By Denny Patterson
Believing that every member of the queer community aspires for love, secure housing, good health, supportive relationships, and the daily joy of living with a smile, Matt Cullen is humanizing LGBTQ+ people in a unique way with his inspirational documentary series, Our Queer Life.
From celebrities and street hustlers to drag queens and those living in off-grid communities, Cullen connects with people from every color of the rainbow. Not only do these intimate portraits showcase their individual journeys, but also how they are shaping a stronger and more resilient community.
“My passion is spotlighting those who are fighting to live their authentic truth,” Cullen says. “I enjoy sharing stories of those who display perseverance in the face of difficult circumstances; who don’t allow setbacks to hold them back.”
Through Our Queer Life, Cullen has made it his mission to help destigmatize topics like sex work and amplify important issues such as the misrepresentation of trans men and women. He also hopes that viewers who identify with the people he interviews in the show may receive a better sense of understanding and possibly feel a bit of empathy for their plights.
OutClique had the opportunity to sit down with Cullen and talk more about the series and its origins, as well as his love for one-on-one conversations, which interview impacted him the most, and what’s next.
Denny Patterson: As a freelance documentarian and journalist, you are best known for your digital series, Our Queer Life. Can you tell us more about the project and what viewers can expect?
Matt Cullen: Our Queer Life is a digital docuseries that centers on me diving deep into the queer community in a way that I’ve really never seen done before. I’ve spent more than two years now interviewing people from all different walks of life in our community. From ex-Mormons in Salt Lake City and street hustlers in Los Angeles to celebrities and Drag Race girls, I’m really learning about the hurdles and things they had to go through to live their authentic truth.
Denny Patterson: What initially inspired you to showcase these intimate portraits of people in the LGBTQ+ community?
Matt Cullen: I think for me, after COVID, I just had a yearning and a strong desire to learn about other people in our community and what they had to go through in order to live authentically for themselves. Thankfully, I’ve lived a very privileged life in the sense that my parents have accepted me since the moment I came out, and I know that’s not the case for so many people in our community. So, I was just hungry to learn. I’ve always been a very introspective person, one-on-one kind of conversationalist, and this experience broadened my mind and taught me a lot about our community. It showed me the strength and uniqueness that we all have in our community. This started from a very organic place, but it transformed into something much bigger. I am eating, sleeping, and breathing this show.
Denny Patterson: And what has it been like to connect with these people and build relationships? Do you stay in contact with them?
Matt Cullen: I stay in touch with every single person that I’ve had on my show, and I take pride in that because I feel so close to them. Personally, I’m a very introverted person, so having these moments and intimate conversations with these people, I feel very bonded with them. I love staying in touch with them, and I also do a lot of update episodes. If viewers of the show love a certain person, then I might connect with them again later and see what they’re up to now. We can all follow their journey. Meeting all these people has been so amazing, and it’s changed my life. Every time I interview somebody, I feel so inspired. Even if they live a very different life than me, I can take away so much. Their strength, their resilience, their want and hunger for a better life – these are all things we can relate to. No matter who I’ve interviewed, I always leave feeling so inspired, and I feel like my mind has been broadened.
Denny Patterson: Is that also what you ultimately hope audiences take away from the series?
Matt Cullen: Definitely. I also think there’s so much conversation around our queer community, especially with the trans community these days, that’s stigmatizing. People are putting nasty words towards the trans community when they’re unaware of what a trans person is truly like. With my show, I really hope that I show the humanity in people. Somebody who doesn’t have a gay, queer, trans person in their life, they can watch my show and feel like they can relate to the person by the end of it.
Denny Patterson: Whose story would you say resonated with you the most?
Matt Cullen: If I had to pick somebody, I would choose this trans woman named Mousie. She was a street hustler and spent her life in and out of jail since 1992, but what I loved about her was her resilience and her want to stand up for people in our community. She never allowed anyone to talk down to anybody in our community, and she was ready to throw down if they did. She was really the first person that introduced me to the world of street hustlers in Los Angeles and that side of life, and she truly trusted me. Unfortunately, she passed about a year and half after our first episode. It’s been wild, but I feel her spirit with me as I continue the series because she always told me how proud she was and how she loved how I portrayed her story. I felt very connected to her, and I think my audience did as well.
Denny Patterson: In a way, the show is now dedicated to her memory.
Matt Cullen: I feel like it is. She would always say we’re going to do great things together and that so much of her life needs to be documented, and I’m so glad that I was able to showcase it. Her story has thousands of views, and her legacy continues because of the show. As my show, the stories, and viewers grow, I feel like she’s with me and she’s helping to pioneer that.
Denny Patterson: How many seasons and episodes are there of Our Queer Life right now?
Matt Cullen: There’s one season on WOW Presents Plus, and then I put out episodes every single week on YouTube. So, there’s over 100 episodes now, I probably have at least three more months of episodes that are backlogged.
Denny Patterson: Have you always had a passion or desire to become a documentarian and journalist?
Matt Cullen: I think I did, but I didn’t know that I did. Since high school, I’ve always loved those intimate conversations. Group situations make me very nervous, but I’m all about one-on-one conversations where I can ask somebody questions. I’ve always been so curious about somebody’s life and about what makes them happy, what makes them sad, and how they find strength in the darkest of days. I’ve had that in me since I was a child, and when I came out to LA, I wanted to be a filmmaker and act. So, I feel like everything that I love kind of melded into this, and it all makes so much sense when I look back on my life trajectory. I see that I was meant to do this.
Denny Patterson: Are you currently working on any other series?
Matt Cullen: Our Queer Life takes up so much of my time, but I do scripted content as well. I have a series coming out with Keke Palmer and my best friend, which I co-created, and that will be on KeyTV. That is her platform for digital content. Then I’m also pitching shows, and I’m trying to get Our Queer Life onto a bigger platform, maybe a streamer of some sort. I’m just kind of riding the wave, letting the audience grow, and seeing what opportunities come from this.
Denny Patterson: What are some other goals you hope to accomplish with your career and platform?
Matt Cullen: Oh, gosh. I would love a show on Netflix or HBO, like anybody else would, but for now, I’m just enjoying connecting with the people on my show and hearing from the audience. Moms have reached out to me saying their son just came out and they didn’t know how to handle it, but then they watched my series and understood more. They want to be there for their child. People that live in small towns in the middle of the United States have reached out saying how they feel alone and no other people in their life they can relate to, but after watching my show, it made them feel more seen and heard. Those are the kind of messages that keep me going and enjoy the process of growing my YouTube channel. The power of YouTube is wild, and you can reach so many people. It’s been very rewarding to put my work out there and hear from the world what it means to them.
