Mama Gloria
Chicago, Illinois | Film Feature
Documentary, LGBTQ
MAMA GLORIA is an intimate portrait of aging about a trailblazing 73-year-old black transgender woman who transitioned before Stonewall, started a charm school for transgender youth in her 60s and is now looking for someone to spend the rest of her life with.
Mama Gloria
Chicago, Illinois | Film Feature
Documentary, LGBTQ
1 Campaigns | Connecticut, United States
Green Light
This campaign raised $15,410 for post-production. Follow the filmmaker to receive future updates on this project.
171 supporters | followers
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MAMA GLORIA is an intimate portrait of aging about a trailblazing 73-year-old black transgender woman who transitioned before Stonewall, started a charm school for transgender youth in her 60s and is now looking for someone to spend the rest of her life with.
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
THE STORY
“The only time I entered a closet was to get me an outfit and a pair of pumps.” MAMA GLORIA opens with Gloria Allen opening the doors to her closet and inviting us into her life. Born George in 1945, Gloria came of age amid the legendary drag balls on Chicago’s South Side and transitioned after high school with the support of the women in her family, including her mother Alma, a former showgirl and Jet centerfold. In her 60s, she started a charm school for transgender youth, paying forward the love and life lessons she received. Intimate and character-driven, the feature documentary explores what it means to grow old as part of the first generation of out LGBTQ elders. Living alone, unmarried and childless, having lost many of her friends to drugs, disease and murder, and surviving on a small, fixed income, Gloria lives each day with joy, humor and gratitude, displaying a resilience and optimism that can serve as a model of aging for us all.
WHY ME
My friend Patrick Johnson (MAKING SWEET TEA) connected me to Gloria, who was looking for a writer to assist her with her memoir. After meeting Gloria, I knew she belonged on the screen. And I felt a personal connection to her story: I am the mother of a transgender daughter. As a black woman filmmaker who is raising a biracial transgender daughter, I see Gloria’s story through a unique lens and with personal urgency. Ultimately, it is the story of a mother’s love — the love Gloria’s mother had for her, the love she has for her chosen children, and the love I have for my daughter, Gia. My concern for Gia's future drives me to bring Gloria’s story to the screen.
WHY NOW
At a time when black transgender women in America have an average life expectancy of under 40 and face escalating attacks and violence, Gloria's life and story is not only inspiring but seldom seen. Gloria is a living testament to the fact that transgender people existed even before the word “transgender” and that they are not going anywhere, despite the current administration’s attempts to erase them out of existence.
In fact, SAGE, an advocacy group for LGBTQ seniors, estimates that by 2030 there will be 7 million LGBTQ adults, age 65 or older. This story is both timely and urgent. As someone who tells stories for a living, I know the inherent power of stories to change hearts, minds and lives. I’ve seen it happen within our own family and small town when we shared our story.
WHY ME, WHY NOW, PART 2
I have run two previously successful crowdfunding campaigns for short films I directed: the award-winning DEATH IN THE FAMILY with Victoria Rowell, and the wildly popular DANGER WORD, starring Frankie Faison. For my most recent film, I partnered with my old friend and colleague Civia Tamarkin to connect the dots between the hundreds of laws aimed at women's health care in the U.S. The result is the prescient and critically acclaimed BIRTHRIGHT: A WAR STORY, which screened in more than 70 theaters nationwide, qualified for Oscar consideration and is currently streaming on Hulu. MAMA GLORIA comes at no less a critical time -- when this administration is doing everything it can to erase transgender people and the majority of transgender people murdered every year are black transgender women.
WHY YOU
Because you care about the most marginalized, vulnerable and embattled people in America. Because you want to change the narrative about transgender people and transform stereotypes and beliefs. Because you love great characters -- and, believe me, there is only one Mama Gloria! Because you want to know the secret to aging with joy, grace and resilience. Because you want to spread a message of love, hope and optimism. Together -- with your help -- we can tell this story!
THE APPROACH
MAMA GLORIA uses a cinema-verite approach that brings viewers into Gloria’s life now, allowing them to experience her warmth, humor and sadness through her interactions with friends, neighbors, former charm school students, family and classmates. The film features rarely seen archival photographs of Chicago's Bronzeville neighborhood nightlife and drag balls.
Our plan is to complete post-production in time to launch the film on the fall festival circuit. We believe the film will be especially popular on the LGBTQ festival circuit and has the potential to travel the world (hopefully with Gloria along for the ride)! That will be followed by a national broadcast, preferably PBS; digital distribution; and an extended shelf life through campuses and libraries. I am working with partners such as Stonewall Village NYC to use the film to highlight important issues that older LGBTQ adults in particular face, including higher rates of homelessness, income instability and discrimination in health care and senior housing.
THE ASK
The film is in the can! Thanks to an incredible team who have donated their time, equipment and resources, production is complete. Now, to finish the film, we are working with Seed & Spark to raise $15,000. The money will be used to pay our editor ($6K), license archive material ($3K), license music and an orignial film score ($3K), and pay for color correction ($2K) and sound mix ($1K).
Here are ways you can join us in finishing the film:
Click on the follow button on the top right of the page. Followers help us build the audience for the film and unlock some pretty special freebies to complete the film, like a free sound mix!
Share, share, share! Please share our campaign on your social media. And if you know people who aren't on social media, go old school and talk to them about MAMA GLORIA!
Contribute financially. Every amount counts! And when you contribute you to the campaign, you get some pretty awesome prizes. Here is your chance to be a part of bringing this story to the screen!
THANK YOU!
We cannot thank you enough for your support and interest in this story. Together, we can tell a different story about transgender people, one that is inspiring and hopeful!
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Color Correction
Costs $2,000
This is what makes the film look good and Mama Gloria shine.
Archival materials
Costs $3,000
Mama Gloria came of age amid the legendary drag balls on Chicago's South Side. You want to see them!
Share this update!
About This Team
Director/Executive Producer/Writer: LUCHINA FISHER is an award-winning writer, director and producer. Her most recent film, the critically acclaimed feature documentary BIRTHRIGHT: A WAR STORY, which she co-executive produced and co-wrote, appeared in more than 70 theaters nationwide, qualified for Oscar consideration and is currently streaming on Hulu. She is the director of two short films, including DANGER WORD, which was nominated for best narrative short by the Pan African and BronzeLens film festivals and has appeared on the Aspire network. Additionally, Luchina has written and produced several nationally broadcast documentaries as well as numerous segments for television. Her work has appeared on Discovery Health, A&E, ESPN, National Geographic Channel, ABC and in syndication. She began her career as a journalist and has written for People, the Miami Herald, The New York Times, O, The Oprah Magazine and ABCNews.com. She is also the co-author and ghostwriter of several books. Luchina has received awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and the Illinois Arts Council.
Director of Photography: STEPHEN LEWIS is an Emmy Award-winning producer with more than two decades of experience in journalism and video production. In addition to his time in a newsroom, Lewis founded a boutique production company, SouthPaw Video Productions, where he focuses on short form story telling. In 2015, Lewis and SouthPaw Video teamed with CAMRA at Penn in the Annenberg School for Communication to co-produce the forthcoming feature documentary, MAKING SWEET TEA, chronicling the lives of gay black men. Lewis is also the Senior Media Specialist at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.
Editor: CAROLINE BERLER is a documentary editor based in New York City with over 10 years of experience working on non-fiction projects that have screened widely in festivals, broadcast nationally, and have been theatrically released. Her debut feature film DYKES, CAMERA, ACTION! won the Emerging Talent Award at Outfest in 2018 and screened at over 70 festivals around the world. She holds an MFA in Social Documentary Film from the School of Visual Arts and a BA in Sociology from New York University.
Producer: ZAINAB ALI is a producer of independent film with a background as a senior recruiter for major corporations including Gap Inc., Charles Schwab, and Lucasfilm. A lifelong film enthusiast, “Z” works to inspire cinematographers, writers, directors, and investors to collaborate on stories that transcend boundaries. Her credits include: executive producer on SUGARCOATED, line producer for the horror short DANGER WORD, and executive producer of DEATH IN THE FAMILY (earned the Silver Award at the Philadelphia International Film Festival).
Producer: LORNA GRISBY is an award-winning journalist, a former deputy bureau chief for People magazine and morning, drive-time talk radio executive producer at WVON in Chicago. She also has been communications manager for the nonprofit Action for Healthy Kids where she transformed the communications strategy with the introduction of impact stories, resulting in a larger audience and more corporate funders. She developed the filmmaking bug when she wrote, directed and produced short films for Sikorsky Aircraft. Early in her career, Lorna was a staff writer for the Poughkeepsie Journal and New Haven Register before landing at Time Inc.’s People. She has earned a first place Los Angeles Press Club award for her reporting which also has been recognized by the Associated Press. Currently, Lorna is writing a book about systemic racism in American criminal justice.
Consulting Producer: YVONNE WELBON is Senior Creative Consultant at Chicken & Egg Pictures, an award-winning filmmaker and founder of the Chicago-based non-profit Sisters in Cinema. She has produced over 20 films including LIVING WITH PRIDE: RUTH ELLIS @100—winner of ten best documentary awards. Her work has been screened on PBS, Starz, TV-ONE, Bravo, BET, HBO, Netflix, iTunes and in over 100 film festivals around the world. Raised in an Afro-Latinx Honduran household, Welbon received a B.A from Vassar College, a MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, a Ph.D. from Northwestern University, and is a graduate of the American Film Institute’s Directing Workshop for Women.
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
THE STORY
“The only time I entered a closet was to get me an outfit and a pair of pumps.” MAMA GLORIA opens with Gloria Allen opening the doors to her closet and inviting us into her life. Born George in 1945, Gloria came of age amid the legendary drag balls on Chicago’s South Side and transitioned after high school with the support of the women in her family, including her mother Alma, a former showgirl and Jet centerfold. In her 60s, she started a charm school for transgender youth, paying forward the love and life lessons she received. Intimate and character-driven, the feature documentary explores what it means to grow old as part of the first generation of out LGBTQ elders. Living alone, unmarried and childless, having lost many of her friends to drugs, disease and murder, and surviving on a small, fixed income, Gloria lives each day with joy, humor and gratitude, displaying a resilience and optimism that can serve as a model of aging for us all.
WHY ME
My friend Patrick Johnson (MAKING SWEET TEA) connected me to Gloria, who was looking for a writer to assist her with her memoir. After meeting Gloria, I knew she belonged on the screen. And I felt a personal connection to her story: I am the mother of a transgender daughter. As a black woman filmmaker who is raising a biracial transgender daughter, I see Gloria’s story through a unique lens and with personal urgency. Ultimately, it is the story of a mother’s love — the love Gloria’s mother had for her, the love she has for her chosen children, and the love I have for my daughter, Gia. My concern for Gia's future drives me to bring Gloria’s story to the screen.
WHY NOW
At a time when black transgender women in America have an average life expectancy of under 40 and face escalating attacks and violence, Gloria's life and story is not only inspiring but seldom seen. Gloria is a living testament to the fact that transgender people existed even before the word “transgender” and that they are not going anywhere, despite the current administration’s attempts to erase them out of existence.
In fact, SAGE, an advocacy group for LGBTQ seniors, estimates that by 2030 there will be 7 million LGBTQ adults, age 65 or older. This story is both timely and urgent. As someone who tells stories for a living, I know the inherent power of stories to change hearts, minds and lives. I’ve seen it happen within our own family and small town when we shared our story.
WHY ME, WHY NOW, PART 2
I have run two previously successful crowdfunding campaigns for short films I directed: the award-winning DEATH IN THE FAMILY with Victoria Rowell, and the wildly popular DANGER WORD, starring Frankie Faison. For my most recent film, I partnered with my old friend and colleague Civia Tamarkin to connect the dots between the hundreds of laws aimed at women's health care in the U.S. The result is the prescient and critically acclaimed BIRTHRIGHT: A WAR STORY, which screened in more than 70 theaters nationwide, qualified for Oscar consideration and is currently streaming on Hulu. MAMA GLORIA comes at no less a critical time -- when this administration is doing everything it can to erase transgender people and the majority of transgender people murdered every year are black transgender women.
WHY YOU
Because you care about the most marginalized, vulnerable and embattled people in America. Because you want to change the narrative about transgender people and transform stereotypes and beliefs. Because you love great characters -- and, believe me, there is only one Mama Gloria! Because you want to know the secret to aging with joy, grace and resilience. Because you want to spread a message of love, hope and optimism. Together -- with your help -- we can tell this story!
THE APPROACH
MAMA GLORIA uses a cinema-verite approach that brings viewers into Gloria’s life now, allowing them to experience her warmth, humor and sadness through her interactions with friends, neighbors, former charm school students, family and classmates. The film features rarely seen archival photographs of Chicago's Bronzeville neighborhood nightlife and drag balls.
Our plan is to complete post-production in time to launch the film on the fall festival circuit. We believe the film will be especially popular on the LGBTQ festival circuit and has the potential to travel the world (hopefully with Gloria along for the ride)! That will be followed by a national broadcast, preferably PBS; digital distribution; and an extended shelf life through campuses and libraries. I am working with partners such as Stonewall Village NYC to use the film to highlight important issues that older LGBTQ adults in particular face, including higher rates of homelessness, income instability and discrimination in health care and senior housing.
THE ASK
The film is in the can! Thanks to an incredible team who have donated their time, equipment and resources, production is complete. Now, to finish the film, we are working with Seed & Spark to raise $15,000. The money will be used to pay our editor ($6K), license archive material ($3K), license music and an orignial film score ($3K), and pay for color correction ($2K) and sound mix ($1K).
Here are ways you can join us in finishing the film:
Click on the follow button on the top right of the page. Followers help us build the audience for the film and unlock some pretty special freebies to complete the film, like a free sound mix!
Share, share, share! Please share our campaign on your social media. And if you know people who aren't on social media, go old school and talk to them about MAMA GLORIA!
Contribute financially. Every amount counts! And when you contribute you to the campaign, you get some pretty awesome prizes. Here is your chance to be a part of bringing this story to the screen!
THANK YOU!
We cannot thank you enough for your support and interest in this story. Together, we can tell a different story about transgender people, one that is inspiring and hopeful!
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Color Correction
Costs $2,000
This is what makes the film look good and Mama Gloria shine.
Archival materials
Costs $3,000
Mama Gloria came of age amid the legendary drag balls on Chicago's South Side. You want to see them!
Share this update!
About This Team
Director/Executive Producer/Writer: LUCHINA FISHER is an award-winning writer, director and producer. Her most recent film, the critically acclaimed feature documentary BIRTHRIGHT: A WAR STORY, which she co-executive produced and co-wrote, appeared in more than 70 theaters nationwide, qualified for Oscar consideration and is currently streaming on Hulu. She is the director of two short films, including DANGER WORD, which was nominated for best narrative short by the Pan African and BronzeLens film festivals and has appeared on the Aspire network. Additionally, Luchina has written and produced several nationally broadcast documentaries as well as numerous segments for television. Her work has appeared on Discovery Health, A&E, ESPN, National Geographic Channel, ABC and in syndication. She began her career as a journalist and has written for People, the Miami Herald, The New York Times, O, The Oprah Magazine and ABCNews.com. She is also the co-author and ghostwriter of several books. Luchina has received awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and the Illinois Arts Council.
Director of Photography: STEPHEN LEWIS is an Emmy Award-winning producer with more than two decades of experience in journalism and video production. In addition to his time in a newsroom, Lewis founded a boutique production company, SouthPaw Video Productions, where he focuses on short form story telling. In 2015, Lewis and SouthPaw Video teamed with CAMRA at Penn in the Annenberg School for Communication to co-produce the forthcoming feature documentary, MAKING SWEET TEA, chronicling the lives of gay black men. Lewis is also the Senior Media Specialist at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.
Editor: CAROLINE BERLER is a documentary editor based in New York City with over 10 years of experience working on non-fiction projects that have screened widely in festivals, broadcast nationally, and have been theatrically released. Her debut feature film DYKES, CAMERA, ACTION! won the Emerging Talent Award at Outfest in 2018 and screened at over 70 festivals around the world. She holds an MFA in Social Documentary Film from the School of Visual Arts and a BA in Sociology from New York University.
Producer: ZAINAB ALI is a producer of independent film with a background as a senior recruiter for major corporations including Gap Inc., Charles Schwab, and Lucasfilm. A lifelong film enthusiast, “Z” works to inspire cinematographers, writers, directors, and investors to collaborate on stories that transcend boundaries. Her credits include: executive producer on SUGARCOATED, line producer for the horror short DANGER WORD, and executive producer of DEATH IN THE FAMILY (earned the Silver Award at the Philadelphia International Film Festival).
Producer: LORNA GRISBY is an award-winning journalist, a former deputy bureau chief for People magazine and morning, drive-time talk radio executive producer at WVON in Chicago. She also has been communications manager for the nonprofit Action for Healthy Kids where she transformed the communications strategy with the introduction of impact stories, resulting in a larger audience and more corporate funders. She developed the filmmaking bug when she wrote, directed and produced short films for Sikorsky Aircraft. Early in her career, Lorna was a staff writer for the Poughkeepsie Journal and New Haven Register before landing at Time Inc.’s People. She has earned a first place Los Angeles Press Club award for her reporting which also has been recognized by the Associated Press. Currently, Lorna is writing a book about systemic racism in American criminal justice.
Consulting Producer: YVONNE WELBON is Senior Creative Consultant at Chicken & Egg Pictures, an award-winning filmmaker and founder of the Chicago-based non-profit Sisters in Cinema. She has produced over 20 films including LIVING WITH PRIDE: RUTH ELLIS @100—winner of ten best documentary awards. Her work has been screened on PBS, Starz, TV-ONE, Bravo, BET, HBO, Netflix, iTunes and in over 100 film festivals around the world. Raised in an Afro-Latinx Honduran household, Welbon received a B.A from Vassar College, a MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, a Ph.D. from Northwestern University, and is a graduate of the American Film Institute’s Directing Workshop for Women.