Filmmaker Statement

Growing up in Las Vegas, I was surrounded by a gamut of sexual images. And despite being raised in a devout Catholic household, I couldn’t escape half naked women on billboards on the way to church. It took me a while to recognize that I was attracted to these tantalizing images, and then accept that I was okay with it. While ‘Places of Worship’ is about dealing with a crush, this is no queer love story! This is a story of self-exploration, uninhibited queer pride, and challenging indoctrination. Plenty of media depicts the external oppressors of queerness, but rarely do we acknowledge the internal shame and paranoia that lingers as a result. Each of our shame comes from a variety of sources, but naming it may just give us some power back. My own shame creeps back up now and then. So I try and stare it down, shake it up, and give it a laugh.