PORT AUTHORITY BY DANIELLE LESSOVITZ (2019)

WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY DANIELLE LESSOVITZ

EXECUTIVE PRODUCED BY MARTIN SCORSESE

CO-CASTING DIRECTOR: DAMIAN BAO

CASTING WAS A HYBRID COMBINATION OF ACTORS AND NON-ACTORS WHO WERE CINEMATIC AND DYNAMIC STREET FINDS.

CAST: FIONN WHITEHEAD (PAUL), LEYNA BLOOM (WYE), MCCAUL LOMBARDI (LEE), JARI JONES (NAIMA), LOUISA KRAUSE (SARA), DEVON CARPENTER (TEKAY), CHRISTOPHER “AFRIKA” QUARLES (MOTHER MCQUEEN), EDDIE PLAZA (EDDIE MCQUEEN), TALIEK JEQON (TALIEK MCQUEEN), AZZA MELTON (AZZA MCQUEEN), LAWRENCE “SNOOKIE” TAYLOR (SNOOKIE), PRECIOUS EBONY (PRECIOUS), WILLIAM DUFAULT (NIX), STEPEN CAVALIERI (FATS)

BOTH TRANS ACTRESSES LEYNA BLOOM AND JARI JONES WERE SINGULARLY SCOUTED AND DISCOVERED BY DAMIAN BAO BEFORE CASTING FOR “PORT AUTHORITY” EVER STARTED. UPON FIRST MEETING, DAMIAN KNEW INSTINCTIVELY THAT LEYNA AND JARI WERE TO BECOME STARS AND LEADERS IN THE TRANS COMMUNITY IN ENTERTAINMENT. HE IS VERY PROUD TO HAVE BEEN AN EARLY FIRESTARTER FOR BOTH OF THEIR CAREERS.

A RT FEATURES, SIKELIA PRODUCTIONS, & MADELEINE FILMS PRODUCTION.

NOMINATIONS: UN CERTAIN REGARD AWARD – CANNES FILM FESTIVAL 2019

WORLD PREMIERE: MAY 2019

IMDB PAGE: “PORT AUTHORITY” (2019)

SYNOPSIS: PORT AUTHORITY IS A LOVE STORY SET IN NEW YORK’S KIKI BALLROOM SCENE, AND FOLLOWS PAUL, A 20 YEAR OLD MIDWESTERNER, WHO ARRIVES AT THE CENTRAL BUS STATION AND QUICKLY CATCHES EYES WITH WYE, A 22 YEAR OLD GIRL VOGUING ON THE SIDEWALK. AFTER PAUL SEEKS HER OUT IN SECRET, AN INTENSE LOVE BETWEEN THEM BLOSSOMS. BUT WHEN PAUL DISCOVERS WYE IS TRANS, HE IS FORCED TO CONFRONT HIS OWN IDENTITY AND WHAT IT MEANS TO BELONG.

PRESS:

THE PRESTIGIOUS CANNES FILM FESTIVAL WILL HOST THE PREMIERE OF THE FILM PORT AUTHORITY THIS YEAR AS A PART OF ITS UN CERTAIN REGARD COMPETITION. THE MARTIN SCORSESE-BACKED PROJECT, WHICH STARS LEYNA BLOOM IN HER FIRST MAJOR ACTING ROLE, WILL MARK THE FIRST TIME THAT A FILM WITH A TRANS WOMAN OF COLOR AS LEAD ACTRESS PREMIERES AT THE EVENT IN THE FESTIVAL’S 72-YEAR HISTORY.

– MEET LEYNA BLOOM, FIRST TRANS WOMAN OF COLOR TO LEAD A CANNES FILM PREMIERE (OUT MAGAZINE)

ALSO MAKING HISTORY AT CANNES THIS YEAR WAS ACTOR AND FILMMAKER — AND PAPER PREDICTIONS NOMINEE — JARI JONES. JONES WORKED ON PORT AUTHORITY AS A CAST MEMBER, SCRIPT CONSULTANT, ACTING COACH TO BLOOM, AND THEN, ULTIMATELY, A PRODUCER ON THE FILM. JONES TELLS PAPER SHE BECAME THE FIRST BLACK TRANS WOMAN TO PRODUCE A FILM COMPETING AT CANNES. THE CAST, MADE UP OF OTHER QUEER BLACK PERFORMERS WITHIN NEW YORK’S UNDERGROUND POC-LED BALLROOM SCENE, FLEW INTO FRANCE AND BECAME THE FIRST TO VOGUE ON THE RED CARPET.

– JARI JONES MADE HISTORY AT CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (PAPER MAGAZINE)