“An exceptional documentary.”

— Cleveland Plain Dealer

The award-winning* documentary KINGS, QUEENS, & IN-BETWEENS, which focuses on the drag kings, queens and transgender performers in Columbus, Ohio, will receive a national VOD launch on March 7 (including iTunes, Amazon and Google Play), as well as a limited theatrical release on March 3 (cities to be announced shortly). Candy Factory will distribute the film, which is directed by Gabrielle Burton and produced by Five Sisters Productions.

The film has been selected as the inaugural film by New York’s LGBTQ film festival NewFest for their screening event series, which will take place on February 15 at 7:00pm followed by a special panel discussion about the issues raised by the film. In attendance will be drag queen Kari Kerning, drag king Dr. Cool Ethan, and trans performer Luster Dela Virgion (aka Sile Singleton), as well as director Gabrielle Burton and producer Jennifer Burton, two of the Burton Sisters who helm Five Sisters Productions.

KINGS, QUEENS, & IN-BETWEENS explores a midwestern city with an extraordinary and unexpected drag scene, and the larger theme of exactly what gender is and means. Through the compelling personal stories of eight performers and their troupes in Columbus, Ohio, KINGS, QUEENS, & IN-BETWEENS makes a complex subject approachable for mainstream audiences — inviting viewers into a conversation about the distinct and important differences between gender, sex, and sexuality, which has not been represented in film before. A heart-warming, engaging film, KING, QUEENS & IN-BETWEENS is thought-provoking and sends a message of love and acceptance, reflecting a community unified in the belief that we are all just human.

Of the film, the Cleveland Plain Dealer says, “I fell in love not just with the film, but with the performers…after the make-up and wigs come off, their stories are unforgettable. KINGS, QUEENS, & IN-BETWEENS will make you feel grateful you got to know these particular humans.”

Director Gabrielle Burton is a Wexner Center for the Arts artist residency fellow who won the Ohio Arts Council’s Artist of Excellence award in filmmaking, and was selected to give a TEDx talk on KINGS, QUEENS, & IN-BETWEENS which nearly 150,000 views. Burton helms the indie film production company Five Sisters Productions with her four real-life sisters, making films presented by MGM/Sony, Starz, Showtime, MTV/LOGO, Netflix, AMC/We Channel, and documentary campaigns for companies including Ford and Victoria’s Secret.

KINGS, QUEENS, & IN-BETWEENS has been a six-year passion project, and the Burton sisters are traveling with the film on a national engagement tour to involve communities in discussions on the important issues presented by the film. Director Burton is also a mom of a young son and daughter; when she happened to go to a drag show in Columbus one night, she was instantly inspired to make this film about an important and current social topic, and working to promote the importance of acknowledging diversity, complexity, and understanding.