Paris Is Burning (film)

For other uses, see Paris Is Burning (disambiguation) and Is Paris Burning? (disambiguation).

Paris Is Burning
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJennie Livingston
Produced byJennie Livingston
Starring
CinematographyPaul Gibson
Edited byJonathan Oppenheim
Production
companies
  • Academy Entertainment
  • Off White Productions
Distributed by
Release dates
  • September 13, 1990 (1990-09-13) (Toronto)
  • March 13, 1991 (1991-03-13) (New York City)
Running time
78 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$500,000[1]
Box office$3.8 million[1]

Paris Is Burning is a 1990 American documentary film directed by Jennie Livingston.[2] Filmed in the mid-to-late 1980s, it chronicles the ball culture of New York City and the African-American, Latino, gay, and transgender communities involved in it.[3]

Critics consider the film to be an invaluable documentary of the end of the "Golden Age" of New York City drag balls, and a thoughtful exploration of race, class, gender, and sexuality in America.[4][5]

In 2016, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

The title takes its name from the Paris Is Burning ball held annually by artist Paris Dupree who appears in the film.

  1. ^ a b Paris Is Burning at Box Office Mojo
  2. ^ The Criterion Collection
  3. ^ Janus Films
  4. ^ Green, Jesse (April 18, 1993). "Paris Has Burned". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 14, 2009. Retrieved May 21, 2010.
  5. ^ Levy, Emanuel (April 7, 2006). "Paris Is Burning". Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved July 10, 2014.