Bible Belt ‘L Word’ on Showtime

A new documentary from “The L Word’s” Ilene Chaiken premieres on Showtime Friday, Aug. 8. Chaiken gave a sneak peek of “L Word Mississippi: Hate the Sin” at the West Hollywood Library for the monthly Outfest West Hollywood Series.

“Hate the Sin” takes a look inside the daily struggles of a group of Southern women, revealing what life is like for lesbians living in the religious, conservative Deep South, far from the more progressive metropolitan areas in America.

Ilene Chaiken

The 90-minute documentary is executive produced by Chaiken and the award-winning Magical Elves directing and production team of Dan Cutforth and Jane Lipsitz (“Top Chef,” “Katy Perry: Part of Me”). The film is directed by Oscar and Emmy nominee Lauren Lazin (“Tupac: Resurrection”).

“Hate the Sin” is a continuation of Chaiken’s depiction of modern-day lesbian life. Her groundbreaking Showtime drama series “The L Word” ran for six seasons on the network and followed a group of Los Angeles-based friends as they navigated careers, families, friendships, inner-struggles and romantic entanglements. The series generated a large and loyal audience, as well as critical praise for its provocative storylines. It was followed by three seasons of “The Real L Word,” an unscripted series produced by Chaiken, Cutforth and Lipsitz that followed a similar group of lesbians at work and at play in LA and NY. They are now re-teaming for the documentary, set against the backdrop of the burgeoning gender and marriage equality debate.

The program is made possible in part from a grant from the City of West Hollywood through its Arts and Cultural Affairs Commission and through Outfest West Hollywood Series, held on the first Wednesday of each month featuring films and discussions of interest to LGBT audiences at West Hollywood Library, 625 N. San Vicente Blvd.

Admission is free; free validated parking is available at the five-story public/park structure.