For the past few years, South Florida has been in the news, and often not for good reasons, such as the 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. However, as anyone who lives in or visits the Broward County region, which includes Fort Lauderdale and Wilton Manors, can tell you, there’s more to it than the occasional Florida Man story that crosses the wires.
“Inside The Oasis: The Story of South Florida’s Gay Mecca” (Lightship), a documentary directed and co-written by Andy Perrott, provides viewers with a history lesson about the queer “oasis in a Republican state” that is Broward County. As narrator Sharon Gless puts it, it’s “a tribute and warning of what was, what is, and what could be again.”
Separated into four sections, beginning in the 1950s and 1960s through the present day, the documentary reminds us that LGBTQ community has had foes long before Ron DeSantis ever took office (some even before he was born) including Senator Charlie Johns (of the notorious Johns Committee), homophobic police detectives David Narrow and John Sorenson, bonkers beauty queen Anita Bryant, and hate-church head Dr. James Kennedy. But we have also had supporters fighting the good fight, such as attorney Robin Bodiford, the Pride Center’s Yvonne Rohrbacher, and TransInclusive Group’s Tatiana Williams.
Perrot has packed a lot into the doc, which runs for less than an hour. It features informative interviews with subjects ranging from politicians (Congressperson Debbie Wasserman Schultz, gay Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis, gay senator Shevrin Jones), historians and activists (Fred Fejes, Dennis Delia, Eric Swanson aka Miss Bouvèé, Denise Yoezle, Tiffany Arieagus), and business people (P.J. Williams, George Kessinger, John Castelli, Carol Moran), as well as vintage and current photos, film, and video footage.
The thing that prevents “Inside The Oasis” from sliding into promotional video territory is its appreciation of history. Taking us on this queer journey, Perrott makes a point of providing a useful historical perspective.
The combined firepower of Perrott’s movie, “Inside The Oasis: The Story of South Florida’s Gay Mecca,” and gay writer Robert Fieseler’s acclaimed book “American Scare: Florida’s Hidden Cold War on Black and Queer Lives,” shines a bright and necessary light on a place worthy of understanding and attention.
“Inside The Oasis: The Story of South Florida’s Gay Mecca” will have its debut screening at The Gray Box Theatre in Wilton Manors on Wednesday, Dec. 17 at 6 p.m. For tickets, visit Holiday Celebration & World Film Premiere - Gray Box Theater - Wilton Manors - Dec 17, 2025 · Showpass.
*Editor's Note: This review is based on the unfinished screening link we were provided that still had sound and editing and contained some errors that will hopefully be caught before the final version is shown.
