Paris is Burning

This documentary was very unique and was very eye opening to me. It covered an issue that had yet to be covered within its time. The film maker (who is a woman) goes into these things called "balls." These balls were where gay men were able to come together and either cross dress or do fashion walks for trophies. These balls' intensity rivaled that of gang wars. I say this because each individual within these balls was a respected member of a house. These houses were named after their founders. Then the members of these houses would do their "walks" and compete with all of their hearts to try and win the judges' hearts and scores. The house with the most trophies was more likely to get more recruits for the future and be prosperous longer.

Walking for the younger gay men was a huge occasion. It is greater than a high schooler graduating from high school in their eyes. There was one man that was already part of a house that the director interviewed. The man was talking about how he was not yet ready, but he was old enough to walk with his fellow people. It is very nerve wrecking for these less experienced men to walk amongst the veterens/legends of the balls.
Another interesting point I found in this movie is, how did this female director get access to these very exclusive balls? It is a question that was never answered throughout the film, but she did a phenomenal job showing the hardships and successes of these gay man. The film was made in the late 80's when gayness was totally unaccepted and frowned upon. The director put herself in danger of anti-gay activists and people like that.