Angela Robinson | |
---|---|
Born | |
Alma mater | Brown University (B.A.) New York University (MFA) |
Occupation(s) | Director, screenwriter, producer |
Years active | 1995–present |
Partner | Alexandra "Alex" Martinez Kondracke |
Children | 1 |
Angela Robinson (born February 14, 1971) is an American film and television director, screenwriter and producer. Outfest Fusion LGBTQ People of Color Film Festival awarded Robinson with the Fusion Achievement Award in 2013 for her contribution to LGBTQ+ media visibility. [1]
Robinson was born in Chicago. Robinson attended Brown University, where she majored in theatre and later received an MFA from New York University.
Robinson frequently deals with gay and lesbian topics in her films. Angela Robinson's first screen work was a black and white film, Chickula: Teenage Vampire, about a queer vampire. The film was shown at LGBTQ film festivals in 1995. [2]
She directed the short film D.E.B.S. (2003), produced by POWER UP. The short film has won four awards which includes the Bearfest-Big Bear Lake International Film Festival Jury Award for Best Short Film, the PlanetOut Short Movie Awards Grand Prize, the Philadelphia International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival Jury Prize for Best Lesbian Short Film and New York Lesbian and Gay Film Festival Award for Best Short. [3] Robinson went on to direct a feature-length adaptation of D.E.B.S. (2004). D.E.B.S feature-film adaption (2004) is a lesbian romantic comedy about a "spy-in training Amy Bradshaw and a supervillian Lucy Diamond. Amy is assigned to go after Lucy. However, Amy starts to develop feelings for her. [4] " D.E.B.S has made a big impact in queer cinema. Senior entertainment writer named Adam Vary described D.E.B.S as "the gay spy movie" in his article "The New New Queer Cinema". [5] Writer Katrin Horn remarked that D.E.B.S is a groundbreaking movie as the film works to desexualize femme identity previously centered in lesbian chic cinema. Robinson's use of narrative and stylistic techniques in D.E.B.S offered a new lenses into lesbian representations and the structure of heteronormative romantic comedies. [6]
In 2007, Robinson created the online series Girltrash! for OurChart, a social networking website aimed primarily at lesbians. [7] In 2014, Robinson wrote the screenplay for a musical feature film and prequel to her Girltrash! series, Girltrash: All Night Long directed by Alexandra Kondracke. [8] Robinson was also one of the producers for the film. The film is a lesbian musical drama about two rock and roll musicians named Daisy and Tyler during a night out in the LGBTQ+ subculture of Los Angeles. [9] The film won the audience award in the 2015 Paris International Lesbian and Feminist Film Festival. [10]
Robinson wrote and directed the film Professor Marston and the Wonder Women that was released in 2017. The film focuses on William Moulton Marston, an Harvard educated psychologist who created Wonder Woman in the 1940s. Marston's received help from his wife Elizabeth and Olive Byrne, a research assistant, in his creation of the super heroine. The movie also includes the polyamorous relationship Marston, Elizabeth and Olive were in and how that effected their careers and lives. [11]
The film's inclusion of a lesbian relationship between Elizabeth Marston and Olive Byrne after William's death was criticized and strongly denounced by Christie Marston, daughter of William’s son Moulton, saying she was "blindsided" by the narrative since nobody from the film ever reached out to her or her family. For her part, Robinson admitted in an interview with Abraham Riesman at Vulture that she made no effort to contact the family. She admitted that the entire story line was fictional, stating, "I wanted to kind of be able to explore my own interpretation of what the story was…. I felt like their story had been kind of hidden from history for a long time, and I kind of wanted to excavate and interpret what I found and then write the film." [12]
In 2017, Robinson worked with cartoonist Terry Moore on a graphic novel adaptation of "Strangers in Paradise" for a feature film. [13]
In 2004, Robinson wrote, produced and directed episodes from the show The L Word. The show is about the lives of a group of lesbian and bisexual friends in Los Angeles. Media critic, Samuel A. Chambers argues that the "L Word" importance is that the show brought a lot of visibility to a range of lesbian and bisexual identities in its character plot lines. Also, many of the guests cast on the show were queer actresses in Hollywood like Jane Lynch and Sandra Bernhard. [14] In 2006, the show won the 17th annual GLAAD Media award. The award recognizes and honors inclusive representations of LGBTQ+ people and issues that impact them. [15]
Robinson has served as a writer for the television series True Blood . [16] True Blood is an American fantasy drama about Sookie Stackhouse, a telepathic waitress, who lives in a rural town in Louisiana. The waitress falls in love with Bill Compton, a vampire, and the two must navigate the challenges that come with their relationship. The fictional show also focuses on vampires' struggle for rights and assimilation in society. [17]
Robinson has also served as writer and co-executive producer for the HBO television series Hung , [18] In addition to her film and TV work, Robinson also wrote the first four issues of the Web ongoing series at DC Comics.
In March 2012, it was announced that Robinson would write a supernatural teen thriller with Dawn Olmstead (of Prison Break ) and Marti Noxon (of Mad Men ) attached as producers. [19]
More recently in 2021, Robinson signed an overall deal with Warner Bros. [20] to create scripted television programs for Warner Bros platforms including HBOMax, basic and premium cable channels and broadcast networks. [21]
At Warner Bros., Robinson is currently working as writer and executive producer with HBOMax to develop a series based on Madame X, a DC Comics characters also known as Madame Xanadu. Madame X is a clairvoyant who uses tarot cards to tell the future and is immortal due to her deal with Death. The series will be produced by Bad Robot in association with Warner Bros. Television. [22]
Robinson is openly lesbian. [23] [24] Her partner is television writer and director Alexandra "Alex" Martinez Kondracke, the daughter of Morton Kondracke, who she met while they were both studying at New York University. Alexandria Martinez Kondracke is an activist and filmmaker. [25] In 2009, Kondracke gave birth to their first child, Diego. [26] They live in Los Feliz, California.
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1995 | Chickula: Teenage Vampire | Director, writer | Short film |
1998 | The Kinsey 3 | Director, editor | Short film |
1999 | Ice Fishing | Producer | Short film |
2003 | D.E.B.S. | Director, writer, editor | Short film * Bearfest - Big Bear Lake International Film Festival Jury Award for Best Short Film * New York Lesbian and Gay Film Festival Award for Best Short * Philadelphia International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival Jury Prize for Best Lesbian Short Film * PlanetOut Short Movie Awards Grand Prize |
2004 | D.E.B.S. | Director, writer, editor | Nominated: 2005 Black Movie Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Writing |
2005 | Herbie: Fully Loaded | Director | |
2006 | Fabulous!: The Story of Queer Cinema | As herself | |
2007 | Girltrash! | Director, writer | Video short [27] |
2014 | Girltrash: All Night Long | Producer, writer | [28] [29] |
2017 | Professor Marston and the Wonder Women | Director, writer | |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1999–2001 | Taxicab Confessions | Producer | 3 episodes |
2004–2009 | The L Word | Director, producer, writer, actor | Director: 8 episodes; Producer: 32 episodes; Writer: 6 episodes Actor role: Angela – episode: "LMFAO" |
2007–2009 | Girltrash! | Director, executive producer, writer, editor | Web series |
2009–2011 | Hung | Producer, writer | Producer: 25 episodes; Writer: 4 episodes |
2010 | Gigantic | Director | 2 episodes |
2011 | Charlie's Angels | Director | Episode: "Runaway Angels" |
2012–2014 | True Blood | Producer, writer | Producer: 32 episodes; Writer: 6 episodes |
2015–2017 | How to Get Away with Murder | Producer, writer | Producer: 27 episodes; Writer: 2 episodes |
D.E.B.S. is a 2004 American action comedy film written, edited and directed by Angela Robinson, a feature-length adaptation of her 2003 short film of the same name. D.E.B.S. follows the relationship between spy-in-training Amy Bradshaw and supervillain Lucy Diamond.
POWER UP is an American non-profit organization and film production company with the stated mission "to promote the visibility and integration of gay women in entertainment, the arts, and all forms of media". It was founded in 2000 by K. Pearson Brown, Stacy Codikow and Amy Shomer. Its members include women and men, gay and straight.
Lisa Rieffel is an American actress and singer.
LGBT themes in horror fiction refers to sexuality in horror fiction that can often focus on LGBTQ+ characters and themes within various forms of media. It may deal with characters who are coded as or who are openly LGBTQ+, or it may deal with themes or plots that are specific to gender and sexual minorities.
The Inside Out Film and Video Festival, also known as the Inside Out LGBT or LGBTQ Film Festival, is an annual Canadian film festival, which presents a program of LGBT-related film. The festival is staged in both Toronto and Ottawa. Founded in 1991, the festival is now the largest of its kind in Canada. Deadline dubbed it "Canada’s foremost LGBTQ film festival."
Kate Lauren French is an American actress and model. She is perhaps best known for her role as Niki Stevens on The L Word.
D.E.B.S. is a 2003 American action comedy short film written and directed by Angela Robinson. D.E.B.S. made the film festival circuit including the Sundance Film Festival, L.A. Outfest and New York Lesbian and Gay Film Festival, receiving a total of seven film festival awards.
LGBT representation in children's television is representation of LGBT topics, themes, and people in television programming meant for children. LGBT representation in children's programming was often uncommon to non-existent for much of television's history up to the 2010s, but has significantly increased since then.
Historically, the portrayal of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in media has been largely negative if not altogether absent, reflecting a general cultural intolerance of LGBT individuals; however, from the 1990s to present day, there has been an increase in the positive depictions of LGBT people, issues, and concerns within mainstream media in North America. The LGBT communities have taken an increasingly proactive stand in defining their own culture, with a primary goal of achieving an affirmative visibility in mainstream media. The positive portrayal or increased presence of the LGBT communities in media has served to increase acceptance and support for LGBT communities, establish LGBT communities as a norm, and provide information on the topic.
Gay media refers to media that predominantly targets a gay, lesbian or LGBTQ+ allied audience. The primary target market for gay media may also more broadly be considered to include members of an LGBTQ+ community. Secondary targets are LGBTQ+ allies, and in some instances those who oppose gay rights may be targeted as a form of activism to change their minds. There are many types of gay media, and the type is determined by the purpose of the media presented. Gay or queer media can also be defined as web sites, films, magazines and other cultural products that were created by queer individuals, or groups that are typically out, meaning that they are public or open about their identity. Gay creators do not always include gay themes or issues in their productions but there is usually at least subtle references to queerness or acceptance in these media.
Girltrash is a web series created by Angela Robinson. It originally aired on ourchart.com from June to August 2007. It stars Michelle Lombardo, Lisa Rieffel, Riki Lindhome, Rose Rollins, Gabrielle Christian and Mandy Musgrave.
Girltrash: All Night Long is a 2014 musical comedy film directed by Alexandra Kondracke and written by Angela Robinson. The film is a prequel to the web series Girltrash! and stars Lisa Rieffel, Michelle Lombardo, Gabrielle Christian and Mandy Musgrave.
Lena Waithe is an American actress, producer, and screenwriter. She is the creator of the Showtime drama series The Chi (2018–present) and the BET comedy series Boomerang (2019–20) and Twenties (2020–2021). She also wrote and produced the crime film Queen & Slim (2019) and is the executive producer of the horror anthology series Them (2021–present).
Christin Marie Baker is an American producer, director, and screenwriter from Nashville, Tennessee. She is the founder and CEO of Tello Films, a streaming network, production, and distribution company of films and web series with a lesbian focus.
A League of Their Own is an American comedy drama television series co-created by Will Graham and Abbi Jacobson, who also stars. It is an adaptation of the 1992 film of the same name with new characters and storylines, about the formation of a World War II-era women's professional baseball team. Chanté Adams, D'Arcy Carden, Roberta Colindrez, Gbemisola Ikumelo, Kelly McCormack, Molly Ephraim, Melanie Field, and Priscilla Delgado also star. The series premiered with 8 episodes on August 12, 2022. The series was renewed in March 2023 for a four-episode final season, but in August 2023, Amazon announced that the second season would be scrapped due to delays caused by the WGA strike.
For many years, LGBT representation increased on animated series and animated films. In the 1990s, LGBT characters were depicted in animated series like South Park, The Ambiguously Gay Duo, and The Simpsons. In the early 2000s, LGBT representation increased in Western animation, culminating in GLAAD's "Where We Are in TV" report in 2005, even as representation in such animation was scattered and disparate. In the 2000s, series like Queer Duck, The Oblongs, The Venture Bros., Drawn Together, and Archer would air. It would not be until the advent of shows like Steven Universe, The Legend of Korra, and Adventure Time in the 2010s, that LGBT characters in animation would gain more of a prominent role, leading to shows such as She-Ra and the Princesses of Power in 2018 and Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts in 2020, along with other series in the 2020s. This page will show this progress by building off the lists of animated series which contain these characters and explain the History of LGBT characters in animation. It does not focus on LGBT characters in anime series or films, which is examined on the LGBT themes in anime and manga page.
In the 2020s, LGBTQ representation in animated series and animated films became more pronounced than it had in the 2010s, or 2000s when it came to Western animation. This included series like The Owl House, Harley Quinn, Adventure Time: Distant Lands, RWBY, and Dead End: Paranormal Park. Series like She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, Steven Universe Future, The Hollow, and Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts, which had various LGBTQ characters, came to an end in 2020, and Gen:Lock came to an end in 2021. An upcoming season of Hazbin Hotel was hinted at, while an animated adaption of Lumberjanes was in development.
Cartoon Network, an American TV channel which launched in 1992, and Adult Swim, its adult-oriented nighttime programming block which launched in 2001, has regularly featured lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) characters in its programming.
This article features the history of the representation of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) characters in animated productions under The Walt Disney Company, including films from the studios Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar, and programming from the Disney Branded Television channels as well as the streaming service Disney+. From 1983 onward, Disney struggled with LGBTQ representation in their animated series, and their content often included LGBT stereotypes or the content was censored in series such as Blazing Dragons. Some creators have also criticized Disney studio executives of cutting LGBTQ scenes from their shows in the past, or criticized that their shows were not seen as part of the "Disney brand", like The Owl House.