Rees completed development and filming of her debut feature film , '' Pariah '' , which she has described as semi-autobiographical . In graduate school Rees interned for Spike Lee , whom she got to executive direct the film . It premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival . Lisa Schwartzman of '' Entertainment Weekly '' wrote , " In her fearless , world-here-I-am ! debut '' Pariah '' , writer-director Dee Rees demonstrates , with simplicity and verve , that there 's no substitute for authenticity " . '' Pariah '' explores the complexities of religion , politics and socioeconomic class within and surrounding a Black family . The short film version of '' Pariah '' was initially a thesis project done by Dee Rees in film school . It was difficult to receive funding for the feature film , and the process took about five years to reach completion . The format and content changed significantly from the short film to the feature film . The transition from short film to feature film meant it needed to be more accessible for a wider audience in order to make money . This accessibility reached new audiences and sparked new conversations that were focused on blackness and sexuality in a new way . At the time '' Pariah '' ( 2011 ) was released , the film was one of the very few films that follow the journey of a young person of color as they come to terms with their sexuality and come out to their friends and families . In 2011 , she won many awards for '' Pariah , '' including the John Cassavetes Award at the Independent Spirit Awards , the Gotham Independent Film Award for Breakthrough Director , the Outstanding Independent Motion Picture Award at the NAACP Image Awards , and the Outstanding Film – Limited Release Award at the GLAAD Media Award in 2012 . '' Pariah '' has been compared to the written work of Audre Lorde , specifically Zami : a New Spelling of my name . Both forms provide a different take on the lived experiences of young Black lesbian women in a way that gives the characters depth and power . Both stories of identity , they are not only diversifying the characters audiences enjoy in media , but also providing an authentic expression of these lives
2011 Sundance Film Festival
2011 Sundance Film Festival
Dee Rees