''195 Lewis'' (pronounced ''One Nine Five Lewis'') is an American

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

web series A web series (also known as a web show) is a series of scripted or non-scripted online videos, generally in episodic form, released on the Internet, which first emerged in the late 1990s and became more prominent in the early 2000s. A single i ...

created by Rae Leone Allen and Yaani Supreme, and co-written with

Terence Nance Terence Nance (born February 10, 1982) is an American filmmaker, writer, director, actor and musician from Dallas, Texas. He is best known for his directing debut ''An Oversimplification of Her Beauty'', and as the creator of the avant-garde TV p ...

and director

Chanelle Aponte Pearson Chanelle Aponte Pearson is an American writer, producer, and director. She is a member of the New Negress Film Society. She is best known as the director of '' 195 Lewis'', a scripted web series about Black queer women living in Bed Stuy, Brookly ...

. It follows several

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...

queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are not heterosexual or cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against those with same-sex desires or relationships in the late 19th century. Beginning in the lat ...

women (played by Allen, Sirita Wright, Roxie Johnson, and D. Ajane Carlton) living in

Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn Bedford–Stuyvesant (), colloquially known as Bed–Stuy, is a neighborhood in the northern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. Bedford–Stuyvesant is bordered by Flushing Avenue to the north (bordering Williamsburg), Classon Av ...

(Bed-Stuy). The series was released online on its website, ''One Nine Five Lewis'', on November 16, 2017. It received the 2018

Gotham Award The Gotham Awards () are American film awards, presented annually to the makers of independent films at a ceremony in New York City, the city first nicknamed "Gotham" by native son Washington Irving, in an issue of ''Salmagundi'', published on ...

for Breakthrough Series and a Special Mention at

Outfest Outfest is an LGBTQ-oriented nonprofit that produces two film festivals, operates a movie streaming platform, and runs educational services for filmmakers in Los Angeles. Outfest is one of the key partners, alongside the Frameline Film Festival ...

2017.

Plot

''195 Lewis'' centers on a close-knit group of Black queer women navigating relationships in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn. The series features topics such as

sex positivity The sex-positive movement is a social and philosophical movement that seeks to change cultural attitudes and norms around sexuality, promoting the recognition of sexuality (in the countless forms of expression) as a natural and healthy part of the ...

and

polyamory Polyamory () is the practice of, or desire for, romantic relationships with more than one partner at the same time, with the informed consent of all partners involved. People who identify as polyamorous may believe in open relationships wit ...

Cast and characters

* Rae Leone Allen as Yuri, an artist and Camille's girlfriend * Sirita Wright as Camille, Yuri's girlfriend who recently completed her PhD * Roxie Johnson as Kris, a recent transplant from Texas and Yuri's former college girlfriend * D. Ajane Carlton as Stacy-Anne, a womanizer and Camille's younger sister * Trae Harris as Harlem, Yuri's love interest

Production

Yaani Lewis and Rae Leone Allen created and wrote the initial script for ''195 Lewis''. The series reflects Lewis and Allen's experiences as Black queer women living in Brooklyn. The title refers to the address where they lived at the time with the street name changed. In 2014, they approached

's production company, MVMT, about the project and his business partner

requested to work on it. Pearson received the

Gotham Awards The Gotham Awards () are American film awards, presented annually to the makers of independent films at a ceremony in New York City, the city first nicknamed "Gotham" by native son Washington Irving, in an issue of ''Salmagundi'', published on ...

’ "Spotlight on Women Filmmakers Live The Dream" grant to further develop the series. It is her directorial debut. Allen stated that they had difficulty garnering interest in the project, and most of the crew and actors had little experience in television and film production. Nance and Pearson co-wrote and developed the script, and Jomo Fray was the director of photography.

Filming Cinematography (from ancient Greek κίνημα, ''kìnema'' "movement" and γράφειν, ''gràphein'' "to write") is the art of Film, motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography. Cinematographers use a lens (o ...

was on-location in Bed-Stuy. Fray's

cinematography Cinematography (from ancient Greek κίνημα, ''kìnema'' "movement" and γράφειν, ''gràphein'' "to write") is the art of motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography. Cinematographers use a lens to focu ...

frequently featured "bright, neon, and stylized" lighting.

Release and reception

The pilot premiered at the

BlackStar Film Festival The BlackStar Film Festival is a Philadelphia film festival focused on films about and by black, brown and indigenous people from around the world. It has been described as the "Black Sundance. The festival is named after Marcus Garvey's shipping ...

in 2014. It was later re-shot and the full five episodes of the series premiered on its website on November 16, 2017. ''195 Lewis'' received positive reception. In a review for ''

IndieWire IndieWire (sometimes stylized as indieWIRE or Indiewire) is a film industry and review website that was established in 1996. The site's focus was predominantly independent film, although its coverage has grown to "to include all aspects of Hollyw ...

'' Jude Dry wrote, "Director Chanelle Aponte Pearson makes a confident and splashy debut, catapulting her considerable producing skills to a new level." Writing for ''

Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character tra ...

'', Emily J. Smith stated, "While ''195'' intentionally tackles complex subjects like polyamory, sex positivity, and misogyny in lesbian culture, it's not in the way you might expect. The cast of characters allows for conflicting perspectives—even in this very specific world—so viewers are invited into a real conversation instead of a lecture."

Awards and nominations

* 2017 –

, U.S. Narrative Special Mention * 2017 –

, Audience Award for Favorite Narrative Feature * 2018 –

, Breakthrough Series – Short Form

References

External links

* * {{Gotham Independent Film Award for Breakthrough Series – Short Form 2017 web series debuts 2017 web series endings 2010s American black television series 2010s American comedy-drama television series 2010s American LGBT-related comedy television series 2010s American LGBT-related drama television series American comedy web series American drama web series Lesbian-related television shows Polyamory in fiction