Growing up as a queer teenager in the South was very confusing and isolating. Often, I heard my parents refer to out of the ordinary members of our family as “black sheep.” A part of me always sided with the black sheep because a majority of the time I felt misunderstood. Fast forward 10 years later to present day when I am confident and proud of my identity. So much, in fact, that I started getting involved in LGBTQ activism and organized a night of film devoted to others who have been singled out as the black sheep… or pink sheep, rather.

Working Films is proud to be a sponsor at this year’s Pink Sheep Film Festival, held this Friday, June 10th, during Wilmington’s Pride Week. The Pink Sheep Festival showcases LGBTQ-themed films ranging from documentaries to fairy tales. The featured films of the evening will be two half hour documentaries, Put This on The Map and Whistlin’ Dixie. In Put This on The Map, twenty-six teenagers tell their experience of being queer in the suburbs of Seattle in East King County. Whistlin’ Dixie shifts the scenary to the South as filmmaker Meredith Heil gives spotlight to the many amazing musicians who call the South their home. The film features many bands from our very own state of North Carolina. Watch the trailers below: