mygenderstudiesblog-blog

[mygenderstudiesblog-blog]

Tales From Turtle Island: A Collection of Inspiring 2SGLGBTQ+ Stories

By: Hannah Young 

Introduction:

On February 1st, the Reelout queer film + video festival in Kingston Ontario. On this day, I attended a screening of the film Tales From Turtle Island. This film was comprised of a series of narrative, documentary, and animated shorts…by multiple different directors.

About This Film:

Tales From Turtle Island is comprised of seven short stories. Primarily, these shorts are centred the lives of 2SGLGBTQ+ individuals. The titles is a little misleading, as not all of the films relate to the subject of Turtle Island. Two of these shorts that broke from said ‘mold’, were ‘Badassery’ and ‘Hole'. ‘Badassery’ follows the the lives of three female Toronto DJs whom are trying to succeed in a male dominated industry. While ‘Hole’ depicts the struggles someone with Autism Spectrum Disorder faces. More specifically, what goes on inside of the mind of the fictional character Mo.  While it is composed of multiple films, they all depict the different challenges faced by people throughout everyday life. All and all, these stories follow both the lives of real people, as well as fictional characters.

My Opinion:

Tales of Turtle Island was an extremely powerful and emotional film. Throughout the seven different films many important topics were brought up for discussion. As a result, the audience was left with a series of different emotions after the film concluded. Before the film began, the organizers of Reelout warned the audience of the potential graphics to the film. However, there seemed to be none as the film progressed. One positive aspect about this film was that it had a light nature for such a heavy series’ of topics. By keeping these subjects on a lighter side, the film was able to be connected with better, as it was not dramatized. This also allowed for a feeling of normatively.

Throughout the film, many aspects (beside the normativity and lightness) stood out. Even though there were multiple different subjects discussed throughout the film, they all discussed popular social issues within today’s society. These topics included indigenous culture, gender roles, as well as reflexivity. In ‘Walk With My Spirits’, ’Wildfire’, as well as, ‘The Most Unprotected Girl’ indigenous culture was the main topic of conversation. ‘Walk With My Spirits’ centred around Tyler Jacobs’ journey as a dancer and fashion designer to rediscover his two-spirt identity through his heritage. Similarly, in ‘Wildfire’, the importance of indigenous culture is also brought to light. While run-in g away from their abusive step-father, a two-spirt teen meets a member of the Mi’kmaw tribe, and they are introduced to their traditions and language. Finally, in ‘The Most Unprotected Girl’, artist JB The First Lady stresses the importance of the awareness of missing and murdered indigenous women, as well as two-spirit individuals. With these films, understanding culture (and more specifically indigenous culture) is essential as they depict the historical importance of two spirit individuals. Throughout indigenous history, said individuals were highly respected members of their communities. However, as a result of colonization, these roles were condemned.Through the normativity of this film, two-spirited individuals, and the history behind the topic allows for a better understanding. Another topic heavily focused on was the gender roles, and the importance of breaking them.

In ‘Badassery’ and ‘I am Me’ the topic of gender is heavily discussed. In ‘Badassery’, three female DJs are introduced. All three of these women are currently taking the Toronto hip-hop scene by storm ( which is an extremely male dominated industry) through their insane talent and are doing so unapologetically. In ‘I am Me’, Jazmine Smith is introduced. Jazmine is a transgender individual who grew up as a boy in Saskatchewan. Through the discovery of makeup, she was able to find not only herself, but also her true passion. Through these two films, the social construct of gender is broken down. First this is done by the three female DJs and their powerful breakthrough into the hip-hop scene. Stereotypically, women are seen as nurturing and supportive subordinates. However, this film clearly shows the exact opposite. The same can be said for Jazmine Smith. In society’s construct, the term ‘woman’ is often times viewed a biologically. In this film, one of the positive and key elements was the proper representation given to Jazmine as a proud Transwomen. This is due to the fact that often times, the media misrepresents transpeople in degrading manners. All in all, this film represents the importance and the idea that gender is what you choose to make it. 

Finally, the idea of reflexivity was an extremely popular theme. This was evident through the films ‘Hole’ and ‘War Movie’. In ‘Hole’, the film centres around Mo, an adult with Autism. Spectrum Disorder. It follows Mo through his everyday life, and how he spends a large portion of his time in his mind. Until one day, a hole begins to follow him… greatly impacting him. Although not as similar to one another, ‘War Movie’ depicts an argument between an LQBTQ+ couple after they leave a movie screening and their differences on the topic spill into their life together. While these two films do not coincide together, they both do share the importance of reflexivity. While it is difficult to understand a person with Autism Spectrum Disorders point of view, it does not make it any less than another individuals’. The exact same can be said for ‘War Horse’.  

Final Thoughts:

All in all, Tales From Turtle Island was a an extremely powerful film that effectively touched on multiple different real life topics that are extremely relevant in today’s society. The film was also able to depict these subjects in a respectful manner. However, one aspect of this film that I did not like was how it jumped all over the place with some of the topics having very little relevance to one another. With that said, this film did project positive emotions and left me with a greater understanding of the topics discussed.  

Bibliography:

Jobe, Jessica N., “Transgender Representation in the Media” (2013). Honors Theses. 132. https://encompass.eku.edu/honors_theses/132

Kaufman, Peter. “Intersectionality for Beginners.” Everyday Sociology Blog, 23 Apr. 2018, www.everydaysociologyblog.com/2018/04/intersectionality-for-beginners.html#more.

“Tales From Turtle Island Shorts Program.” Reelout, www.reelout.com/event/tales-from-turtle-island-shorts-program/.

“Two-Spirit.” Provincial Health Services Authority - Province-Wide Solutions. Better Health., www.phsa.ca/transcarebc/trans-basics/two-spirit.

Word Count: 1,061

[mygenderstudiesblog-blog]

[mygenderstudiesblog-blog]

Diane Arbus, An Empty Movie Theater, New York City, 1971

[mygenderstudiesblog-blog]

ginza  16:49:15

[mygenderstudiesblog-blog]

“Changing the Game” Film Review

By: Charlotte Gibson

At the Reelout Film Festival, I watched the film Changing the Game, which was a brilliant, poignant tribute to young American athletes breaking down gender barriers in sport. The documentary focuses on three transgender high school athletes from different parts of America as they battle prejudice on and off the sporting fields. This film was very inspirational as it was a non-dogmatic point of view, bringing a previously taboo matter to audiences across the world. The film follows three athletes from different parts of America as they fight outdated societal biases. These athletes are Mack Beggs, who is a Texan wrestler, and Andraya Yearwood a track athlete in Connecticut and Sarah Rose Huckman who is a skier in New Hampshire. The film gives pretext into their early struggles with gender identity but mostly focuses on the challenges in sport. 

The film first introduces Mack Beggs, a practically undefeated transgender wrestler who calls the conservative state of Texas home. Mack family life is especially intriguing; he was raised by his Republican, southern Baptist, gun-promoting grandparents who vocally support Mack and the trans community. Although their continuous trouble using the right pronouns when they are referring to Mack, they are trying to support their grandson to the best of their abilities. Macks grandparents support can be seen when, per Mack’s wishes, honours Mack’s new identity by putting away all photos of him before his transition. Mack is also a very distinguished wrestler in the high school division. Although Mack desired to compete with the gender, he identifies with Mack competes with girls and won the girls’ wrestling title. In the girls’ division, he’s an unstoppable force which in turn makes the parents of the girls he competes against furious. The parents of the other competitors believe that Mack has an unfair advantage over their daughters. The documentarian never asked the parents whether they favour more enlightened policies regarding transgender athletics, but, it is assumed that the parent holds more traditional and conservative views. There the parents of the other female wrestler’s self-interest clashes with their political conviction. The discriminatory laws prohibiting Mack to compete in the men’s division did not just upset his competitors’ parents, it unleashed a cruel wave of insults from media and news outlets. Some fellow students even took to social media to comment degrading messages about trans athletes. In the reading Music and New Media, the detrimental effects of hate speech on social media are discussed. The effects of cyber hate speech are apparent in the article as it describes the damaging effects that hate post have on members of the LGBTQ community, often leaving them to have feelings of unworthiness and depression. Despite Macks athletic success and caring family and girlfriend, the tribulations in his life have induced Macks struggle with depression. Struggling depression is not uncommon for transgender athletes; statistics shown in the film stated that 40% of transgender athletes battle suicidal thoughts or attempt suicide. 

 The fight for trans rights in sports extends to Connecticut and New Hampshire where the films two other main characters, Andraya Yearwood from Connecticut and Sarah Rose Huckman from New Hampshire reside. Trans policies and culture surround trans acceptance vary from state to state; Sarah and Andraya seem to be more fortunate with environments of support and acceptance around them. Andraya is an African American sprinter from Connecticut who is allowed to compete with her identified gender on the track. Although she is allowed to compete with other women, she faces a bombardment of verbal abuse from the sidelines because of her intersecting identity. Being transgender, African American woman Andraya faces multiple forms of discriminations. Intersectional discrimination can be seen throughout American history. In the reading, Race and Radicalization, the author speaks to how the media and different power structures interact with the lives of African American women. An example from the text is an ad released in 1989 depicting the hands of two men, one black one white, handcuffed together; and a picture of black women breastfeeding a white baby. These ads illustrate the intersecting discrimination that black trans women in America face within a gendered and racialized system of exploitation. The first advertisement conjured the historical experience of slavery, and the second depicted the designation of African American women as objects of white Americans needs. The verbal abuse that Andraya faces while competing is a modern example of intersectional discrimination in the sporting world. 

Sarah Rose Huckman, a New Hampshire skier and trans activist worries about her eligibility to compete with the gender she identifies with. While Sarah was competing, New Hampshire passed a law that requires her to have reassignment surgery, to compete with other females. However, since 15 and 16 years old are too young to have surgery, Sarah and her family went to GLAD and the Athletic Association of New Hampshire to decide if a trans person can compete on a team with the gender they identify with. Through Sarah’s activism, she was able to change this law. Activism is an essential element in the fight for equal rights. The importance and effect of gender-based activism are explained in the Feminist Theory and Pop Culture reading. The author describes the importance of activism in gender equality, stating that historically gender-based activism has created substantive changes in government policies and persuading people to change their opinions on gender equality. It is of the utmost importance that activists like Sarah continue to practice gender activism to carry on the fight for equality. 

  Changing the Game is brilliantly crafted, an intimate story led by three brave high school students, allowing personal and vulnerable access into their struggles as trans athletes. The editing is also well-done; the viewer feels as if they are spending equal time between the characters. Although the documentary included many coaches and family members, the film was short supplied when it comes to policymakers and people holding positions of power which would help give the viewer more context. The ending was optimistic, as Mack can compete on a male wrestling team in college. However, the film also briefly recognizes that policies of the Trump administration have harmful repercussions in the lives of many trans Americans, especially the ones living out of urban centres reminding the viewer the importance of continuing campaigning for Trans rights. 

Words: 1049

Refercenes:

https://ereserves.library.queensu.ca/ares/ares.dll?Action=10&Type=10&Value=119913

https://ereserves.library.queensu.ca/ares/ares.dll?Action=10&Type=10&Value=120730

file:///Users/charlottegibson/Downloads/[9789463000604%20-%20Feminist%20Theory%20and%20Pop%20Culture]%20Feminist%20Theory%20and%20Pop%20Culture.pdf

[mygenderstudiesblog-blog]

“Badassery” Film Review

By Hannah Nash

I was given the opportunity to attend the Reelout Queer Film and Video festival located in Kingston, Ontario. I originally thought it was something I typically would not enjoy, but ended up having a lot of fun. The film I am writing about is called “Badassery” by Sarafina McIntosh, Demi Valentine and Sunita Miya-Muganza.  

This short documentary takes place in Toronto, Ontario and takes a look at three female DJ’s who are pursuing their hip-hop passion in such a male dominated industry. Each and every female DJ they interviewed explains how important it is not to give up regardless of your gender and race. They simply set a great example for women, as well as the LGBTQ community who have been excluded from the hip-hop world due to the norms society has put in place. These independent artists have created a brand for themselves using their media and social skills, they know how to set themselves apart from other artists and instead of tearing eachother down to make it in this competitive industry they choose to empower each other. This documentary carefully weighs all the social, political, and cultural factors to understand how they enable and empower one’s success in this very competitive hip-hop industry. The documentary interviews three female DJ’s who are either women of colour and/or identify as either LGBTQ they share how difficult it has been to make it in such a male dominated industry. The hegemonic male has a great advantage to make it in the music industry since they have this dominance over others in which they conform with the social and cultural norms of the hip-hop industry. Since the hip-hop industry in Toronto is male dominated it is hard for women in general to make it in this industry. Now if you are a woman of colour it is even harder, and if you are part of the LGBTQ community it can be even harder. This is because of the different degrees of oppression and discrimination. An important question is why is it so much harder for women? Intersectionality, a theory developed my Kimberle Crenshaw, explains how factors such as race, gender and class intersect to create different degrees of oppression. In other words Peter Kaufman explains it as, “... to ask yourself: how do my race, gender, class, and other social positions enable my actions in some instances and constrain them in others'” (Kaufman, 2018, 1). The three female DJ’s explain the importance of pursuing your passion regardless of the social factors that try to hold you back. The documentary considers specific positions including race, gender, and political factors that can constrain or empower one's success.

As previously stated, it is difficult for women and LGBTQ people to make it in the hip-hop industry because the social and cultural norms try to keep them out. This refers to the idea of normativity, what is accepted and not accepted into society. Sarah Ahmed refers to a norm as a room, meaning if you do not conform with these norms it is as if being in a room that you are not allowed to be in, and you are supposed to feel uncomfortable (Ahmed, 2017, 116). This idea is relevant to the documentary since the hip-hop industry has these norms that one is expected to conform with and if they do not, then they are excluded. For example, one of the Female DJs goes by “DJ Cookie Doh” she does not abide by the traditional idea of femininity. She wears baggy clothes and has her hair shaved because she wants people to focus on her music instead of her looks. Since she is a woman, part of the LGBTQ community, and is a woman of colour, the norms of the hip-hop industry exclude her. In order to become part of this particular “room” one will have to put in work to be accepted, this is referred to as diversity work. Sarah Ahmed explains diversity work as, “when you have to try to make others comfortable with the fact of your own existence…” (Ahmed, 2017, 131). These three DJs have worked hard continuously throughout the documentary by building their brand, improving their music skills, media skills, social skills, and made music that sets them apart from others. They have put in a lot of work to overcome obstacles, being the social and cultural norms put in place that have tried to prevent them from succeeding in this male dominated hip-hop industry.

To conclude, I found this film to be very interesting. It was compelling to watch since it related to many theories and ideas mentioned in class, including intersectionality, gender, race, normativity, discrimination, and many more. I was able to use analytical skills to identify key concepts and see the film from a deeper perspective due to my previous knowledge in gender studies. Overall, I suggest taking time to see this great documentary. It captured the key problems in society that typically get overlooked. This film is about the hip-hop industry that displays discrimination, male dominance, and the struggles women go through to make it in the hip-hop industry, but it is also relevant in a larger population. These problems exist all over society in general, a few that came to mind include, the idealization of male dominance over others within society, institutional racism, covert racism and discrimination, and the idea that if you do not conform with the traditional norms by society you are considered odd and weird. 

Word count: 913

References:

Ahmed, Sarah. “Living a Feminist Life” Duke University Press, 2017.

Kaufman, Peter. “intersectionality for Beginners.” Everyday Sociology, 2018. https://www.everydaysociologyblog.com/2018/04/intersectionality-for-beginners.html#more  

[mygenderstudiesblog-blog]

An Intimate Look into a Heartbreaking Reality: The Garden Left Behind

By: Alyssa Macpherson

Introduction:

I recently had the opportunity to attend the Reelout queer film + video festival in Kingston, Ontario to watch one of their feature films. The film I chose to watch was The Garden Left Behind directed by Flavio Alves. 

About This Film:

The Garden Left Behind is centred around a young trans woman named Tina Carrera who lives with her grandmother in New York City. The film sheds light upon the daily challenges Tina faces including her identity, her love life, the hatred she receives, and the struggles of being an undocumented immigrant. Throughout the film, Tina struggles to find herself and to fit in as a trans woman who has not yet fully transitioned. Tina finds comfort and purpose with members of a “Trans Lives Matter” social movement and begins to feel accepted and worthy, despite confusion and negativity towards the cause from both her grandmother and the man she loves. This film takes us through Tina’s life and her physical and monetary struggle to transition and to be happy with both her life and herself. Due to many setbacks, Tina starts to feel defeated, which does not go unnoticed by a young man who has been closely observing Tina from afar. 

My Opinion:

In my opinion, The Garden Left Behind was an extremely powerful and memorable film. Many important topics were discussed in great detail and as the audience, we were all left with many strong feelings after watching it. This film was certainly heavy and had mature content within it which I felt was ultimately why the film was so powerful. There was a disclaimer and a trigger warning given before the film began along with a brief introduction by the Reelout employees. This prepared the audience for what they were about to watch and ensured no one would be shocked or surprised by the nature of the film. This was very important as the subjects and events of the film dealt with many touchy subjects that could easily make viewers feel uncomfortable and upset.`

One aspect of the film that really stood out to me and that I felt was very impactful was the way in which numerous social issues and ideas were tackled at once. This movie is primarily based around the struggles trans individuals face each day however that was definitely not the only topic that was addressed. The subjects of immigration and race along with poverty and unemployment played vital roles in this film. The intersectionality that The Garden Left Behind expressed was extremely useful and vital to really understand the struggles that the characters were facing. It showed the “multiple levels of discrimination” (Kaufman 2018) that these women were facing not only from being trans, but due to their race, gender, and class as well. The intersectionality in this film made it a lot more applicable to the real world and greatly enhanced its relevance. The intersectional variety in this film was very powerful and made the overall message and meaning immensely impactful to all viewers. 

One of the major subjects in The Garden Left Behind were protests and social movements. Especially in popular areas such as New York City, social movements are very common and effective at voicing opinions on serious topics. The march and social movement in this film was the “Trans Lives Matter” movement. This movement focuses on the unfair and unjust treatment the trans community faces from police in their daily life. They encouraged the fact that “gender is socially constructed”, (Raskoff 2017) and that they should not need to be cisgender to be treated fairly by police. These social movements are a powerful way to stand up for what you believe in and by including them in this film, it demonstrates the reality of the work that many activists put in to try to make a difference. The other people involved with the social movement in the film also helped Tina feel like she fit in and she found people that understood how she constantly felt. “The Trans Lives Matter” group provided Tina with the stability and assurance she desperately needed to feel worthy and important. The importance of friends in this context and an inclusive environment is something I feel is extremely important for all people. Friends make you feel worthy and valid and you can be yourself around them without the fear of being judged. This film did an excellent job of portraying the importance of having friends to lean on for support and reassurance and proved that no matter what, there’s always people there that care about you. Knowing that you are never alone is a very important message to get across to the audience especially youth as they find themselves and as mental illness and self-doubt are extremely prevalent to that age group. 

Another aspect of the film I found extremely interesting was the fear and embarrassment that was demonstrated towards Tina and other trans people. Tina’s boyfriend Jason, who she was with for the beginning of the movie, refused to go out in public with her and acted ashamed and embarrassed to be associated with her at all. He seemed to enjoy the sexual aspects of their relationship but nothing more. He slowly distanced himself from Tina due to his binary thinking and the idea that he did not fit into the typical “man” role. There was also a young boy named Chris, who watched Tina from a far and slowly seemed to fall in love with her. After being exposed to his transphobic and cisgender friends, when he finally came face to face with Tina, he acted out of rage and hatred towards her, instead of showing her his real feelings. He seemed to genuinely hate himself for falling in love with her and due to his friends opinions, he felt trapped and embarrassed. This truly shows the stigma associated with trans people in society as Chris felt so trapped and confused due to feeling it was wrong for loving someone who was not cisgender. 

Final Thoughts:

Overall, I felt The Garden Left Behind was a powerful and touching film that tackled numerous important social issues present in today’s society. I felt the film did an excellent job depicting the thoughts and feelings of both members of the trans community and others looking in. After watching this film, everyone is guaranteed to feel many powerful emotions that will leave them with a new understanding of the challenges and struggles many face in their everyday lives. 

Word count: 1085

Works Cited:

Kaufman, Peter. “Intersectionality for Beginners.” Everyday Sociology, https://www.everydaysociologyblog.com/2018/04/intersectionality-for-beginners.html#more

Raskoff, Sally. “Signs of Gender.” Everyday Sociology, https://www.everydaysociologyblog.com/2017/03/signs-of-gender.html#more

[mygenderstudiesblog-blog]

The Garden Left Behind: Devastatingly Authentic and Equally Heart-Breaking

By: Tammy Tran

The Garden Left Behind, directed by Flavio Alves, and starring Carlie Guevara, is a film that follows the life of a Mexican trans woman who is struggling to make ends meet in order to build a life for herself as an undocumented immigrant living in New York City.

The movie begins as we see Tina (Carlie Guevara) traverse the dimly lit streets of New York, clearly distraught, as a vehicle filled with men hurling insults passes by. Next, the film goes back in time, to show take viewers through Tina’s daily life. We can begin to piece together that Tina has many responsibilities, working as a cab driver, and being the breadwinner for herself and her grandmother, Eliana (Miriam Cruz), who only speaks Spanish. Throughout the movie, many struggles that are endured by the transgender community prevail. Through Tina’s day to day life, her journey with activism, and her interpersonal relationships, The Garden Left Behind offers an intimate and honestly heartbreaking look into the challenges that come with this grossly marginalized group.  

What stood out to me first, was the fact that Eliana obviously loves and supports her granddaughter, however, she continues to refer to her as Antonio. It is evident that she understands Tina and who she is but it does not stop her from questioning why. Their complex relationship shows the underlying issues behind acceptance and the transgender community, even when it comes to our loved ones.

One of the prevailing issues in this film sees that Tina, who is struggling to make ends meet, must acquire the funds necessary to undergo a gender reassignment surgery. Getting this surgery was imperative to her mental health, seeing that overall quality of life is greatly diminished in transgender women who had not undergone surgical intervention (Ainsworth & Spiegel 2010). To do this, Tina had to pick up another job as a bartender and sell her car. Despite her efforts, the excessive medical costs were taking their toll. This is very obviously an obstacle for many trans people, especially in America. Drawing attention to this specific issue shows how various aspects of our social standing intersect to contribute to the oppression and privileges that we are subjected to. Tina not only had to endure the oppression related to being a transgendered woman, but she also faced restrictions due to her race, and her economic standing, and after all, “intersectional experience is greater than the sum of racism and sexism (Kaufman 2018).”

Next, through Tina’s relationship with her boyfriend Jason (Alex Cruz), more issues arise. at first, we are hinted at the fact that despite seeing each other for 2 years, the pair rarely go out in public. On the unlikely occasion that they do, Jason seems uncomfortable with the fact that Tina is transgender. This problem escalates and goes as far as seeing the two break up when Tina mentions to him that she will undergo surgical procedures to complete her transition. The concept of embarrassment is without a doubt an underlying theme to this heart-wrenching story.

Moreover, the topic of violence against trans people catalyzes Tina’s activism. A recent case involving a transgender woman gives Tina a reason to form allies in other transgender women from the same community. Together, they take on roles of activism that involve public protests, informing the public, and making announcements on various local news sources.

We see violence come up again when Tina catches the eye of Chris (Anthony Abdo), a corner store worker whom she sees regularly when purchasing various goods. Chris is undeniably attracted to Tina and lets his feelings fester. For the duration of the film, I genuinely thought that Chris’s feelings for Tina would lead to a romantic ending where the two finally get together. The moment where everyone in the theatre could collectively start to applause, and I could go home thinking about how adorable they were. Instead, the end of the film went back to the beginning and Chris is one of the men in the car, but he did not yell any profanities. He instead leaves the vehicle and beats Tina to death with a bat. After she is already unconscious, and his friends have already driven away, Chris regretfully hugs Tina’s lifeless body, clearly distraught. While Tina lays lifeless, her best friend, Carol (Tamara M. Williams), is trying to get a hold of her at a rally in support of transgender rights. The irony of Tina ultimately falling victim to what she was fighting against was not lost on me.

The Garden Left Behind offered an intimate, unadulterated look into the many struggles faced by too many and did an amazing job in doing so. The presence of transgender actors and actresses playing transgender roles added an air of authenticity that is oftentimes difficult to come by and only enhanced the movie as a whole. In her TEDTalk, Stella Young (2014), who identifies as a disabled person, speaks on the idea of turning marginalized groups into “inspiration porn.” In my own experience, I’ve seen many transgender characters in mainstream media act as exactly that, not to mention the fact that research proves they are rarely the main protagonist (Jobe 2013). It felt nice to support actors who could actually relate to the struggles faced by their respective main characters. There were undoubtedly some kinks, which included average acting, and too exaggerated characters, but none of this took away from how powerful the film was, and the long-lasting effect it unquestionably left on viewers.  

Word Count: 917

.

.

.

Bibliography

Kaufman, Peter. “Intersectionality for Beginners.” Everyday Sociology Blog, 23 Apr. 2018, www.everydaysociologyblog.com/2018/04/intersectionality-for-beginners.html#more.

Jobe, Jessica N., "Transgender Representation in the Media" (2013). Honors Theses. 132. https://encompass.eku.edu/honors_theses/132

Ainsworth, Tiffiny A., and Jeffrey H. Spiegel. “Quality of Life of Individuals with and without Facial Feminization Surgery or Gender Reassignment Surgery.” Quality of Life Research, vol. 19, no. 7, Dec. 2010, pp. 1019–1024., doi:10.1007/s11136-010-9668-7.

Youg, Stella. “I’m not your inspiration, thank you very much.” YouTube, uploaded by TED, 9 June 2012, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8K9Gg164Bsw

[mygenderstudiesblog-blog]

Introduction

The Reelout Film Festival, Kingston’s very own queer film and video festival was without a doubt an experience to remember. Established in 1999 as a product of the OPIRG group, Reelout’s founder, Marney McDiarmid had to carry out various trials in order to determine whether or not it was sustainable. The festival has come a long way since the test marketing phase that took place in the back room of the city’s only gay bar. The original contributors even went as far as creating a new non-profit organization titled the Reelout Arts Project Inc. in 2004 which prides itself on creating future sustainability and growth for the festival itself. Significant milestones included our very own Queen’s University Human Rights Initiative Award honoring the festival in 2006, the Reelout Arts Project Inc. becoming a registered charitable organization and member of Volunteer Canada, and establishing the Reelout in Schools Project in 2008, which is committed to diversity education. Now transpiring at an independent cinema here in the city, it made for an exceptionally intimate setting. The theatre was small, yet effective, and instead of the usual advertisements, a slideshow was displayed and introductions were held before each film, in order to give a brief explanation as to how the festival came to be, who had the honor of being involved, and why it was an important staple to both the LQBTQ+ and the Kingston community. The presentations and films came with a few kinks, such as faulty microphones, faltering volumes, and leaky lights. Usually, these issues would disparage the overall experience, but the authenticity of it all was not lost on us, and these complications only added to the overall purity of the festival. After each movie or video sequence, the organizers held a discussion that attendees could choose to stay for. Moreover, for films that incorporated disturbing or triggering events, there was always a counselor available to speak with, for anyone who chose to do so. It felt gratifying to be a part of something so undeniably impactful. Leaving the theatre, we felt as though we were supporting a legitimate cause, something that can’t be acquired when attending a corporate theatre to watch a big-budget Hollywood film. Being most of our first time attending an independent cinema, it’s fair to say that this unique experience was one for the books, and something we hope to attend for the years to come.

[mygenderstudiesblog-blog]

Gender Studies :)