Julio Torres, John Waters, And Billy Porter Star In The New Season Of “Finding Fire Island”
Finding Fire Island, the GLAAD Media Award-nominated documentary series chronicling the queer history of Fire Island, has returned for a second season. The first two episodes landed on YouTube on 11 June, with new instalments rolling out weekly, and this time the focus sits squarely on the Fire Island Pines.
The series is created, executive produced and narrated by Jess Rothschild, who has spent years gathering first-hand accounts from the people who shaped the island.
“As my obsession with the history and culture of Fire Island intensified over the years, I began collecting interviews with notable Fire Island figures, past and present,” Rothschild said. “This new season has allowed me to delve into stories that have yet to be told.”
What’s in Season 2?
Where the series previously covered both Cherry Grove and The Pines, the new episodes zero in on the latter: its architecture, its music, and the way residents build something out of nothing every summer. Ever wondered how those famous share houses actually run? The opener covers the rituals, house rules and traditions of daily Pines life, hears from Indian and Black community members on belonging in a traditionally cis, white space, and visits the Doll Invasion, the annual trans takeover festival.
The guest list is pure Fire Island royalty
Expect Billy Porter, filmmaker John Waters, comedians Julio Torres and Jay Jurden, Tony-winning choreographer Jerry Mitchell, fitness instructor Cody Rigsby, and the DJs who soundtracked decades of Pines parties, including Lina Bradford, Susan Morabito and Robbie Leslie.
Fire Island has held a special place in gay imagination since the 1950s, yet most of us know it through hearsay, group-chat folklore or one friend’s share-house photos.
A series that sits the island’s legends down on camera is doing the community a real service. Best of all, it costs nothing to watch.
