The Upcoming Film About Black Trans Activist Marsha P. Johnson Looks Absolutely Legendary
After protests over the erasure of trans women of color from Robert Emmerich’s Stonewall, expectations are high for the short film Happy Birthday, Marsha!, about trans activist Marsha P. Johnson. If the trailer’s any indication, this movie will slay!
Marsha features acclaimed Tangerine star Mya Taylor in the title role.
The trailer shows off a sumptuous, hyper-real 60’s aesthetic.
The film also features trans actresses Eve Lindley, Cherno Biko, and Rios O’Leary-Tagiuri.
There’s even a glimpse of Marsha P. Johnson herself in the trailer!
That’s right — it’s gonna be legendary.
BuzzFeed News caught up with filmmakers Reina Gossett and Sasha Wortzel, who showed us some wonderful exclusive images from the making of the movie.
Gossett told BuzzFeed News: “The pictures were all taken during the shooting of our ‘Hotel Dixie’ scene in which Marsha, Sylvia, Bambi and Andorra are hanging out in a hotel room they share.The scene is a flashback to 1965 when Sylvia is new to their scene and to sex work. Marsha is acting a as a sort of mentor to Sylvia.”
Commenting on the rich look of the film, Gossett notes: “We wanted the movie to reflect Marsha’s beauty. She wasn’t really fancy but she was fanciful, and when we talk about aesthetics it’s about the beauty of how she relates to other people.”
Wortzel adds: “Frequently people expect that if a film is political it’s not going to be beautiful. It was really important for us to make a film that was deeply political and personal in many ways but also gorgeous to look at.”
Happy Birthday Marsha is currently raising funds on Indiegogo, to make sure the film will be as amazing and beautiful as possible.
WE DID IT
Fuck yes! It’s about damn time!
FLOAT The Movie
If you are able to you should consider donating to this kickstarter to help fund the production of a great trans short film project! they’ve reached 6,200 of their $7,500 goal and there are are only 14 days left to go!
For those of you craving a movie with a nonbinary protagonist, My Prairie Home (2013) is a musical documentary about Rae Spoon’s journey as a trans person and a musician.
‘I Am’ (2014) - Positive Visibility Matters
This beautiful and poignant film was commissioned by TENI (Transgender Equality Network Ireland) and is a conversational piece which explores identity.
#OUTINTHENIGHT #NJ4
Anyone got deets on this film?
Here’s what I got from the Facebook:
OUT IN THE NIGHT (formerly titled The Fire This Time) follows the journey of a group of African American teenagers who went to a gay-friendly neighborhood in New York City for a night out. These lesbian and gender non-conforming friends, Patreese, Renata, Terrain and Venice, were confronted by an older man on the street. They defended themselves. Strangers jumped in to support them and a fight ensued. Only the women were rounded up by police and charged and convicted as perpetrators of gang assault. They became known as The New Jersey 4.
OUT IN THE NIGHT follows their journey to Rikers Island, to the courtroom, and through slanderous media coverage that labeled them a “Wolfpack” and “Lesbian Gang”. While exploring the fight from all sides through the security camera footage that captured it, that hot August night in 2006 can be seen from many perspectives. But our film’s purpose is to examine the events after the fight: biased media coverage likening the women to “man-hating” animals, and unprecedentedly harsh sentencing by the court. This story shows how four young, queer women of color were unfairly criminalized for defending themselves.It’s currently running the film festival circuit, but you can keep checking the website for new screenings: www.outinthenight.com
