ALBERTO

SHE/THEY

Aitch Alberto found her refuge through cinema, so it was almost inevitable that they’d lean toward a film career. As a born creator, Outfest Screenwriting Lab fellow Aitch Alberto paved her path as a filmmaker and storyteller without formal training, fearing that the confines of structured learning would disrupt her instinct as an artist. But the Miami native’s disciplined focus on her artistry granted her the opportunities and success she has earned today. In 2022 she was featured on Variety's 10 Directors to Watch list, Indiewires' 22 Rising Female Filmmakers to Watch, and was included on The Black List’s Inaugural Latinx List. Along with being a celebrated Outfest alum, Alberto will be kicking off this year’s festival with her latest film Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, an adaptation of the Stonewall book award-winning YA novel by Benjamin Alire Sáenz. The film not only captivated audiences and was praised at the 47th Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), but it epitomized the pristine craftsmanship and vision that Alberto has to offer in this industry.

Outfest Los Angeles

2023

D. SMITH SHE/HER

Before the success of her debut film Kokomo City, which is this year’s Outfest Los Angeles Documentary Centerpiece, director and cinematographer

D. Smith was a subway singer whose talents caught the eye of execs at Sony Music. Having a fruitful and solid repertoire, the now two-time Grammy award-nominated producer worked with artists such as Lil Wayne, Katy Perry, Andre 3000, and more. Her career seemed promising and secure. However, after her transition, the music industry turned their back on her. But in the midst of uncertainty, she had an idea for a documentary that explored the honest and raw experiences of Black transgender sex workers. That film would become Kokomo City which had its premiere at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. As a panelist in our Outfest Outpost Sundance Panel, Subverting Marginalization: How We Tell Our Own Stories, Smith shared that the film essentially saved them, “It's completely given me a new life…and its completely taken me out of the darkness, and I’m absolutely living in the light right now.”