Max-Arthur Mantle

Max-Arthur Mantle is a Jamaican-born American author, photographer and filmmaker. His work is centered around highlighting, celebrating and elevating Black and Brown, LGBTQ+ and Caribbean, particularly Jamaican narratives. He studied Journalism and Photography at Howard University (Washington, DC) and served in the US military (Navy).

His debut novel Batty Bwoy, self-published in 2015 is the coming of age story of Mark Palmer, a black, gay, Jamaican where “Boom bye bye inna batty bwoy head” (meaning, gunshot to gay men) has replaced the island’s motto “Out of many one people.” The son of an overbearing neglectful mother, he is thrust in an environment that requires a thick skin from torments and socio-economic disparities. Suppressing his “gay tendencies” to detract being bashed or murdered, he migrates to America and breaks free from the closet to a world where he is marginalized. As his life spirals from bad choices, he clings to desperate measures and finds hope.

The Miami Herald interview (December 2015) discussed Mantle's debut novel, "Batty Bwoy", a story exploring the complexities of growing up gay in Jamaica and in the diaspora. The interview, conducted by Tim Padgett, the writer who wrote the famous/infamous 2006 Time magazine article labelling Jamaica "The Most Homophobic Place on Earth" focused on how Mantle's work resonated with the Caribbean LGBTQ+ community and could potentially influence attitudes and laws regarding homosexuality in the region.

In June 2024, to celebrate Pride Month and Caribbean American Month, GLAAD reported on Mantle's continued efforts to celebrate Caribbean LGBTQ+ narratives, highlighting his work as a tool for education and research. The article mentioned the positive community response to the screening of his documentary VISIBLE - The LGBTQ Caribbean Diaspora, particularly how the narratives resonated with LGBTQ+ individuals who face similar experiences of homophobia.

In photography, Mantle worked as a freelance fashion photographer in Miami Beach and New York City in the early 2000, shooting portfolios for agency represented models and garnering fashion editorials and covers for US and international fashion magazine. He is known for shooting the last cover of BLUE+66 magazine (Australia's premiere photo art high-end magazine) and a 2012 photo book "Beach Boys" published by Bruno Gmunder (Berlin, Germany).

Mantle's participation in The Studio Door PROUD+ 25 exhibition in San Diego from July 3 to August 1, 2025, as the featured artist showcasing his "Body Series" marked his official retirement from photography.

In film, Mantle directed and produced the groundbreaking documentary VISIBLE: The LGBTQ Caribbean Diaspora (2023), which features 30 participants who deconstruct what it means to be Caribbean, LGBTQ and living in North America.

His first narrative feature BATTY BWOY! inspired by the novel will make history as the first gay narrative feature film to be shot in Jamaica scheduled for a 2026 production.

SELECTED PRESS:

The Word (San Diego, CA)

https://youtu.be/pR-JgRV2Tyw?si=G1jEV0eYdfAK3JSQ

GLAAD

https://glaad.org/author-and-filmmaker-max-arthur-mantle-celebrates-caribbean-lgbtq-narratives-this-pride-month-and-caribbean-heritage-month/

Miami Herald Newspaper (Miami, FL)

https://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/op-ed/article47624020.html

Dartmouth College Graduate Student Council

https://gsc.dartmouth.edu/events-list/visible-the-lgbtq-caribbean-diaspora-screening-and-discussion

Penn State College of the Liberal Arts

https://events.la.psu.edu/event/visible-with-max-arthur-mantle/

Black Alphabet Film Festival (Chicago, IL)