Exclusive: 10 Gorgeous Portraits From NewFest 2023 That Capture LGTBQ+ Excellence On Film

NewFest 2023, New York’s largest LGBTQ+ film festival, may have come to a close, but we're not done with it yet.

This year's event which ran from October 12-24 amplified many of the beautiful and brilliant voices telling our stories. Films from 26 different countries were featured and over 130 films were shown during the festival including Rustin, National Anthem, and Beyond the Aggressives: 25 Years Later.

While the festival may be over, photographer Mettie Ostrowski has left us with some gorgeous portraits of just a few of the actors, directors, and others behind the films at this year's event!

Luke Gilford

In National Anthem, starring Charlie Plummer, "A young man joins a utopian community of queer ranchers and rodeo performers." The film is Gilford's feature-length debut.

Kisha Batista

One of the original subjects in the 2005 documentary, The Aggressives,Kisha is a photographer and actress in her own right. She also makes an appearance in Beyond The Aggressives: 25 Years Later, a follow-up to the original documentary.

Daniel Peddle

Director Daniel Peddle brought Aggressives to NewFest in 2005, filmed over 5 years, and shows the lives of masc-presenting BIPOC New Yorkers. Daniel is back 25 years later with the follow-up doc, Beyond The Aggressives: 25 Years Later.

Emma Fidel

Emma is the director behind Queen Of New York, where we "follow nonbinary drag artist Marti Cummings in their groundbreaking run for New York City Council."

Luke Gilford and Charlie Plummer

The Director and star of the film, National Anthem.

Charlie Plummer

Charlie Plummer stars as Dylan in National Anthem, a story where he finds a utopian community of queer ranchers and rodeo performers in the New Mexico plains.

Trevon Haynes

Trevon is one of the documentary subjects in the films The Aggressives and Beyond The Aggressives: 25 Years Later.

Todd Haynes

The director behind the upcoming film MAY DECEMBER MAY DECEMBER, Todd also received the Queer Visionary Award at this year's festival.

Chin Tsui

Chin is one of the documentary subjects in the films The Aggressives and Beyond The Aggressives: 25 Years Later.

Octavio Sanders

Octavio is one of the documentary subjects in the films The Aggressives and Beyond The Aggressives: 25 Years Later.