I am ready to share with the world that I am a freaky queer femme sex worker domme and I am also a fucking filmmaker. 

—Molly Hewitt/Glamhag June, 2019 

Molly Hewitt. Jennifer Reeder. Sofia Coppola. Three directors with different styles, but three directors that completely pull me in by their aesthetic and original cinematic art form. I had the pleasure of interviewing Molly Hewitt this week about their film “Holy Trinity” that premieres at Outfest in Los Angeles tonight. This interview is going to be different then my usual interviews because (1) I feel an interview with a filmmaker like Molly deserves some originality, creativity, and out of the box structure (2) I want to explore more the ways Molly and their film made me feel, rather then verbatim. “Holy Trinity” is a religious experience that should be celebrated. Amen GLAMHAG. I will be using they/them pronouns in reference to director Molly Hewitt per their request.

PIECES

MOLLY HEWITT grew up in London and arrived in Los Angeles at the age of thirteen. At thirteen they were already a seasoned filmmaker, because Molly made their first film at the age of eleven. Molly created little videos on their parents’ computer using their webcam and later with a little point and shoot digital camera. One film was about their family tree, which was on a piece of paper, more of a literal family tree. They would take pictures of themselves and their siblings with those “izone” tiny polaroids that were popular in the 90s. They and siblings would dress up as different family members and give them names and backstories. Then they would connect the polaroids on a drawn tree on paper. The tree got so long that they had to keep taping more pieces of paper to it. This early film would later inspire pieces of “Holy Trinity.”

IN REIKI WE TRUST

CHURCH. One church soaked in the blood of death that oppresses pleasure and desire. Another “church,” a place I’d rather be, that brings together an experience, of pleasure, happiness, joy, and authenticity to be whoever the f**k you want to be. This is the world “Holy Trinity” explores along with the character Trinity, played by director Molly Hewitt, trying different things like snuffing the mind-blowing “Glamhag,” which broadens her perspective of people, alive and dead.

Coming from my own experience, I have learned a lot from my community in Chicago who practices these different things such as Reiki (described as energy work in the film), reading tarot, meditation, chanting etc. All things that come from ancient practices (usually non-western) of a more realistic and better understanding of how we literally experience the world. Not in the oppressive ways that encourage shame and restricting ourselves from pleasure that Catholicism exercises.

—Molly Hewitt, writer, director, producer

BABY

In Molly’s film I saw people, not people we usually see on the screen, and it was so refreshing. Why? Because being in a world not my own, and feeling at home with these characters that I felt connected to on a deeper level, moved me so much. I felt the most connected to Baby, played by Theo Germaine. Wearing a collar, like a wedding ring, Baby is loyal to Trinity, and chooses to submit to Trinity in the relationship, because that is their consensual dynamic. Baby is full of love. Watching the two, they are like any other adorable couple, being intimate, supporting one another during their day to day, and having fun together. There is one time in the film their love is tested, and you see Baby achingly detach their self from Trinity, and it was heartbreaking. When your heart breaks so much for a character, you know you’re experiencing something real and beautiful.

I wrote Baby as a non-binary character because Trinity and Baby represent two different aspects of myself. It was important for me to have a non-binary actor play this role. Most of the other characters are my friends playing exaggerated versions of themselves. Everyone in the film is queer and the actors are playing characters with the same identity as them. However, I never bring up their specific identities in the film universe. They are just characters like in any other film, experiencing their friend develop the ability to speak to the dead. 

—Molly Hewitt, writer, director, producer

DIVERSE AND BEAUTIFUL

COLOR, beautiful vibrant color. Like the other two directors I mentioned in my introduction, Jennifer Reeder and Sofia Coppola, my eyes danced with the visual. The beats of the film streamed beauty. And what is amazing within the capacity of Molly’s visually stunning film, is that it’s quite hilarious. Molly’s aesthetic and comic flare is credit to their storytelling. Molly brought me into a world of diversity and life, a world that should reflect our own, and it gives me hope. Amen.

I think that having a well-rounded and diverse cast and crew can only enhance one’s storytelling. There are so many voices we have not heard from yet and stories that do not get to be told that would really do good in the world for people who need to hear them and see themselves reflected in these stories.

—Molly Hewitt, writer, director, producer