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Paris Is Burning

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Paris Is Burning

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1990 film by Jennie Livingston

OverviewAI-generated

Paris Is Burning is an American documentary film directed and produced by Jennie Livingston. The narrative is set in New York City and explores ball culture, fashion, and racism in the United States. The film features participants including Willi Ninja and Venus Xtravaganza. It was produced by Off White Productions and distributed by Miramax and Netflix. The original language is English, and the production cost was 500,000.

The film has a runtime of 78 minutes and carries an R rating. It was released in 1990 and 1991, with a theatrical release date of March 13, 1991. Critical assessments include a 98% rating and a Metascore of 82. It holds a place in the National Film Registry. The movie addresses themes such as transvestism, AIDS, and homophobia. It has won 17 awards and received one nomination.

Synthesized by Vinony from 41 facts across 4 sources: Wikidata, TMDb, IMDb, OMDb. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.

Film · TMDB

8.0

Where does voguing come from, and what, exactly, is throwing shade? This landmark documentary provides a vibrant snapshot of the 1980s through the eyes of New York City's African American and Latinx Harlem drag-ball scene. Made over seven years, PARIS IS BURNING offers an intimate portrait of rival fashion "houses," from fierce contests for trophies to house mothers offering sustenance in a world rampant with homophobia, transphobia, racism, AIDS, and poverty. Featuring legendary voguers, drag queens, and trans women — including Willi Ninja, Pepper LaBeija, Dorian Corey, and Venus Xtravaganza.

Released: 1991-03-1378 minDir: Jennie LivingstonDocumentaryBudget: $500,000Box office: $3.9M

Cast

  • Pepper LaBeija as Self
  • Octavia St. Laurent as Self
  • Venus Xtravaganza as Self
  • Dorian Corey as Self
  • Willi Ninja as Self
  • Paris Dupree as Self

Themes

  • new york city
  • transvestism
  • aids
  • homophobia
  • drag queen
  • male homosexuality
  • transsexual
  • subculture
  • shoplifting
  • lgbt

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Ratings

IMDb

8.2/10

19,088 votes

Rotten Tomatoes

98%

Metacritic

82/100

Year
1990
Runtime
78 min
Genres
Documentary
Rated
R
Awards
17 wins & 1 nomination total

via OMDb · IMDb

Wikidata facts

Instance of
film
Country of origin
United States
Original language
English language
Main subject
ball culture
Narrative location
New York City
Filming location
New York City
Duration
71
FilmAffinity ID
827854
Distribution format
video on demand
Show 5 more facts
publication date
1991-10-31
title
Paris Is Burning
distributed by
Netflix
capital cost
500000
review score
7.9/10
Sources (9)

via Wikidata · CC0

Gallery (5)