The Debutantes
CC
Closed captions online
OC
Open captions in-person

A coming-of-age portrait, The Debutantes follows an intergenerational group of Black women and girls in post-industrial Canton, Ohio, as they revitalize the debutante ball. Waltz lessons and etiquette classes clash with Gen Z sensibilities as a new generation of young Black women find their voices, their light and their own way forward.
Directors Spotlight

Contessa Gayles
Director
Contessa Gayles is an award-winning film director, writer, DP, editor and an Emmy-nominated producer. She tells stories about community, coming-of-age, Black liberation and the radical imagination.
- Year
- 2024
- Runtime
- 91 minutes
- Country
- United States
- Language
- English
- Cinematographer
- Brittany Shyne, Contessa Gayles, Imani Dennison, Robie Flores, Sade Ndya
- Composer
- Wynne Bennett
- Director
- Contessa Gayles
- Editor
- Stefani Saintonge
- Production Design
- Alastair Mecke, Christine Hsia
- Premiere
- Special Screening