Flaming Creatures

Flaming Creatures
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Jack Smith
Produced by	Jack Smith
Starring	Francis Francine Sheila Bick Joel Markman Mario Montez Judith Malina
Distributed by	The Film-Makers' Cooperative
Release date	April 29, 1963 (1963-04-29)
Running time	42 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$300

Flaming Creatures is a 1963 American experimental film directed by Jack Smith. The film follows an ensemble of drag performers through several disconnected vignettes, including a lipstick commercial, an orgy, and an earthquake. It was shot on a rooftop on the Lower East Side on a very low budget of only $300, with a soundtrack from Smith's roommate Tony Conrad. It premiered April 29, 1963 at the Bleecker Street Cinema in Greenwich Village.

Because of the film's sexual content, some venues refused to show Flaming Creatures, and in March 1964, police interrupted a screening and seized a print of the film. Jonas Mekas, Ken Jacobs, and Florence Karpf were prosecuted, and the film was ruled to be in violation of New York's obscenity laws. Mekas and critic Susan Sontag mounted a critical defense of Flaming Creatures, and it became a cause célèbre for the New American Cinema movement. Judge Abe Fortas, who had spoken in favor of reversing the convictions, faced scrutiny for his position years later when he was nominated to become Chief Justice of the United States. Flaming Creatures eventually fell out of circulation, and after Smith's death, a restoration was undertaken to preserve the film.