We had the good fortune of connecting with Jamie Ross and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jamie, do you have any habits that you feel contribute to your effectiveness?
Listening closely.

I’m a filmmaker and documentary artist whose mission is to represent stories, many of which have never before been told. One skill at the heart of my practice is the ability to listen intently to a story.

My work most often deals with the long path to liberation as queer and trans people. Our struggles against discriminatory and hateful institutions, laws and individuals have left a mark on so may of the brilliant elders who hold important stories in their memory.

Some people focus on asking the right questions, and there’s no doubt that that is useful, however, I find that it’s by listening carefully an oral history, especially a recollection that might be rough or not frequently remembered, that the most incredible discoveries can be made.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I am a visual artist and filmmaker. My multidisciplinary projects spring from research into cultures of queer secrecy and invisibility and the dynamics of vocal harmony, synchrony and time that those cultures create. Often collaborating with experts on my projects, I have worked with malacologists and their sprawling Victorian mollusk collections, scientific glassblowers (Neptune’s Closet), retired prima ballerinas (Dad Can Dance), and incarcerated neo-Pagans in Quebec, Canada (XII).

In 2021, I began research on a secret society for drag whose underground seashell museum was raided by the Los Angeles police in 1914. The multidisciplinary project was developed at the UCLA Department of Art’s Interdisciplinary Studio and was then presented as a suite of exhibitions, a symposium, and a film entitled Neptune’s Closet.

It’s been very hard at times not being able to count on guaranteed funding or income streams as I develop a new project and are still seeking funding. My practice received the benefit of a Masters of Fine art from UCLA and a Fulbright Scholarship in that regard. In the end, it’s the stories and the urgency in telling about queer resistance to power and control that keep me going.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
My favourite spots are definitely LA’s incredible book stores like Stories in Echo Park and Other Books in Boyle Heights. I also love hanging out in the Angeles Forest or in the tide pools around San Pedro.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
The ONE Archive is the world’s largest LGBTQ archive and it’s been profoundly meaningful to me as a researcher, community historian and creative to be able to access its collections.

It actually began as the archives of one of the earliest queer publications and developed into the important library and archival collection it is today – and it’s open to all!

It all began with the work of Jim Kepner. Throughout his lifetime, Jim obsessively collected material related to LGBTQ topics, issues, and individuals. Kepner began his collection in 1942 with the purchase of the early gay novel The Well of Loneliness. After moving to Los Angeles, Kepner attended his first meeting of the Mattachine Society, an early homophile organization founded in 1951. Later that year, several members of the Mattachine, including educator and activist W. Dorr Legg, met to discuss creating a magazine for homosexuals. In November 1952 they formed ONE Inc. and in January 1953 published the first issue of ONE Magazine, which would become the first widely distributed publication for homosexuals in the United States. The magazine featured articles, editorials, short stories, book reviews, and letters to the editor.

Over the last 10 years, visits to the ONE Archive have provided material and connection that I’ve integrated into many documentary projects for radio, galleries, museums and the screen.

Website: https://jamieross.org

Instagram: https://ms.topia

Image Credits
Nick Bostick, Yuula Benivolski, Mike Patten

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