In an effort to build a space for queer people like myself, every Tuesday I’ll be posting opinion pieces, listicals, reviews, and more focused on the LGBT community. Welcome to Queerly Not Straight! Enjoy and leave a comment below if you have a suggestion for what I should cover next.
Every year on Pride I challenge myself to be gayer than ever. One of the key ways I plan on achieving this in 20GayTeen is by consuming content starring, written by, and directed by queer creators. Below is a list of web series exploring what it means to be queer across various ages, languages, and experiences.
Watch, enjoy, and when you’re done, go and show these creators some love for bringing these web series to life!
1. Cake & Candles Web Series – Created by Julia Almeida & Nicky Chue
Main Characters: Dee (Julia Xavier Stier), Kat (Sam Volante), Trix Harris (Selina-Stephanie Jones)
Summary: Cake & Candles is a webseries centred around a year in the life of three queer friends as they celebrate various birthdays. The series will explore important themes such as sexuality, gender, and race, but also touch on subjects such as friendship, family and youth culture in London.
Why You Should Be Watching: I cried. I wanted to jump through the screen and hug this young woman going through, not just her first love, but the way that her old life started clashing with her new one as a gay woman. Also, they talk about the gay icon Gillian Anderson. That’s enough.
Status: Currently airing.
Follow Cake & Candles on Youtube, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook.
2. Her Story – Directed by Sydney Freeland; Written by Jen Richards & Laura Zak
Main Characters: Allie Marlet (Laura Zak), Paige Jones (Angelica Ross), Violet (Jen Richards)
Summary: Her Story is a 6-episode new-media series that looks inside the dating lives of trans & queer women as they navigate the intersections of desire & identity.
Why You Should Be Watching: It’s a queer story about trans women, written by trans women. It’s well-written, eye-opening, and a learning experience for many that have never experienced a trans persons love story. Plus, Jen Richards. That last one doesn’t need an explanation. Just watch. They are absolutely lovely!
Status: Complete.
Follow Her Story on Youtube, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook.
3. Twenty The Web Series – Directed & Written by Lily Richards
Main Characters: Maya (Lily Richards), Hazel (Taylor Bennett)
Summary: Twenty examines the comedic complexities of interpersonal relationships, focusing on the stories of women and more specifically, LGBT women who are often inaccurately represented in the limelight. Why do we stay in uncomfortable situations? Why do we drive hours out of our way for our friends? Why do we persevere in our passions? Why do we love who we love?
Why You Should Be Watching: The uncomfortable situations that Maya goes through are cringe worthy but also extremely relatable as a queer woman surrounded by people that just don’t understand or have never been educated about the queer life/perspective.
Status: Currently airing season two.
Follow Twenty on Youtube, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook.
4. Notas Aparte Web Series – Directed & Written by Alba Guillen
Main Characters: Sara (Monica Rius Bonet), Helena (Aysha Daraaui)
Summary: Sara, an apathetic teenager, will get art history tutoring from Helena. What neither of them know is that simple art lessons will become a more personal journey for Sara to accept herself.
Why You Should Be Watching: It’s funny, honest, and kind of sweet to watch a baby gay break through her own inhibitions and prejudices about being queer, especially with a mom who has taught her to fear even saying the word “lesbian” out loud.
Status: Season 1 & 2 are complete.
Follow Notas Aparte on Youtube, Twitter, Instagram.
5. GENDERS* Web Series – Directed by Moritz & Sam
Main Characters: Dominik (Maximilian Dietz), Johanna (Meru Lenk), Sebastian (Luca Funke), Mark (Jonathan Nies), Sarah // Lucas (Skalle-Per Thorkjell), Phillip // Pia (Mel Bialas)
Summary: GENDERS* tells the story of a group of trans* teenagers in Cologne (Germany). It focuses on their individuals challenges like realizing their own identity, coming out to parents and friends as well as finding a partner and love.
Why You Should Be Watching: Individual journeys come together in a way that is educational, heart warming, and I love the fact that episode 1 throws a plot twist at you & sets the tone for what’s to come next.
Status: All episodes of season one available.
Follow Genders on Youtube, Website.
6. Gal Pals Web Series – Directed by Kallie Tenney; Written by Sarah Soderquist & Kallie Tenney
Main Characters: Bee (Katie Lynn Stoddard), Olivia (Skarlett Redd)
Summary: Gal Pals is a new comedy about the interwoven lives of a group of wlw living in Los Angeles…created by wlw living in Los Angeles. It’s The L Word for the Broad City generation. Season One follows Bee, whose self-destructive game of cat and mouse comes to a halt when she starts falling for one of her seemingly straight targets.
Why You Should Be Watching: It’s hilarious. Seriously, on the ground, I might pee myself, hilarious. Oh, and the friendship between Bee & Olivia grounds all this funny and makes you want to watch more, more, more!
Status: Season 2 coming June 2018.
Follow Gal Pals on Youtube, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook.
7. The New 30 – Directed by Walter M. Bost; Written by Walter M. Bost & John Sobrack
Main Characters: Elliot (DaJuan Johnson), Diego (Dennis Mencia), Aaron (Eric Bunton)
Summary: The New 30 is a six episode gay web series dramedy about a diverse group of friends discovering life in their 40’s isn’t quite what they imagined.
Why You Should Be Watching: Queer story starring a man of color with a bunch of men in their 40’s? SIGN ME UP! Also, it’s hilarious, starts off sexy AF, and gets so deep I want to invest my life in making Elliot happy.
Status: All episodes of season one available.
Follow The New 30 on Youtube, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook.
8. Cafe Sin Leche Web Series – Directed by Yaiza Nuez; Written by Jaione Ferri
Main Characters: Alex (Rosa Herrero), Robin (Ana Cozar)
Summary: Suddenly you realize you are falling for the same girl as your roommate. So…you have a problem.
Why You Should Be Watching: The two leads, aka your OTP, have chemistry that is through the roof! Every single time they are interrupted by Robin’s roommates I want to yell, “Go away! You’re interrupting my new OTP!”
Status: All episodes of season one available.
Follow Cafe Sin Leche on Youtube, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook.
9. Grosse Misconduct – Directed by Mitchell Lazar; Written by Colby Ryan & Anne Schroeber
Main Characters: Mitch Grosse (Colby Ryan), Sarah Wilson (Anne Schroeder), Brian Lambert (Steve Barkman), Alicia Castile (Pooya Mohseni)
Summary: An eccentric Human Resources team navigates personal and professional struggles under the leadership of their high-maintenance director, Mitch Grosse.
Why You Should Be Watching: Puppy parkas, hilarious openings, and a boss who needs the encouragement & help of all his employees to ground him. Need I say more? Wait, I do. Alicia, played by Pooya Mohseni, is heart worthy every single moment she’s on screen.
Status: All episodes of season one available.
Follow Grosse Misconduct on Youtube, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Website.
Honorable Mention
Riley Parra – Directed by Christin Baker; Written by Christin Baker & Geonn Cannon
Main Characters: Riley Parra (Marem Hassler), Gillian Hunt (Liz Vassey), Samael (Connor Trinneer)
Summary: A detective struggling to do the right thing in a corrupt department discovers a war between angels and demons is being waged in her city and she’s the only chance the Good side has of winning.
Why You Should Be Watching: If Rizzoli & Isles had a love child with Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Castle, it would be Riley Parra.
Status: All episodes of season one are available. Season 2 set to premiere in July.
Follow Riley Parra on Twitter.
Follow TelloFilms* on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Website.
*tellofilms.com is a subscription-based site dedicated to producing quality lesbian web-series. Every web-series on our site is made by, for, and about lesbians and lesbian-friendly creators. Every show on tello has lesbian lead characters, a lesbian storyline, and have at least one lesbian producer.
Queerly Not Straight posts every Tuesday with opinion pieces, listicals, reviews, and more focused on the LGBT community.
