''Punks'' is a 2000 film produced by Babyface, directed by

Patrik-Ian Polk Patrik-Ian Polk (born July 29, 1973 in Hattiesburg, Mississippi) is an American director, screenwriter, and producer. Polk, who is gay, is noted for his films and theatre work that explore the experiences and stories of African Americans, Africa ...

, and starring

Rockmond Dunbar Rockmond Dunbar (born January 11, 1973) is an American actor, best known for his roles as Baines on the NBC series ''Earth 2 (TV series), Earth 2'', Kenny Chadway on Showtime (TV network), Showtime family drama ''Soul Food (TV series), Soul Food' ...

Seth Gilliam Seth Gilliam (born November 5, 1968) is an American actor. He is best known for his portrayals of Ellis Carver on ''The Wire'', Clayton Hughes on '' Oz'', Dr. Alan Deaton on '' Teen Wolf'', and Father Gabriel Stokes on '' The Walking Dead''. E ...

Renoly Santiago Renoly Santiago (born March 15, 1974) is a Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican actor, singer and writer known for his appearances in films such as ''Dangerous Minds'', ''Hackers (film), Hackers'' and ''Con Air'', and in television series such as ''Touched ...

, Jazzmun, and

Dwight Ewell Dwight Ewell is an American actor known for his roles in films such as ''Chasing Amy'', ''Flirt'', ''Amateur'', ''Dogma'' and '' Man of the Century''. Early life Ewell's father fought in Vietnam and served six years in the United States military ...

. The film follows the trials and tribulations of a group of

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

friends. While black gay life is explored in the film, universal aspects of friendship plays at the plot's forefront. The film's themes were later used for the 2005

Logo A logo (abbreviation of logotype; ) is a graphic mark, emblem, or symbol used to aid and promote public identification and recognition. It may be of an abstract or figurative design or include the text of the name that it represents, as in ...

cable television series '' Noah's Arc''. The film was popular at film festivals but never had distribution due to rights issues with the

Sister Sledge Sister Sledge was an American musical vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Formed in 1971, the group consists of sisters Joni, Kim, Debbie, and Kathy Sledge. The siblings achieved international success at the height of the disco era. I ...

songs featured prominently in the story. It was shown on Logo on August 7, 2011. Otherwise it remains unavailable through home media but has occasional private screenings.

Cast

as Marcus *

as Hill *

as Dante *

as Darby * Jazzmun as Chris/Crystal * Rudolf Martin as Gilbert * Vanessa Estelle Williams as Jennifer * Devon Odessa as Felicity *

Loretta Devine Loretta Devine (born August 21, 1949) is an American actress. She is known for numerous roles across stage and screen. Her most high profile roles include Lorrell Robinson in the original Broadway production of ''Dreamgirls'' (1981), Gloria Mat ...

as Health Counselor * Rodney Chester as Alexis Carrington Colby Dexter *

Thea Vidale Thea R. Vidale (born November 20, 1956) is an American stand-up comedian and actress. Vidale is perhaps best known for her role as Thea Armstrong-Turrell in the ABC sitcom '' Thea'', which originally aired from 1993 until 1994. Vidale is noted a ...

as Nurse

Awards and nominations

* Black Reel Awards **Best Independent Actor - Theatrical: ***(

) Winner * Cleveland International Film Festival **Best American Independent Feature Film: Winner *

GLAAD Media Awards The GLAAD Media Award is a US accolade bestowed by GLAAD to recognize and honor various branches of the media for their outstanding portrayals of LGBTQ people and the issues that affect their lives. In addition to film and television, the Awards ...

**Outstanding Film - Limited Release: Nominated *

Independent Spirit Awards The Independent Spirit Awards, originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards, and later as the Film Independent Spirit Awards, are awards presented annually in Santa Monica, California, to independent filmmakers. Founded in ...

** John Cassavetes Award: ***(

, Tracey Edmonds and Michael McQuarn) Nominated * L.A. Outfest **Outstanding Emerging Talent: ***(

) Winner

References

External links

* * 2000 films 2000 comedy films 2000 LGBTQ-related films African-American comedy films African-American LGBTQ-related films American LGBTQ-related films Brookwell McNamara Entertainment films Films directed by Patrik-Ian Polk Transgender-related films 2000 directorial debut films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films Disco films {{2000s-US-film-stub