SF Trans Film Fest Program 2: Documentaries

Earth to KB
Earth to KB is a documentary portrait of KB Brookins: a Black, queer, and trans writer and artist from Texas. The film explores the expansive worlds within KB’s poetry, as well as intimate moments shared with their wife, friends, and community in Austin. KB performs selected poems from their collections, Freedom House, and, How To Identify Yourself With a Wound, within the film.
19m
Em Shapiro

Lavender Outlaws
Amidst a wave of violence and restrictive legislation, a group of musicians converge on Nashville, Tennessee, to reveal the true outlaws of country music.
15m
Damon Beirne

My Fierce Aunt Bianca
While planning a birthday party for her late aunt Bianca “Exotica” Maldonado, María José Maldonado revisits the past in order to celebrate and correct Bianca’s legacy as a transgender woman. We follow María José in taking the first steps in fulfilling her promise to Bianca through understanding her childhood as told by Bianca’s mother, Gloria Voelcker, revisiting the fun of New York City in the ’90s as well as the formidable moments with Bianca’s best friend, Nana Nazario, and creating meaning and connection through spiritual practice with Bianca’s niece, Andromeda Rodriguez. Marrying those moments with María José’s fond childhood memories of spending time with Bianca, we experience a visual and auditory tribute to both Bianca herself and their relationship. The film culminates at Bianca’s 57th birthday party and reinforces the copious but, at times, contemptuous love that Bianca—and many trans people today—receive from friends and family.
10m
Maria Jose Maldonado, Latavia Alicia Young

Finding my voice
This short student documentary is a crossed portrait of two transgender women working on their voice to make it sound more feminine and to match the new person they have become. One of them is 67 years-old Bernie Wagenblast, one of New York’s most famous voices. She is one of the male subway voices, heard by millions of commuters every day. She feels comfortable with both her voices. The other character is 25 years-old Jade Stephan, who is currently seeing a voice therapist to help her work on her voice. This film explores their relationship to their voices and how voices can be a factor of integration into society.
10m
Rouven Gueissaz

TRANS ALCHEMY [ALQUIMIA TRANS]
“ALQUIMIA TRANS” is a short documentary that delves into the unique experiences of trans masculine activists across Latin America. Through poignant narratives from individuals in Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Puerto Rico, the film offers a compelling testimony to the challenges and triumphs encountered by trans masculine individuals in the region. Embracing a quiet and minimalist style, “ALQUIMIA TRANS” serves as a meditative exploration of the power of self-discovery. The visual aesthetic has a deliberately subtle quality that functions as if the participants are speaking to and with each other. To present a rich and multidimensional narrative, the film intricately weaves interviews with key figures in Latin American trans masculine advocacy. These brave individuals have faced isolation and challenges amid a scarcity of visibility, resources, and support networks. Despite discrimination, they demonstrate immense courage, pioneering the way for future generations and contributing to the progress of the trans community. The featured leaders, who span a variety of ages, have defied societal norms, leaving an indelible mark on generations of trans masculine individuals. The trans men featured in “ALQUIMIA TRANS” are activists involved in LGBT and trans masculine-specific advocacy in their countries. The film serves as living proof, countering the notion that trans men lack a substantial history of advocacy and empowerment and highlighting the diverse paths to liberation within the trans masculine community.
8m
Félix Endara

Chosen Family
Wes “Byeeeeee Yonic” Haack is a trans man and member of Bay Area Derby, aka BAD, a nonprofit roller derby league that has created a community rarely found in sports: Almost every one of the 20 skaters on BAD’s three teams is queer. Many are trans, an identity that laws being enacted across the country aim to push out of many sports. Multimedia journalist, Salgu Wissmath acting as lead videographer, editor, and producer, worked alongside San Francisco Chronicle multimedia journalist Guy Wathen to visualize a story about finding chosen family and a queer-and trans-affirming community in competitive sports.
5m
Salgu Wissmath

Love Don’t Bully
Middle School students are assigned studying systematic bullying and then decide to make their own film.
8m
Yo-yo Anchondo