When it comes to putting yourself out there, novice film director Katrina Deaton gets the prize. Just ask those who attended the sold-out screening of her feature film “Underneath” at the 13th annual Philadelphia International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival. Written, directed by and starring Deaton, the film gives audiences a rollicking good time and a peek at the mind, body and soul of the lovely Ms. Deaton. Let’s say not much is left to the imagination.

Originally from Yeadon, Deaton attended West Chester University with a focus in communication. After graduation, she interned for the Ricki Lake and Judge Hackett shows, eventually working as a promotions assistant at radio stations Power 99 and WDAS. She also co-hosted a show at WURD 500 AM called “Mad Conversation.”

A foster child, Deaton began writing as a way to alleviate some of the pain and difficulties she faced in her life. She had an abusive father, and after an incident where she ended up in the hospital and he ended up in jail, a teacher at her school took her in. She tried to find a creative outlet for her troubles. “I found the pen to be my greatest weapon,” she said. And so the career of a writer was born. An avid poet, Deaton regularly reads at the October Gallery and other venues around Philadelphia.

PGN: Tell me about growing up.
KD: My mother died when I was 16 and after a brief stay with my father, I went to live with a foster family until college. I have a half-brother named Marcel. His nickname is Man, because he was really short. He’s two years older than me, but I think he had a growth spurt recently, so we might have to call him Marcel again.

PGN: How did “Underneath” come about?
KD: I had an idea and wrote the screenplay in about two weeks. I showed the script to a friend and he asked me what I was planning on doing with it. I didn’t really know, but he said it was too good to be sitting in a drawer and offered to help shoot it. We had about four crewmembers and shot for about four months on nights and weekends. My wife co-directed. We used our savings and whatever money we could get our hands on to fund it ourselves.

PGN: I understand that you are a motivational speaker. How did that come about?
KD: Power 99 had a program called “28 Schools in 28 Days” where DJs would go to schools to talk about violence and other problems affecting youth. A number of the DJs were not as responsible as one would like and, as coordinator of the events, I would find myself in an assemblyroom of kids and no one there to speak, so I did it myself. It went over really well and I saw how thirsty the kids were for someone to really talk to about issues. Since then I’ve spoken at a number of schools, the Black Male Symposium and a prison.

PGN: Tell me about coming out.
KD: My first love was my second-grade teacher. She’ll probably kill me if she reads this, but oh well. Like a lot of lesbians, I knew I had certain feelings and crushes towards women, but figured that I’d grow up going the traditional route. You know what you feel, but you also know what tradition dictates and you figure it’s inevitable that you’ll have a husband and kids, the “American Dream.” During my sophomore year in college, I hit a low point and was homeless for a minute. I had a friend, Sasha, who offered me the keys to her home. I moved in with her, but it was a one-bedroom apartment. Well, you can imagine what happened from there. We were together for two-and-a-half years, but unfortunately we were both in the closet and it took a toll on us. Her family is from Trinidad and they are an extremely homophobic culture. Her family outed her and it was really tough. I dated around a little after that before meeting my wife, Cherisse. We met on a Caribbean cruise. She had a boyfriend and was trying to fix me up with her best friend, who had come out to her. But I was more interested in her and she seemed to reciprocate. The last day of the cruise, we exchanged numbers and soon began calling each other. She lived in Florida and I lived in Philly. She still had a boyfriend then and she’d tell him she was sleepy and would call me up at 10 o’clock at night and we’d talk until 6 the next morning. Every day. I went to visit her to see what was developing between us. Her boyfriend picked up on the vibes and got jealous. Two days after I left, he proposed to her and she said yes. She continued to call me and I told her my feelings were too strong to just be friends. A month later she broke up with him.

PGN: How did you end up married?
KD: At first we just visited each other a lot; then one day I sent her some flowers. Her sister found the card and told her family. She was told that if she wanted to keep living in their house, she couldn’t have anything to do with me, so she packed up and moved to Philly. We eloped to Las Vegas about a year after she moved here. We now have a little daughter named Lesbo. She has four legs and a cold nose. It was a crazy time, but things worked out and her family finally came around. They love me now. She’s become my partner in all things: During the film she was the one who made sure my vision came to life. Since I acted in it as well as directing, she made sure when I was in front of the camera that we stayed true to my vision. It became her vision as well.

PGN: What was your favorite toy growing up?
KD: My Smurf Big Wheel. I’d put an Uno card in the spokes to make it sound like a motorcycle.

PGN: Favorite cartoon as a kid?
KD: (Breaks into the theme song “Truly Outrageous” from the ’80s series “Jem.”) I know that’s so un-lesbian like. I also liked [“Jim Henson’s] Muppet Babies.” And “The Transformers.” And “Dennis the Menace.” I think I watched too much TV.

PGN: What smell makes you stop and reflect?
KD: The ocean, or any body of water. There’s just something about water that brings me clarity. Even the Schuylkill, as bad as that smells, will help me focus and bring a peacefulness to me.

PGN: Most unusual possession?
KD: I have a collection of dolls. I’m not going to get any cool points for this, am I? I have two Michael Jackson dolls, an MC Hammer doll and a Vanilla Ice doll.

PGN: If you were a snack food, what would you be?
KD: I’d be a Sweet Tart. I’m the same all the time, but I could probably come off as sweet or tart to you depending on your taste buds that day! If you’re not in the mood for me, it’s probably going to be tart. I’m a sweetheart at the core, but I tend to be very vibrant and you have to be ready for it. If you saw my movie, there are four main characters and they’re all pieces of me.

PGN: What’s a habit you’ve kicked?
KD: I bite my fingernails and I’m working on stopping it because it drives my wife crazy, but it’s a work in progress.

PGN: If you could go back in time, what era would you choose?
KD: The Harlem Renaissance. I’d love to go back and be a part of the creativity that came out of that period. Some of the greatest writers in history were at their peak then: Zora Neal Hurston, Langston Hughes, James Baldwin, etc. It was the first time that black people had a real artistic voice in America. To have such a vibrant society thriving was a rebirth for our people after the horrors we’d been through. And the music was fun — I’d put on some shoes and add about 10 pounds so I could do the twirls and flips.

PGN: Name an author who has affected you.
KD: I like Toni Morrison: Being black and lesbian, she was one of the first authors I felt I could relate to.

PGN: People often mistake me for ...
KD: People’s cousins. I don’t know what that’s about, but people always think I look like some cousin of theirs.

PGN: Farthest you’ve traveled?
KD: Africa. My wife and I like to travel. Whenever we have to make a decision, we always solve it the same way: We flip a coin or draw from a hat (or check the bank balance). We were torn between Africa, Brazil, China and Spain. It turned out that Africa was pretty cheap, because people are scared to travel there with the various civil wars going on. It was an amazing experience. Over there, we weren’t African American, we weren’t African, we were just Americans. To them we were all just rich Americans with everything handed to us. Spoiled and born with a silver spoon in our mouths. Nonetheless, because we were women we were highly respected. Just being in the place where mankind was first born was humbling. To see the pyramids and learn about how they were destroyed by Hitler and why and all of the history behind them was fascinating. Unfortunately, it was when the hurricane hit Louisiana, so my name was a constant source of amusement for everyone. I got chided the whole time.

PGN: What’s the most exotic food you’ve eaten?
KD: My wife is Jamaican, so we eat a lot of stuff that’s really different for me. We eat a lot of saltfish, ackee and cocoa bread.

PGN: Do you play sports?
KD: I love football. I play wide receiver for the Philadelphia Phoenix, a full-contact women’s team. I’m on vacation this week, so I told my wife I’m eating everything I want, because when I come back I have to get into training mode. Look out, Philadelphia!