Article & photos provided By: Conrado TerrazasCross
In the heart of 1980s Silver Lake, amid disco lights, street tension, and the pulse of queer resistance, a love story unfolds. Sunset Junction is a romantic drama I’ve been developing for years, one rooted in personal memory, community history, and the urgent need to reclaim joy in the face of violence. It was adapted from my 10-minute play, Are You Gay or Latino, which was part of CASA 0101 Theater’s Brown and Out Play Festival IV in 2019.
At its core, Sunset Junction is a story about love and resilience between two gay men of color, one Latino, one Black, who survive and flourish in the late 1970s and 1980s. The film follows Andres, a twenty-something gay Latino man navigating abandonment, emotional vulnerability, and the search for belonging. His journey toward healing begins when he meets Donald, a magnetic African-American man whose friendship becomes a steady presence through personal and political upheaval. Only after confronting the pain of his mother’s absence and his father’s emotional distance is Andres able to accept love and offer it in return.
Their bond unfolds amid escalating gay-bashing by Latino gang members, but instead of retreating, Andres joins a passionate ensemble of activists, artists, and neighbors to unite rival gangs and the LGBTQ+ community. This was a time before cell phones, social media and digital communication, when we mobilized and gathered community support by going door-to-door, meeting people face to face. There was no shortcut to organizing.
Together, an ensemble of diverse people created the Sunset Junction Street Fair, a radical act of resistance that blossoms into a 30-year cultural landmark, drawing over 200,000 people each summer. When the LAPD shuts down the fair due to a small incident, the LGBTQ+ activists successfully lobby the LA City Council to create a 13th Council District so an openly LGBTQ+ person could win. The story is based on true events.
A romantic drama with music, the film features several songs and dance numbers that capture the vibrant, rebellious spirit of the era, evoking the pulse of queer nightlife, street culture, and the joy of communal celebration. It’s a story of love, legacy, and coalition, where LGBTQ+ people and gang members pair up to provide security, reclaim public space, and rewrite the rules of belonging.
Thanks to a grant from the Eastside Arts Initiative, we’ve begun bringing this vision to life through two staged readings. The first took place in early October and featured a powerhouse cast of professional actors, live music, and historical projections. The second reading was held on October 19 at CASA 0101 Theater in Boyle Heights and was filmed to create a new sizzle reel for fundraising and development.
We’re currently raising funds to complete the sizzle reel and then to support the next phase of production, building a creative team, securing rights to music from the era, deepening our community partnerships and raising the production, distribution and marketing budget. Every dollar helps us honor the legacy of Sunset Junction and the people who made it possible. And LGBTQ+ love, which is what we are fighting to protect even today.
Please make your contributions online through CASA 0101, our fiscal agent at Support Us – CASA 0101 Theater. Please be sure to write “Sunset Junction” in the Personal Tribute Note box so your gift is directed to this project.
This project is more than a film. It’s a tribute to queer love, Chicano resilience, and the radical power of coalition. I’m grateful to everyone who’s joined this journey so far, from actors and choreographers to historians and neighbors. And I’m especially thankful to CASA 0101 for all their support of my creative efforts for more than fifteen years, the Eastside Arts Initiative for believing in this project and Adelante for uplifting stories that center our truth as well as the co-hosts of our readings, The Latino Equality Alliance and The Wall Las Memorias.
I chose to write and direct Sunset Junction because there are not enough stores about us, LGBTQ+ people of color, intersectionality of our relationships and a story about what we can achieve if different communities unite. Together we are stronger, especially in light of what is happening today.
To learn more, visit tccreativestudio.com or watch our first sizzle reel, which premiered at Echo Park Pride TCS SJ Sizzle 7102025 Final Cut Hi Res