Kiwi LGBT short film, Actually Alex, has been selected for an international film festival. Photo Credit: Annie Jamieson The short film about gender transition has been selected as part of the Chicago Pride Films and Plays Queer Bits festival which aims to change lives through the generation of diverse new work focusing on LGBT characters or themes that is essential viewing for all audiences. The film is about Alex, whose best friend from childhood has tracked him down, although he isn’t ready to share a secret which has kept him in hiding. He urges his girlfriend to make herself scarce, and tries to hide evidence of who he really is, pretending to be a grown up version of the girl he was born. However, eventually Alex finds the courage to drop the charade. Directed by Ness Simons and starring Cole Meyers, Tameka Sowman “Filming in August 2014 was the beginning of my return to acting, and was also what inspired me to begin writing and creating work as a way of increasing the positive and authentic representations of trans people,” he says. “The amazingly supportive and understanding nature of the director and other cast and crew really solidified ideas I'd been having about how best to increase the number of trans people writing about and acting in our own narratives, and the huge need to shape ways to support trans people interested in developing these talents within a safe, healing, trans-lead model. He says opportunities like this are extremely important for the trans community. “Increases in visibility for trans people can be great, but actually ends up being dangerous (especially so for transfeminine people of colour) unless this increase in visibility includes authentic, trans-portrayed roles and trans-created narratives, and is matched with an increase in legal rights, access to medical care and support services,” he says. “I also hope that people watching this movie realise how important it is that the increase in fictional representations of trans experiences in the media must include trans voices and talent- and that trans people might see in it the possibility of their own creative dreams.” The film received funding from the New Zealand Film Commission. Check out the trailer below.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Wednesday, 28th October 2015 - 2:13pm