Trans New Wave Cinema

Introduction 1

Introduction 1

Background to the Trans New Wave emerging 3

The relationship of the Trans New Wave to earlier cinematic waves 8

Historical overview of key films pre-2008 with transsexual

and transgender characters, themes and narratives 12

Characteristics of the Trans New Wave 14

Representational work of trans woman actors in

independent films and streaming video 17

Overview of methodologies and the interdisciplinary approach 21

Thinking across boundaries 23

2 Transliteracy 34

Foundations of Transliteracy 34

Understanding the cultural contexts for independent trans cinema 38

Transliteracy and textual exegesis 43

Epistemological cinema 44

Ontological cinema 48

3 Key Texts of the Trans New Wave 62

Overview 62

Fictional, narrative short, animation, drama 65

Factual, documentary films, docu-drama 68

Uplifting lives: Black Trans Lives Matter 69

Use of life cycle narratives as a representational structure for documentary: three representations of transmasculinity (selected case study text Trans Boys) 77

Experimental & performance art films 82

Music on screen 84

Use of genres: road trip, science fiction, horror (selected case study text The Thing) 86

The 'real' and 'reality' 90

Use of the road movie genre as a representational metaphor for transitioning 94

Recurrent themes & tropes 97

4 First Nations and Indigenous Trans Cinema 111

First Nations and Indigenous trans cinema 111

Transliterate approaches to reading films from non-western and First Nations filmmakers 111

Two Spirit and Third Gender cinema 117

5 Gender-Diverse Youth Narratives 132

The significance of the emerging body of cinematic narratives focused upon transgender youth 132

Screen families Tomgirl (Jeremy Asher Lynch, USA, 2015)

and Raising Ryland (Sarah Feeley, USA, 2015) 133

Temporal considerations 140

The role of education 141

6 Cinematic Ethnogenesis 148

Birth of a new cinema 149

Countercultures: screening independent trans cinema 152

Overview of key international independent queer and transgender film festivals 155

The reciprocal interaction of audiences and texts 158

How classifications (ratings) systems may impact independent filmmakers and film festivals: overview of differences between the Australian, United Kingdom and American Systems 160

Non-hegemonic cinema-whose community decides who sees the film? 173

Trans new wave as reparative cinema 175

7 Cinematic Futures 190

Developing a canon of representation of gender diversity and sexualities 190

Sexing the Transman (Buck Angel, USA, 2011) 192

Trans Boys (Ali Russell and Monique Schafter, Aus., 2012)

Dex's story 196

Community Action Centre (A. K. Burns, A. L. Steiner, USA, 2010) 198

Cinema on demand 201

The democratisation of distribution 202