2025 filmmaker fund
For the second consecutive year, Out On Film is happy to award Filmmaker Funds to some very exciting new projects. Congratulations to this year's winners.
2025 recipients
Kerri Garrett (she/they)
“A Westside Love Story ”
“As a Black queer filmmaker, I create films that serve as both mirrors and windows—reflecting my lived experiences while offering audiences a new perspective. A Westside Love Story is deeply personal, born from my desire to counteract the lack of Black queer representation in mainstream media. By focusing on love and joy while tackling serious themes like HIV stigma, this film embodies the balance of struggle and celebration in our community.
Working with youth in arts education has revealed the gaps in sexual health education, particularly regarding HIV awareness. Many schools provide minimal sex education, leaving young people misinformed about HIV transmission and prevention. My experience at GLAAD’s Black Queer Creative Summit in 2023 reinforced this reality, as advocates stressed the lack of awareness among youth. This realization shaped A Westside Love Story, using film as a medium to educate and challenge stigma.
Additionally, through organizing an HIV Photojournalism Residency at a local high school, I witnessed firsthand how outdated misconceptions persist among students. Many still believed myths about HIV transmission, highlighting the urgency for accessible, accurate information. This film is not only a love story—it’s an opportunity to fill that educational void and encourage open, informed conversations.”
Matt Nadel (he/him)
“Odd Man In”
“I’m a queer filmmaker from Florida. I discovered filmmaking in middle school, when I imagined producing fantastical narratives as a way to escape my internal (queer) world. As I got older and discovered documentary, filmmaking became my way to engage with that internal queer world—and to explore the rich LGBTQ+ stories to which my queerness connected me.
My approach to queer storytelling is guided by this question: Who and what is missing from the archive? Through my films, I have sought to correct those imbalances—tragic omissions—from the archive, insisting that queer people have always been around, with agency, imagining brighter futures and building community even in a world conspiring against us. That approach influences my aesthetics, too: Through light and camera, I seek to portray subjects in their power—never ignoring their victimization, but always centering their humanity.”
Kendall Payne (She/Her)
Carly kane (she/her)
“Dead End”
“Dead End is a dark comedy about grief, queer friendships, and the lasting impact of those we've lost. As a filmmaker, I aim to tell non-traditional lesbian stories that go beyond coming-out trauma, placing our community at the center as thriving, complex characters.
The story follows a group of friends who gather at a cabin to mourn their beloved Willa. When Willa's girlfriend starts a séance to reconnect with her, buried secrets emerge, leading to emotional unraveling and unexpected revelations. Inspired by the messy, wonderful dynamics of queer friendships, this film celebrates their beauty and chaos.
At its core, Dead End is a comedy. Loss often brings moments of humor alongside pain, and this film captures the absurdity of grief, exposing the flaws in those we mourn while exploring how we cope with their legacies.
This self-funded project is by and for queer people, made with a cast and crew of queer women and non-binary individuals. It’s a labor of love made possible by the generosity of those who contributed time, belongings, and resources. I hope this passion resonates in the film.”
Alyssa Lerner (they/them)
“First Death”
“We’ve been told that there are certain markers to tell us if our lives have been well lived: a loving family, a long marriage, 2.3 biological children, a respectable career. When I realized I was queer as a teenager, it suddenly felt like all the markers of adult life were painfully out of reach. Thus, it felt like I had no way of growing up. So was I going to... die? I trudged along, not dying. Trepidatiously learning that when you live outside of normalcy, you still live. And through living, I became proud to be myself.
Then, I met a woman who was on track for normative adulthood. She had a long-term boyfriend, a house, but she fell in love with me. She kept our affair a secret, while I itched to remain as open as I spent my life fighting to be. It was a fight between our paths. I begged her to join me on mine, but she chose to stay on hers. I spent months nursing my own wounds by judging hers: she was a coward, wasting her life. But... there’s no way to waste your life. There are no markers to a life well lived. You could marry a man. You could live your truth or you could keep your truth preciously close to your chest. You make choices and live with them... and that’s it. You live. FIRST DEATH is about the violence with which we hold on to our expectations for ourselves and others; the messiness of letting go and the complexity of grief. After all, letting something leave your heart requires you to open your heart once more.”
Tony Zosherafatain (He/Him)
Felix Endara (He/him)
“Lens on Self: The Loren Cameron Story”
“By capturing Loren Cameron’s legacy on film, we aim to honor his impact, highlight his invaluable contributions to the representation of trans masculine identity, and ensure that his remarkable life journey continues to inspire generations of trans men and educate audiences worldwide. Our approach challenges traditional trans narratives and biopic structures, aiming to celebrate trans masculine identities through themes of liberation, resilience, and joy rather than focusing solely on struggles.
For trans masculine people, whose public visibility was virtually non-existent in the early 1990s, the current hostile political climate resurrects familiar hardships. Back then, the scarcity of resources, support, and representation left many trans men isolated, facing stigma and discrimination from family, society, and the medical community. Yet the resilience of those who walked this path helped pave the way for future generations. Loren Cameron is one of those trans male heroes.
At a time when trans rights and visibility are increasingly under attack, Lens on Self offers a vital opportunity to celebrate an underrepresented history and honor Loren Cameron's contributions. His story, interwoven with others’ narratives, will serve as a testament to the resilience of trans men across generations, capturing our joy and strength. Ultimately, the film seeks to continue Loren’s legacy by providing a new generation with the visibility, inspiration, and community that he helped create.”
SIDNEY FUSSELL (he/him)
“HALLELUJAH ANYWAY ”
“As a child, church was the loneliest place I’d ever been. The pastor condemned “sissies” from the pulpit a churchgoers - some of them my own family - shouted “Amen!” My face would burn with shame. If God’s love was conditional, I thought to myself, so is everyone else’s. Instead of rejoicing, I’d slump in my pew each Sunday and retreat inward. I spent those hours longing for the impossible - for God to know and love me as I am.
Nathan’s story felt impossible. What started as a film about the legacy of viatical settlements transformed before me. Nathan’s faith was so alien to me as a queer person, but his passion for erasing respectability and uplifting the marginalized as leaders was the same as mine. Except, in the spiritual dimension, where I’d long been cast out. Just as he once was. And came back! That shocking sense of recognition was the genesis of this film. It changed what the heartbroken child in me thought was possible and I believe, is an opportunity to unite disparate audiences. Hallelujah Anyway reminds us that the ones most ostracized, even by the church, – be they black, HIV-positive, trans, sex workers, etc. can guide our faith and change what we believe is possible.”
Hannah Aslesen (sHe/Her)
“Scissors”
At its core, Scissors is a film about resilience, survival, and the power of found family—just kidding, it’s about lesbians absolutely ruining a man’s night.
I love horror, I love comedy, and I love it when queer people win. Scissors is my dream combination of all three—a chaotic, blood-splattered, quick-witted send-up of slasher tropes where the final girls don’t just survive; they scissor their way to victory. (Yes, we know what we did there.)
This film is for the girls, the gays, and the theys who love horror but are tired of watching themselves die on screen. It’s for anyone who’s ever had to explain what a dental dam is. It’s for the queers who know that sometimes, when a man tells you to “act like a lady,” the best response is to pull out your hedge clippers and say, “Define lady.”