Spanish with English subtitles
With Tany de la Riva, Georgia Hart, Sandra Picciotti, Renzo Sáenz, Oliver Ramos, Carola Gutiérrez, Pimi Ravizza, Nia Ravizza
In 2017, Lima saw a wave of RuPaul’s Drag Race stars perform to sold-out crowds month after month. What started as pure entertainment soon turned into a powerful cultural movement. This movement energized and empowered the Peruvian LGBTQ+ community in ways never seen before. In a country known for its conservative and religious values, this drag phenomenon sparked new conversations about identity, visibility, and resistance.
Alberto Castro‘s Drag Invasion explores this unique moment through interviews with performers, activists, and LGBTQ+ community members. The film shows how global pop culture can shape local social and political landscapes. It raises important questions about cultural influence, identity, and how art can drive social change.
Press
“Splendid and thoughtful, this documentary shines in showcasing the art of spectacle, sparkles with self-love, illuminates the construction of identity and shines with diversity.” – KinoaTV
“Documentary filmmaker Alberto Castro recorded the details of the drag phenomenon that invaded Lima in 2017 and condensed them in the documentary.” – Katherine Subirana Abanto, El Comercio (Peru)
Notes on Film
“When I tell a straight male friend that in 2017, dozens of international drag queens came to Peru and filled clubs with 5,000 attendees every month (sometimes more than once a month), he doesn’t believe me. How did this happen in such a conservative country, and how is it that no one found out? Why weren’t there billboards on the streets, or mentions on the radio, or in the news? Nothing at all. Everything happened underground, but despite how marginal the event was, it drew huge crowds. And we’re talking about international megastars with millions of followers around the world, yet the media prefers to point their cameras at the Marches for Life (against abortion) and not at Pride Marches.
So, above all, Drag Invasion serves as a memory capsule for all of us who were part of an impossible phenomenon. It also allows viewers who may know nothing about drag queens or aren’t very close to the LGBT+ community to learn how this fits into a country that still doesn’t recognize us as equals. I also hope it helps them empathize with diverse gender expressions and realize that behind all the wigs, heels, and sequins, we are people who breathe and pay taxes like everyone else.
I don’t think you need any prior information to watch the film. Someone who has never seen RuPaul’s Drag Race might just miss a few jokes or maybe not immediately know who is who, as a man and then as their drag persona. In any case, I think the film can serve as a starting point to explore more material related to the drag or ballroom universe: The Queen (1968), Paris is Burning (1990), the TV series Pose (2018), or the competition reality show Legendary (2020).”
– Alberto Castro, Director
