A Swing and A Miss
“Leslie only wants one thing: to dance with another woman. Through circumstance she meets Ethel, an older queer woman, who helps her through her anxieties and apprehensions about exploring the challenging landscape of identity and sexuality in the 1920s."
Story Spine
Once Upon a Time: There was a young girl who was being pressured to settle by her family
Everyday: She yearned to escape her expectations and dance with women
Until One Day: She gets the courage to sneak out to a swing dance party
Because of That: She took a risk and asked a girl to dance
Because of That: She was rejected, and ran crying to the bathroom
Because of That: She met Ethel, an older queer, who taught Leslie to lead
Until Finally: She gained the confidence to ask other women to dance
And Ever Since: She was able to be herself and pursue a life of joy, despite the social consequences
Before Stonewall
Drag Balls
The Pansy Craze
Lesbian Craze
Sapphic Craze
Fairies
Acceptance
Community
Old and Young
Story Themes
Leading
Finding Confidence
Authenticity
Of one’s self
Finding support outside of family
Passing on the torch
Taking charge of life
Believing in self
Not sacrificing joy to please others
About Leslie
About Ethel
Character Arcs
Costuming
Lighting
Style
Why?
Representation Of Sapphic Living
Breaking Stereotypes
Fun Time Period
There is a lack of gay representation in film, and there is even less representation of sapphic relationships
This story acknowledges the lives of queer people in the 1920s, while also deconstructing villain tropes
There is a specific aesthetic in the 1920s that allow for playful lighting, texturing, costuming, along with fun music and dance