Saturday Church

{{Infobox film

| name = Saturday Church

| image = Saturday Church poster.jpg

| alt =

| caption = Theatrical release poster

| director = Damon Cardasis

| producer = Damon Cardasis
Adi Ezroni
Rebecca Miller
Mandy Tagger

| writer = Damon Cardasis

| starring = Luka Kain
Margot Bingham
Regina Taylor
Marquis Rodriguez
Michaela Jaé Rodriguez
Indya Moore

| music = Nathan Larson

| cinematography = Hillary Spera

| editing = Abbi Jutkowitz

| studio = Spring Pictures
Round Films

| distributor = Samuel Goldwyn Films

| released = {{Film date|2017|4|23|Tribeca Film Festival|2018|1|12|United States}}

| runtime = 82 minutes{{cite web|author=Peter Debruge |url=https://variety.com/2017/film/reviews/saturday-church-review-1202403768/ |title='Saturday Church' Review: 'Moonlight' Meets 'La La Land' |publisher=Variety |date=2017-04-29 |accessdate=2017-08-18}}

| country = United States

| language = English

| budget =

| gross =

}}

Saturday Church is a 2017 American musical fantasy drama film written and directed by Damon Cardasis; and was his first feature film. The film stars Luka Kain, Margot Bingham, Regina Taylor, Marquis Rodriguez, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, and Indya Moore. The film was released on January 12, 2018, by Samuel Goldwyn Films.{{Cite web|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/saturday-church-shines-a-light-on-growing-up-trans/|title='Saturday Church' Shines a Light on Growing Up Trans|last=Kumar|first=Naveen|date=2018-01-12|website=Vice|language=en|access-date=2019-11-15}} The concept of the movie is loosely based on the LGBTQ+ outreach program, Art & Acceptance, at St Luke in the Fields located in the West Village of New York City.{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=5 January 2018|title=Don't Overlook This Film for Homeless Youth|url=https://www.advocate.com/film/2018/1/05/dont-overlook-film-homeless-youth|access-date=|website=The Advocate}}

Plot

Fourteen-year-old Ulysses lives with his mother, Amara, and younger brother. Because his father has recently died, his father's sister, the conservative Aunt Rose, agrees to help take care of Ulysses and his brother while their mother is at work. Ulysses is bullied at school by his classmates and threatened at home by Rose for his feminine characteristics.

One night Ulysses ventures out into the city and meets a group of transgender and gay individuals, Ebony, Dijon, Raymond, and Heaven. Ebony invites Ulysses to Saturday Church, a program run at a church every Saturday to feed and provide shelter for LGBT youths. While there Ulysses develops an interest in voguing, later buying a pair of high-heel shoes to practice in.

Ulysses also begins to form a relationship with Raymond, who has mutual feelings for him. After returning home from school one day, Aunt Rose is waiting for Ulysses and confronts him about the high heels, which she discovered in his room. Rose begins to beat Ulysses, causing him to run away from the house.

Ulysses attempts to go to Saturday Church for help, but as it is Wednesday, none of his friends are there. Ulysses spends the night at a homeless shelter, where he resolves to accept himself for who he is and not who others want him to be. The next day, Ulysses talks to an older male who invites him to his apartment.

Desperate and hungry, Ulysses prostitutes himself to the man for food and money. On Saturday, Ulysses returns to Saturday Church, where his friends comfort him and offer him a place to stay, but Ulysses wants to see his mother. Back at the house, Amara, who has reported Ulysses as missing to the police, prepares to search for him.

Before she leaves, Ebony escorts Ulysses into the house. Rose, who is also there, verbally berates Ebony and Ulysses, causing Amara to defend them from her sister-in-law until Rose leaves. The next day, Amara reassures Ulysses that her love for him is unconditional. With newfound confidence, Ulysses prepares to vogue in drag in a ballroom scene club.

Cast

{{Castlist|

Luka Kain as Ulysses
Margot Bingham as Amara
Regina Taylor as Aunt Rose
Marquis Rodriguez as Raymond
Michaela Jaé Rodriguez as Ebony
Indya Moore as Dijon
Alexia Garcia as Heaven
Kate Bornstein as Joan
Jaylin Fletcher as Abe
Stephen Conrad Moore as Marshall
Peter Y. Kim as Mark
Evander Duck Jr. as Father Lewis

}}

Release

The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 23, 2017.{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/saturday-church-tribeca-2017-992629 |title='Saturday Church' Review | Tribeca 2017 |publisher=Hollywood Reporter |date=2017-04-23 |accessdate=2017-08-18}} On September 5, 2017, Samuel Goldwyn Films acquired distribution rights to the film.{{cite web|title='Saturday Church' Acquired By Samuel Goldwyn Films|url=https://deadline.com/2017/09/saturday-church-release-date-damon-cardasis-samuel-goldwyn-films-1202161315/|website=Deadline|accessdate=December 30, 2017|date=September 5, 2017}} The film was released on January 12, 2018, by Samuel Goldwyn Films.{{cite web|last=Thomas |first=Chris |url=https://www.out.com/movies/2017/11/28/premiere-transgender-youth-find-their-voice-saturday-church |title=Exclusive: Transgender Youth Find Their Voice at 'Saturday Church' |publisher=Out.com |date=2017-11-28 |accessdate=2018-01-21}}

Reception

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a rating of 93%, based on 28 reviews, with an average rating of 7.4/10.{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/saturday_church/ |title=Saturday Church (2017) |publisher=Rotten Tomatoes |date= |accessdate=2018-02-28}} On Metacritic, the film has a score of 72 out of 100, based on 12 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/saturday-church |title=Saturday Church Reviews |publisher=Metacritic |date= |accessdate=2018-02-28}}

Adaptations

A musical theatre adaptation of the film is set to premiere off-Broadway at New York Theatre Workshop in the East Village, Manhattan, in late 2025. Set to be directed by Whitney White, the musical has a book by Cardasis and James Ijames and music and lyrics by Sia with additional music by Honey Dijon.Higgins, Molly. [https://playbill.com/article/sia-musical-saturday-church-sets-world-premiere-at-new-york-theatre-workshop "Sia Musical Saturday Church Sets World Premiere at New York Theatre Workshop"], Playbill, February 26, 2025