What inspired you to make Turning?

I wanted to make a film that dealt with the pain of marginalization without being defined by those experiences, or defining that aspect of you as something negative. I decided to make it poetic and focus on the emotional, because I think emotional experiences are how we connect with each other, and I that way becomes something that can be very personal and at the same time universal. I was commissioned to make a film about the impacts of homo- bi- and transphobia on young people, so I wanted to make a film that could in some way touch on all those diverse experiences, without being too specific or prescriptive about what those experiences might be. I used my own experiences as inspiration, and also held two workshops with young people at Gendered Intelligence, a youth club for trans and non-binary people. In the workshops we brainstormed and did free associations around what sounds, images and colors came up when we thought about the themes of the film. 

What is your ideal future for trans and non-binary representation in media?

Ideal future would be moving away from stereotypes – both stereotypical representation and the need to always relate to them is some way (as in having a pressure to ‘disprove’ stereotypes for example). I would like to see trans and non-binary people representative realistically in a myriad of different ways, and not always defined by their gender identity, which I think in a sense contributes the idea that your gender identity “means” something, says something about who you are. But ultimately I think representation is a means to en end, rather than an end in itself. I think for things to change there also needs to be better representation behind the screen, and an examination of the process of making films and media, and what structural obstacles and assumptions have been built into that process. 

What’s next for you as a filmmaker or as an artist?

I’ve just finished with the treatment for my next short film, a semi-documentary queer film noir based on a puppetry play I wrote and directed a few years back! Currently working on the script, and looking for a producer and some funding for it. I’m also putting on an experimental film screening for kids and young people at Deptford Cinema in London, and trying to see if I can start an experimental film collective/mentoring program off the back of it if it’s successful… it’s the first screening I’m putting on so will see how it goes! I’ve also got two films doing the festival circuit, so hoping to find some good way of distributing them after the festival runs is over.

What inspired you to make Trans 128?

I was inspired to make Trans 128 to showcase my sis Frida. We would go out often and I thought it would be fun to work on something together with Frida as the writer. We both agreed that clubs/nightlife spaces for T/Q/NB folks were sanctuary spaces for us. 

What is your ideal future for trans and non-binary representation in media?

That trans/non binary folks have full control of their stories and are not some “prop” or for voyeuristic means. The ideal future would be to see more trans/non-binary directors, actors, producers and stories that connect back to the communitys’ resistance, survival and 3-dimmensions. 

What’s next for you as a filmmaker or as an artist?

I’ve never had formal film training. I learned via a few night school courses at City College (shout out to CCSF). Now I’m currently in a fellowship program where I am receiving training at the La Femis film school in Paris, France and the Filmakademie in Germany. Here I hope to sharpen my tools as a producer and will bring to life a commissioned project for Arte–a public Franco-German broadcaster. 

What inspired you to make Get Off My Turf?

After making 100+ trans related non-fiction (documentary and campaign) films, I wanted to collaborate on a fiction to be able to explore trans issues in a less restrictive and more creative format.  It felt important to make something domestic, about ’the girl next door’, in an attempt to normalise being trans. It was also an opportunity to give a direct response to the same old anti-trans rhetoric which we are seeing from a vocal minority in the UK at the moment. 

What was the greatest joy or happy surprise while making this film?

This film was made entirely by trans people. It was such an unexpected treat working with Persia West, a trans woman, who used to be filmed for whiskey ads in Japan as ’the sophisticated man about town’ who now runs a podcast called The Masks of Gender. Persia brought so much to the table and we reworked scenes with her to make things flow better and she really got into her anti-trans character. 

What was the greatest challenge or fear while making this film?

We had all the camera kit and editing capabilities, we just didn’t have a budget. So the lack of funds dictated how we made the film, utilising what was around us. 

What is your ideal future for trans and non-binary representation in media?

I would like to see more support for trans artists and film-makers in the form of mentoring and funding. There are so many stories which deserve acknowledgement. 

What’s next for you as a filmmaker or as an artist?

More fiction! We are setting up a writer’s room to create a fictional series based on a true story about a bunch of trans people taking a road trip in 1975. I also want to make a whole new documentary on being non-binary as there still seems to be so much confusion. Our first feature length doc I Am They was released on youtube for International Non-Binary Awareness Day.

What inspired you to make Boiler?

Boiler was originally made for a New York City based film project called, Visible Poetry Project. Visible Poetry gathers about thirty poets and thirty filmmakers linking them up to create a series of short films that visualize poetry. I participated for the first time in 2018 and had noticed that most filmmakers usually structure their films very similarly. The majority of the shorts feature the poem being read in voiceover over aesthetically corresponding images. I decided going into the project in 2019 that I would attempt something radically different. 

I was paired with a friend of mine and a legendary east village based poet Bob Holman. His poetry has a very specific kind of rhythm to it so I took his poem, Boiler, and broke up each line of the poem into dialogue and created characters and a scenario from that. It was sort of like working backwards, having all the dialogue before even knowing who the characters were or what story they’re in. I left the city to go home for Christmas, terribly stressed as I had absolutely no idea what I was going to do. The poetry gave off a suppressed and frustrated angry feeling to me which felt like a particularly American way of being. Especially around the stress of Christmas time. Christmas night I had random caught Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (1967) on TV and the rest of the story crashed together rather quickly from there.  

What was the greatest joy or happy surprise while making this film?

The greatest accomplishment to me was definitely that out of the fifty something setups we did, only one insert shot wasn’t used. My cinematographer, Max Mooney, has primarily worked as an editor for the last few years so when we sat down to shot list, we essentially just talked about how it would cut and flow. It’s pretty easy with surrealist content like this to get real wishy washy with how you can shoot it but we took the exact opposite route by knowing every single and exactly how and where it would be used in the final cut.      

What was the greatest challenge or fear while making this film?

The main fear with any project I do is always, is this actually going to work? I’ve made a lot of shorts but that never goes away. Especially because I try to make every film I make different from whatever I did last. With this film in particular though, it was the directing of performances. My goal for the performances was to exclusively direct the emotions of the actors and have them push those emotions through the dialogue. It was a real challenge to try and explain to the actors that by getting the progression of emotions and rhythm of their movements right, they would create the meaning of what they were saying. I think it was pretty tough for them to understand what the hell I was talking about until they finally saw the film. Those four actors are real troopers for going along with it though. If they didn’t, I don’t think the film would’ve been nearly as impactful as it is. 

What are one or two of your favorite films? What makes those films great?

This is a real tough one as my favorite film is always changing. I’ll name six that are always circulating as my ‘favorite’: 

Mister Lonely (2007), The Master (2012), Sexy Beast (2000), The Shining (1980), Europa (1991), The Holy Mountain (1973). 

I’m sure by the time I send this answer in I’ll immediately think of other films I probably should’ve put on that list but these films came to mind first so I’ll stick with those for now. 

What makes any film a great film for me is walking away from it being changed. Seeing and looking at things with a new perspective you never could’ve imagined before. Having the film’s aesthetic burned into the way you see the world. I was once told by other filmmakers that by now I’d be disillusioned with cinema but those folks could’ve have been more wrong. It’s still pure magic to me that a series of 2D pictures on a screen can change life as you know it. 

What is your ideal future for trans and non-binary representation in media?

An ideal future would be to see more trans and non-binary folks in roles that make no mention of their gender. It is increasingly important that there is always media telling stories of the experience of trans and non-binary people. I also believe that if the world generally saw more trans and non-binary people in media, that was not specifically about their gender but rather just showcasing an actor in an engaging story, we would see a lot more of the hateful people in the world drop their deceased stigmas and reservations against the trans and non-binary community.   

What’s next for you as a filmmaker or as an artist?

I’m constantly on the hunt for a new project that might catch my interest. Most currently, I’m in postproduction on a short music documentary for a rock band I frequently collaborate with called Floam and I’m beginning preproduction a new comedy/noir short film called, The Big Sweet, that I hope to be shooting by mid-December. I have a line up of other projects I’d like to be working towards but I feel if I mention those too soon they might not happen!

What inspired you to make Transfinite?

When my six-year-old niece, Aditi Bhuman, was at a temple with her grandmother a few years ago, she asked her grandmother who one of the statues was. “That is
Ardhanariswarudu, half woman-half man god,” her grandmother explained. My niece
immediately responded with, “Oh that god is just like Neelu Atha.” The seed of the idea for Transfinite to celebrate these everyday joyful moments is rooted in this real life experience.

I am painfully aware that the majority of films centering trans and gender diverse people of colour focus on trauma, death, or ridicule and I wanted to make work that focuses on the strength, resilience, beauty, joy, intelligence, difference and love that trans* people of colour have been bringing to this world. With all the bigotry dividing humans in every way possible, my intention was to create a platform for collaboration, connection, healing, and empowerment through art making. I chose the omnibus format because it beautifully reflects the prismatic nature of our multicultural communities in all their intersectional glory.

What was the greatest joy or happy surprise while making this film?

The greatest joy was bringing this kickass group of majorly talented trans and gender
diverse people of color together to pop out this radiant child called TRANSFINITE.
Among many, here are a few happy surprises: witnessing the enthusiasm and growth in myself and many of my collaborators. For example, Lida Vala, did not even want to
engage at first because she has never written a screenplay before, after a bit of coaxing she jumped in and now she is actively writing and pitching projects. Similarly, Ryka Aoki didn’t think she’d make a great actress and now she’s afraid everyone will think she’s old because she played the lead role of Japanese-American Grandma so fabulously; and to work with Blossom C. Brown on her first film acting role was pure joy. Another massive surprise is how smoothly everything went considering I worked on production in CA, post-production in London and South India with vastly different teams – saying a big fuck you to all the dreadfully terrifying indie filmmaking stories. Lastly, it continues to expand the Transfinite family around the world reflecting my life as a perpetual immigrant artist.

What was the greatest challenge or fear while making this film? Greatest challenge was repeatedly overcoming self-doubt and uncertainties during production while having absolutely no financial support. One of my main fears was about who and what I would lose by making something so radically different. It was a constant internal fight to calm myself by reminding myself that most people probably won’t give a shit and the film will go unnoticed. In terms of the film “industry” and mainstream LGBTQ+ press, Transfinite has achieved this. In terms of POC, trans, gender diverse community, I am beyond grateful to hear how the film has inspired and put so many under a magic spell. In line with the generally pervading trans*fear, I was afraid of the sheer violence it might evoke from bigoted audiences.

What are one or two of your favorite films? What makes those films great

1957 Telugu film Mayabazaar from my childhood is my all time favorite, it is the first film that introduced me to the absolutely playful seduction of spontaneous switching of genders. Since then I have been convinced that bending gender in whichever way one wishes given the context is the ultimate superpower. Smile. You know, like so much of the sea life – from limpets, anemones, corals, fish – slugs, frogs, snakes, butterflies, birds and lobsters, the list goes on.

What is your ideal future for trans and non-binary representation in media?

I want our future in the media to be beyond representation, to be of freedom and power to choose how we engage with it.

What’s next for you as a filmmaker or as an artist?

Begging. LOL. As my thumbi D’Lo reminded me, I am good at it. Though not seen as
overtly sexy, I will be putting my efforts into becoming a better beggar – for funding, for
collaborators and subjects for my next project. I am hoping to attend IDFA 2019 in
November to learn about bringing an urgent trans* themed docu-fiction film idea into
fruition.

What inspired you to make Unbecoming?

When it comes to documentaries, subjects related to personal life, gender and sexuality have always been fascinating to me. I always knew that I want the subject of at least my first film to be about the LGBTQ+ community. And I personally believe that the trans and non-binary folks definitely need a louder voice, not only in the media and in society in general, but even within the LGBTQ+ community itself. With that in mind, I started looking for trans individuals who were eager to tell their stories through my project. So, I put flyers all over downtown Toronto, I posted my idea on different social media platforms, and I eventually connected with the Pride Toronto organization, which is a not-for-profit organization that supports the LGBTQ+ community of the city of Toronto and beyond. They were extremely helpful by sharing my flyer on their social media page and connecting me with potential subjects for the short documentary. I was flattered by the number of emails I received from trans and non-binary individuals, with beautiful and inspiring stories, who wanted to participate in the project. I chose around ten of those to meet in person and I remember that Logan was the fourth and the last person that I met. Although each person I met or heard from had amazing stories to share, the second I heard about Logan’s journey I knew I had no choice other than to tell this wonderful and inspiring story to the world.

What was the greatest joy or happy surprise while making this film?

I was not expecting this project to have such an important effect on me as a person and on my personal life to be honest. Alongside the film, I not only learned more about the trans and non-binary community and their struggles, I also learned a lot from Logan as an individual. I myself was dealing with a bit of depression and an anxiety disorder within the year previous to directing Unbecoming. Getting close to Logan, becoming friends with him and watching him be the positive, hopeful and strong person that he is, taught me how to deal with a lot of my own problems that I was struggling with at the moment.

What was the greatest challenge or fear while making this film?

Identifying as a cis-gender person myself, in the early stages of directing Unbecoming, I often had the fear of not being able to show the true essence of Logan’s journey. There was this whisper in the back of my head asking me “Are you really the perfect person to tell this story?”. Fortunately, with time and by getting myself much much more involved in the trans community and by including Logan himself in the process of finishing the project, I finally got the confidence that “I AM the right person to tell this story”, and I’m very glad that I did.

What are one or two of your favorite films? What makes those films great?

Rather than naming a films, I personally prefer to mention directors. One of the directors that I greatly appreciate has always been the one and only Agnès Varda, who unfortunately passed away recently. Her ability to touch such serious subjects, such as feminist issues, with her unique sense of humour and her talent in making a very educating but at the same time super entertaining (even funny at times) project was always mesmerizing for me.

What is your ideal future for trans and non-binary representation in media?

As I mentioned, I have always believed that trans and non-binary folks are definitely in need of a stronger visibility in the media and a louder voice in our society. In the past two decades, we have seen how stronger rolls for gay and lesbian individuals in the media could help with a better acceptance of such communities in the society. People are scared of the unknown. In general, as humans, we are not comfortable with the unfamiliar and with what we haven’t seen often before. Media can play a huge roll in helping with the acceptance of minorities in the society, and the trans and non-binary folks are without a doubt one of the most in need of a stronger voice in our day and time.

What’s next for you as a filmmaker or as an artist?

I am for sure planning to continue making documentaries. Right now, there are two seperate stories that I’m very excited to tell through my next projects and they are in the stages of research and development. When will they get to the stage of shooting and editing depends on a lot of things, including a budget to be honest. I shot, edited and produced Unbecoming myself on a zero-budget but doing that again without funding may be a bit challenging. You never know though 🙂

What inspired you to make The Drum Tower?

I was totally inspired by the two talented transgender actor/actress. I worked with Xiaomi in my previous documentary Papa Rainbow, and met Kacchan at the screening of the same film. Even though neither of them is “professional”, but I just couldn’t help to image them in a film. Then I wrote this script. The idea in the beginning was just a coming of age love story, but while I was doing research for the script, I was fascinated by the change of the city. Many small businesses in Beijing are shut down, a lot of people are kicked out from the city. They are the most marginalized groups in our society, same as transgender community, So I tried to have both of the topics included, giving each other an echo.

What was the greatest challenge or fear while making this film?

Before shooting, we talked a lot with the art department about how to make the blocking of Xiaomi’s shop looks more realistic, but suddenly she really got a notice to close down her shop (so the notice you see in the film was for real). Then we started to worry that we have to shoot it before it shut. Also we were shooting in the hottest days in Beijing, there were so many mosquitos around us. I really appreciate everyone who helped in this project.

What is your ideal future for trans and non-binary representation in media?

In my film I made Kacchan, a transgender person to play a cis-gender role. Because in the film industry there is a big cliché of having cis-gender people play transgender role. Why it doesn’t happen the other round more? I hope one day we can break the boundary of gender in the film and media industry. In order to reach that, we need to put more diverse of questions and challenges on the way.

What’s next for you as a filmmaker or as an artist?

I’m preparing two new short films. One of them is a porn against racism.

What inspired you to make Sweet & Tender Hooligan? 

I have been working on this idea for a while now. It is a subject that is close to my life and a journey that I feel needs to be taken. It is my coming out film as a LBGTQ Latinx director. 

What was the greatest joy or happy surprise while making this film? 

The Greatest thing is the people who are making this film with me really believe in the work and my vision and that makes me feel really good and supported.

What was the greatest challenge or fear while making this film? 

The Greatest challenge is time while in production getting all the coverage I need to make a great piece.

What are one or two of your favorite films? 

“I am Cuba”, “Fahrenheit 451” by Truffaut   

What makes those films great?

with ” I am Cuba” I went on a journey I have never been on in film. Knowing what I know about making films the shots in the movie with the resources they had at the time are incredible and masterful, some of the greatest films of today cannot compare even with all the modern technology.  With “Fahrenheit 451” I was very into the book and reading when I was young which lead to my love of filmmaking , the book was an amazingly chilling representation of a future that is not inconceivable. The main actress Julie Christie was very talented in pulling off playing both a protagonist and antagonist in the same film.

What is your ideal future for trans and non-binary representation in media?

I would hope that it becomes a mainstream fixture of our society instead of being on the fringes. I would hope that all marginalized parts of society such as women, people of color and the LBGTQ community would become so common place that we no longer see the color or sexuality or gender of a person just what they are as a human being.  

What’s next for you as a filmmaker or as an artist? 

I am in the process of turning “Sweet and tender Hooligan” into a feature film.

What inspired you to make Run!?

I began making “RUN!” around the time that Trump announced banning trans people from serving in the military. Mainstream LGBT activists were protesting for the right to serve in the military, while radical queer organizers, such as https://queertranswarban.wordpress.com/, were responding with sharp anti-military critiques. From a queer, anti-war perspective, “RUN!” uses a nonlinear film structure to examine how military ideology and technology shapes civilian life. 

What was the greatest joy or happy surprise while making this film?

The greatest joy of making “RUN!” has been collaborating with the cast, crew, and 16mm lab technicians. So many talented people came together to make this film happen, and it’s been incredible to see how their skills and ideas have shaped the film.

What was the greatest challenge or fear while making this film?

As labs have had to phase out of various technologies, filming and finishing on 16mm has been stressful and technically complicated. I am very grateful to all the labs for their patience with this project. 

What are one or two of your favorite films? What makes those films great?

Two of my favorite experimental 16mm films are “The Dragon is the Frame” by Mary Helena Clark and “Reckless Eyeballing” by Christopher Harris. I show them to my students at least once per semester and find myself completely immersed in the ideas and mesmerized by the structure, images, and sound design each time. 

What is your ideal future for trans and non-binary representation in media?

Every trans and non-binary person who wants to make films should have access to the tools and resources to do so!

What’s next for you as a filmmaker or as an artist?

“RUN!” is the first film in a series of “mythographies” of US colonialism, tourism, white supremacy, and the global climate chaos. I will be filming at Alcatraz this winter. 

I will also continue to collaborate with Nathan Hill, as part of the audio/visual project “Vitreous Chamber.”