It’s a powerful film, full of humanity and heart, but sadly many of the people who need to see it most won’t. Those who do are in for a powerful and beautiful experience.

The Advocate

Did you know there are over 30,000 conservative, Christian mothers in America who accept their LGBTQ children? Spread across the country but connected through private Facebook groups, they help one another overcome the teachings of their churches and call themselves “mama bears”–because of how ferociously they fight for the civil rights of their children and the entire LGBTQ community. Although they may have grown up as fundamentalist, evangelical Christians, mama bears are willing to risk losing friends, family, and faith communities to keep their offspring safe–even if it challenges their belief systems and rips their worlds apart. MAMA BEARS is an intimate, thought-provoking exploration of the journeys taken by Sara Cunningham and Kimberly Shappley, two “mama bears”–conservative, Christian mothers whose profound love for their LGBTQ children has turned them into fierce advocates for the entire queer community–and Tammi Terrell Morris, a young African American lesbian whose struggle for self-acceptance perfectly exemplifies why the mama bears are so vitally important.

Its a really beautiful, hopeful film that shows that, despite the best efforts of anti-LGBTQ+ groups and legislature, there are people and families out there that are willing to fight for them.

Film Inquiry