Culture Machine, Last Prisoner Project Launch Digital Short-Form Docuseries, Loud & Proud

*LOS ANGELES –* Culture Machine — the Emmy-nominated production company
founded by Dear White People creator Justin Simien — and criminal justice
nonprofit Last Prisoner Project launched Loud & Proud, a vibrant and
powerful new short-form docuseries dropping weekly on social media
platforms through June and July.

Produced by Izzi Cavotta, Kaylen Ng, and Merari Chavarría, Loud & Proud is
a bold, celebration of the queer people who’ve long turned to cannabis —
not just for healing, but for survival. From drag performers to grassroots
organizers, the series centers voices often excluded from the mainstream
weed narrative: those who have used cannabis as a tool of care, resistance,
and cultural expression.

Featuring beloved drag artists and activists like Laganja Estranja,
Jorgeous, Sabbyiana, and others, Loud & Proud connects the dots between
anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, cannabis policing, and systemic inequity while
celebrating queer joy, protest, and community care.

“I have a team of really talented filmmakers that work with me at Culture
Machine, and I wanted us to really get into producing stories that weren’t
just the things that were thought of as ‘official Hollywood business.’ I
wanted to make original content around the things that really mattered to
us,” said Simien. “I happen to be out and proud, and I also enjoy the
devil’s lettuce quite a bit. It has found its way into my creative process,
my self-care routines, and I think there’s a really interesting political
intersection with communities of color and queer communities as well that
I’m really excited that this team is uncovering.”

The campaign comes at a critical moment: More than 575 anti-LGBTQ+ bills
are currently circulating in statehouses across the U.S., and while
cannabis legalization expands, enforcement continues to disproportionately
target queer and trans people — especially Black and brown folks. Loud &
Proud is both celebration and call to action, urging cannabis consumers and
companies to center equity, clemency, and queer leadership in the industry.

“One of the reasons I love the queer community is we show up for one
another because we have no other option. We have to show up for each other
because a lot of times people won’t show up for us. And I think the
cannabis industry is seeing that now. If we want more equity divvied out to
those people of color, we have to show up for them. Whether you’re white,
black, brown or anything in between, we have to show up as a community and
raise our voice as a collective,” says Jay Jackson, known to many as
RuPaul’s Drag Race superstar Laganja Estranja.

Executive Produced by Culture Machine, whose recent docuseries Hollywood
Black won an Indie Spirit Award, and has received Emmy as well as Gotham
Award nominations, the series builds on the company’s mission to tell
stories that challenge dominant narratives and center underrepresented
voices. In just the past few months, Culture Machine and Justin have been
featured in the LA Times, Hollywood Reporter, IndieWire, NBC News, Out
Magazine, and WWHL. Since launching its social platforms in 2023, Culture
Machine has seen a 600% organic increase in followers, reached over 2.3
million unique monthly visitors, and maintained a 45% average engagement
rate.