Sandra Oh and Stephanie Beatriz will receive special honors at the 2022 Outfest Fusion QTBIPOC (Queer, Trans, Black, Indigenous and People of Color) Film Festival.
Oh will be presented with the James Schamus Ally Award, which recognizes a great ally to the LGBTQ community, while Beatriz receives the Fusion Achievement Award, which recognizes an individual who has made a significant contribution to LGBTQ stories, arts, and media visibility. The honors will be bestowed at the film festival’s opening gala on April 8. The in-person portion of the festival runs from April 8-13, with the program moving online from April 13-17.
With the award, Outfest Fusion recognizes Oh’s work on screen and her public advocacy for the LGBTQ community. Oh has been a longtime supporter of the festival, having attended Outfest Los Angeles for multiple programs, including appearing at the Outfest Honors Gala to benefit their Legacy Project for LGBTQ film preservation and presenting close-friend Alec Mapa with his own Outfest Fusion Achievement Award in 2014.
“Ms. Oh’s allyship is far-reaching, unwavering and all-encompassing, standing up for the countless individuals that continue to feel a sense of ‘othered’ in our society. She has been a true trailblazer and consistent advocate before and now throughout her career, and we are honored to call her a friend of Outfest for nearly two-decades,” said Outfest executive director Damien S. Navarro.
The acclaimed actor currently stars in BBC America’s “Killing Eve,” for which she also serves as executive producer and has earned multiple Emmy nominations, as well as Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award wins. Oh’s other beloved roles include Patti in “Under the Tuscan Sun” and Dr. Cristina Yang on “Grey’s Anatomy.”
“Outfest’s mission closely aligns with my own desire to drive change and creativity, and I am humbled to be chosen for this incredible honor,” Oh said.
The Fusion Achievement Award honors Beatriz for her body of work and dedication to bisexual visibility. Past recipients of the award include Michaela Coel, Nisha Ganatra, Angela Robinson, Rose Troche, Wilson Cruz, Alec Mapa, Patrik-Ian Polk, Cheryl Dunye, Brickson Diamond and Rikki Beadle-Blair.
“In order for representation to be truly meaningful, it needs to be nuanced and authentic,” Navarro said of Beatriz, noting that through her work in hits like “Encanto,” “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” and “In the Heights,” “Stephanie has brought bold, original and engaging characters to life on screen whilst also proudly standing up for our community as well as immigrant rights.”
He continued: “As a queer, immigrant, women-of-color that has openly embraced and discussed her bisexuality, she has proliferated an often misunderstood, missing or broadly stereotyped representation for what amounts to what may be one of the largest self-identified queer populations in the world. We are inspired and honored by her bravery.”
The full lineup of free in-person and virtual events, panels and workshops for the 10-day festival, presented by IMDbPro and Hyundai, will be announced at www.outfestfusion.com.
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