About the film

The Mardi Gras Baby Dolls' masking tradition fearlessly explore themes of identity, sexual liberation and the freedom that carnival lends in New Orleans amongst Black women. The group pulls a thread throughout time to reclaim culture, tradition and freedom while challenging society's perception on how Black women are to act and exist in the world. They create an alternative social space.

Filmmaker

Vashni Balleste

About Reel South

Reel South SHORTS, the digital hive of the PBS series Reel South, showcases the best in Southern short-form and is built on partnerships with the South’s regional film festivals. Reel South reveals the South's proud yet complicated heritage, as told by a diversity of voices and perspectives, through the curation and distribution of feature-length and short documentaries. Reel South is a PBS documentary series co-produced by PBS North Carolina, South Carolina ETV, and Louisiana Public Broadcasting, and produced in association with Alabama Public Television, Arkansas PBS, Texas Tech Public Media, Texas PBS, Tennessee Public Television Council, and VPM. Reel South is a platform for and a service to non-fiction filmmakers in the American South working within the region’s tradition of storytelling.

Full Credits