{"id":2315336,"date":"2026-03-06T09:51:13","date_gmt":"2026-03-06T09:51:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2315336"},"modified":"2026-03-06T09:51:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T09:51:13","slug":"celebrities-launch-foundation-to-support-lgbtq-filmmakers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/celebrities-launch-foundation-to-support-lgbtq-filmmakers\/","title":{"rendered":"Celebrities Launch Foundation to Support LGBTQ Filmmakers"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"ToddTodd Franson\/Google Gemini<\/p>\n

A coalition of celebrities has launched a foundation to support LGBTQ filmmakers whose projects may be rejected or sidelined as studios scale back diversity initiatives under pressure from cultural conservatives.<\/p>\n

The Necessary Foundation<\/a> was created to offer financing and other opportunities to help LGBTQ filmmakers establish themselves in the industry. Founding board members include Alan Cumming, Bowen Yang, Lena Waithe, and Adam Goldman \u2014 the latter of whom will serve as the foundation\u2019s executive director, according to The Hollywood Reporter<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cQueer filmmakers don\u2019t need permission, but they do need opportunity. That\u2019s what the Necessary Foundation is building,\u201d Yang said in a statement. \u201cI\u2019m so honored to be a part of supporting new artists at the starting line.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to a \u201cStudio Responsibility Report<\/a>\u201d from LGBTQ media advocacy group GLAAD, 59 of the 250 films released by 10 major distributors in 2024 \u2014 about 23.6% \u2014 contained an LGBTQ character, a drop of 3.7% from 2023. The report also found that 37% of those LGBTQ characters appeared on screen for less than a minute.<\/p>\n

Since President Donald Trump returned to the White House, studios have increasingly scrubbed<\/a> projects featuring diverse representation, including those highlighting LGBTQ characters. The shift comes amid a broader backlash against liberalism, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), and political correctness.<\/p>\n

Critics argue that scaling back diversity initiatives will make it harder for LGBTQ filmmakers \u2014 and films with LGBTQ themes or characters \u2014 to break into the industry or reach a wider audience.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis really is a crisis,\u201d Cumming said of Hollywood\u2019s retreat from promoting inclusion. \u201cIf we don\u2019t act now to support young queer and trans filmmakers, LGBT+ people will disappear from American film and television screens. It\u2019s as simple as that.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Necessary Foundation will award annual $20,000 grants to emerging LGBTQ filmmakers to produce a pilot, short film, or other proof-of-concept project. Recipients will also be connected with established filmmakers who can serve as mentors, including John Cameron Mitchell, Raphael Bob-Waksberg, and Indya Moore.<\/p>\n

\n

<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The foundation will also provide additional support to emerging filmmakers, including covering festival submission fees and organizing screenings of LGBTQ-themed films in New York City and Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight now we need to lift each other up,\u201d Waithe said in a statement. \u201cWriters and storytellers need our support. I\u2019m always happy to lend it. I\u2019m excited about what this organization will become.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even as studios seek to placate the Trump administration and its allies in the ongoing culture wars, the co-founders of the Necessary Foundation argue that audience interest in LGBTQ content remains strong. They point to the success of the HBO Max streaming series Heated Rivalry<\/a> as an example. The show has become popular among American viewers and has even found audiences in Russia<\/a>, which regularly cracks down on depictions of homosexuality in media.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is, in this moment, enormous political pressure to delete queer people from American media, and that includes young filmmakers who are being shut out of the industry,\u201d Goldman said in a statement. \u201cThat pressure is working. Now it\u2019s time to push back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Subscribe free to Metro Weekly\u2019s daily newsletter for the LGBTQ stories that matter most.<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n