Trans in Film and Video 8/22/22
Maines in character.
In June of 2018 Nicole Maines was cast as a series regular in The CW show, Supergirl. She portrayed Nia Nal/Dreamer, the first transgender superhero on television. Since the finale of the show in 2021 we’ve wondered what Nicole has been doing. This year she was cast as a recurring character and appeared in four episodes of the Freeform show Good Trouble. Rotten Tomatoes said this about the show, “Good Trouble is a spinoff that leaves the nest and takes graceful flight, bringing a deft comedic touch to the trials and tribulations facing Generation Z.” Maines portrays Liza Davis, a project manager working on Revitalize Beauty, an environmentally friendly beauty app. Liza is the boss of new hire Mariana who is the star of the show played by Cierra Ramirez. The show runs on the cable TV channel Freeform, formerly known as ABC Family. It is a spin off of The Fosters. Check it out to see Nicole Maines showcase her girl boss side.
Candy Darling
She was young, beautiful, part of Andy Warhol’s entourage, and she was transgender. Why did it take so long for the story of Candy Darling to come to the silver screen? We don’t know but we can say the wait is almost over. A biopic starring Hari Neff as Candy is now in pre-production. The as-yet untitled film will follow Candy Darling from her youth on Long Island to the bright lights of Manhattan where she became Andy Warhol’s muse and appeared in several of Warhol’s film. Tennessee Williams cast her in his play Small Craft Warnings. She appeared in Tom Eyen’s production of The White Whore and the Bit Player, acted in Klute alongside Jane Fonda, and starred in Lady Liberty with Sophia Loren. Candy Darling died on March 21, 1974 of lymphoma. She was only 29-years-old. Get more info on her life from the website russh.
Mason Alexander Park as Desire.
Mason Alexander Park, last seen as Gren on the live action Cowboy Be Bop reboot on Netflix returns to the streamer as part of the large cast of The Sandman. Park is playing Desire, one of the most famous non-binary characters in modern pop culture. The Sandman early 1990s comics series by Neil Gaiman, follows Dream/Morpheus (Tom Sturridge) the king of dreams. Dream is one of the seven Endless, a family of personifications of powerful forces in the universe. The others include Death, Delirium, Despair, Destiny, Destruction and Park’s Desire. In the comic Desire was drawn as an androgynous being, sometimes appearing as a man, sometimes as a woman, and now and then as some combination of genders. Park’s portrayal of Desire as a woman is much sexier than their portrayal of Gren in Cowboy Be Bop. Learn more about them and the show from Xtra. The Sandman is now streaming on Netflix.
Scott Turner Schofield is a trans man and Hollywood “insider” who acts, produces, and writes for film and the stage. Recently he granted an interview with AV Club in which he discussed the state of transgender representation on film. Read the interview on the AV Club website.
Karla Sofía Gascón
Transgender Spanish actress Karla Sofía Gascón confirmed that she will star alongside Selena Gomez and Zoe Saldaña in an upcoming film from award-winning French writer and director Jacques Audiard (The Sisters Brothers). The film is a musical comedy titled Emilia Pérez. It’s been described as a story about “an El Chapo-type fugitive” who attempts to evade law enforcement by having sex reassignment surgery. Realism evaporates and farce enters from stage left. Using gender change as a disguise may ruffle feathers in the transgender community. The film is shooting in Mexico and won’t be released till next year at the earliest.
Sonja is a Philly-based metal band fronted by ex-Absu guitarist Melissa Moore. Moore was tossed out of Absu when her bandmates learned that she was a trans woman. If you like hard rock and metal Sonja can meet your needs. Their new album, Loud Arriver, comes out on September 23. Here’s a taste called Nylon Nights.
In response to the many bills being introduced and passed into law that ban participation of trans girls in sports he Human Rights Campaign (HRC) collaborated with WarnerMedia to launch a video called Let Us Play. It features transgender youth playing sports with their friends and calls on leaders and legislators in states across the country to just let transgender kids play. Check it out.
Some in the video gaming world have had problems coping with female characters (or male players adopting female roles) and transgender characters. The gaming industry is taking an open minded stance and introducing more transgender characters in substantive roles. Gamerant has a list.
Category: Transgender Fun & Entertainment
About the Author (Author Profile)
Angela Gardner is a founding member of The Renaissance Transgender Assoc., Inc., former editor of its newsletter and magazine, Transgender Community News. She was the Diva of Dish for TGF in the late 1990s and Editor of LadyLike magazine until its untimely demise. She has appeared in film and television shows portraying TG characters, as well as representing Renaissance on numerous talk shows.Subscribe
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