Elegance Bratton To Be Honored At Outfest Fusion Film Festival

Elegance Bratton - Steven Simione / Stringer

The Outfest organization announced the lineup of films that will screen during the 10-day Outfest Fusion QTBIPOC Film Festival on Tuesday, March 7, 2023, as well as the news that filmmaker Elegance Bratton has been selected to receive the Fusion Achievement Award at the opening night gala on March 24.

The award honors someone who has made a major contribution to LGBTQ+ visibility in stories, arts, and media. Bratton has recently been seen promoting A24's The Inspection, starring Jeremy Pope and Gabrielle Union. The Examination, based on Bratton’s personal experience, follows a gay Black man who is rejected by his mother and left with few options for the future. He then decides to join the Marines, where he discovers surprising companionship, strength, and support in this new community, providing him with a hard-earned sense of belonging that will change his life forever. His feature picture directorial debut, The Inspection, premiered at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival and was released by A24 in November 2022.

Stephanie Beatriz, Michaela Coel, Nisha Ganatra, Angela Robinson, Wilson Cruz, Alec Mapa, Patrik-Ian Polk, Cheryl Dunye, and others have previously received the accolade. Outfest executive director Damien Navarro stated that honoring Elegance has been something he has been looking forward to since joining the organization and that Elegance is an amazing alumnus.

The festival will continue through April 2, 2023, with both in-person and online screenings as well as free community workshops, networking events, and the annual One Minute Movie Contest. Passes are on sale now to the public and individual tickets go on sale on March 14. Outfest Fusion is presented by IMDb with additional sponsorship from Comcast NBCUniversal, Gilead, Fight Magazine, Bank of America, the Aster, Ovation Hollywood, Variety, and more.