Described
as a film that will “hook audiences from start to finish” (Gay
Essential), Hooked held its world premiere at Inside Out, and its US
premiere at Newfest as a benefit for the Ali Forney Center. The film
stars Laura Austin, Conor Donnally, and Jay Alan Christianson
(‘Balck-ish’), and is proudly produced by Melissa D. Llewellyn (The Big
Take, Ancient Tomorrow).
Hooked
follows 18-year-old hustler Jack and his boyfriend Tom. They are an
item, close and very much in love. However, Jack tends to be very
impulsive with his body and emotionally explosive. Matt, a married man
who hasn't come out of the closet, decides to take Jack from NYC to
Miami with the intention of helping him before it’s too late.
Not
just a cautionary tale of life on the streets, Hooked is proud to
announce that a percentage of the profits from the film will be donated
to non-profits and partner organizations to support the homeless LGBTQ
youth demographic. Partner organizations include the Ali Forney Center,
the Los Angeles LGBT Center, Albert Kennedy Trust, Lost and Found, and
GLAAD.
“It’s
apparent that LGBTQ kids need a place they can go to be safe…to find
guidance from people who actually identity with the things they are
going through,” said Emerson. “It’s not special treatment, it’s a
necessity.”
In
the US, LGBTQ youth are 8 times more likely to end up homeless, and
those homeless individuals are 7.4 times more likely to experience acts
of sexual violence and more than twice as likely to commit suicide than
their heterosexual counterparts according to the National Coalition for
the Homeless. It’s common for non-LGBTQ shelters to simply refuse
service to transgender teens.
“Writer/Director/Producer
Emerson has taken the near impossible task of taking the serious
subject of homelessness among LGBTQ youths, and crafting a narrative
that is cautionary, but also entertaining and sexy”, said Richard Ross,
Co-President of Breaking Glass. “With terrific lead actors who manage to
be simultaneously charming and abrasive, yet very real, the film places
you directly in the center of their lives.”