Film Festival selection. Watch the trailer.


Stonewall Book Awards in Children’s & Young Adult Literature, 2022 Winners (American Library Association)

The Stonewall Book Awards are presented to English language books that have exceptional merit relating to the gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgendered experience. “Too Bright to See” by Kyle Lukoff (children) and “Last Night at the Telegraph Club” by Malinda Lo (young adult) are the 2022 recipients. More


Becoming Nicole
By Amy Ellis Nutt

The inspiring true story of transgender actor and activist Nicole Maines, whose identical twin brother, Jonas, and ordinary American family join her on an extraordinary journey to understand, nurture, and celebrate the uniqueness in us all. A New York Times bestseller. More


The Argonauts
By Maggie Nelson

Her genre-bending memoir, a finalist for Thanks.e National Books Critic Circle Award, offers fresh, fierce, and timely thinking about desire, identity, and the limitations and possibilities of love, language, and family. More


Pose
An American drama television series about New York City’s Black and Latino LGBTQ and gender-nonconforming drag ball culture scene in the 1980s and 1990s. More


41 Queer & Trans High School Movies All Teens Should See
These selected films from Out magazine explore the teen experience, and that jungle known as high school, with humor and compassion. For a long time, LGBTQ+ teens haven’t been able to see their experiences in movies, but that’s changing. See the list.


Always Jane 
This American docuseries directed by Jonathan C Hyde follows two years in the life of Jane Noury, a transgender teenager living in rural New Jersey. Watch on Amazon Prime

JusticeAid leverages the community-building power of art and music to transform awareness into action in the fight against injustice. Each year we identify and raise funds for justice causes by hosting music, arts, and educational events. Since 2013 JusticeAid has granted more than 1.5 million dollars to nonprofits working to ensure access to justice for the disenfranchised and marginalized. Our grantee partners are fighting racist voter suppression and racist policing, working to end mass incarceration and inhumane immigration practices, ensuring access to legal services, and addressing the criminalization and hatred of others. Throughout 2022 JusticeAid is focusing on LGBTQ civil rights and raising money for SMYAL (Supporting and Mentoring Youth Advocates and Leaders). In 2022, our gift to JusticeAid will support SMYAL’s work to meet the most pressing needs of queer & trans youth. Through affirming programs and services, SMYAL equips LGBTQ youth with the resources they need to thrive as they grow into adulthood.